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I suspect that the league will eventually change the rules to allow side outs instead of free throws.
It will get rid of "hack a player" and cleanup those game ending where the last 60 seconds of game time takes 25 minutes.
http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on...anging-intentional-foul-rules-im-on-the-fence
It will get rid of "hack a player" and cleanup those game ending where the last 60 seconds of game time takes 25 minutes.
http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on...anging-intentional-foul-rules-im-on-the-fence
It's easy to say that players just need to make their free throws. If you're not personally invested in the quality of the product, then that's a risk-free position to take. If you're in Silver's position, though, it should be clear that something needs to be done. It'll ultimately be up to the competition committee, but let's think about this logically for a minute. Every rule change the NBA has instituted in the last couple of decades has been about speeding up the game, encouraging ball movement, facilitating a more aesthetically pleasing brand of basketball. If the league wanted to do something about slow-it-down, isolation ball, why in the world would it be OK with totally disrupting the rhythm of games so we can watch big men brick free throws?
You can't blame teams for employing the tactic, but let's remember that one of its chief practitioners, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, has said it looks awful. He and others will continue doing it, though, until the league decides to make sure it's not a winning proposition. We're at the point where the Boston Celtics decided to intentionally foul Cleveland Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson away from the ball in the first quarter of a playoff game on Thursday, so I'd say it's time.
You can't blame teams for employing the tactic, but let's remember that one of its chief practitioners, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, has said it looks awful. He and others will continue doing it, though, until the league decides to make sure it's not a winning proposition. We're at the point where the Boston Celtics decided to intentionally foul Cleveland Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson away from the ball in the first quarter of a playoff game on Thursday, so I'd say it's time.