Are you tired of watching NBA games that lull you to sleep in the middle of the season? If so, introducing these rule changes that would make the NBA better could bring a jolt into a mid-February contest between the Warriors and Rockets.
Walk This Way
Whenever you watch a game with an elder, their first observation is how every player travels when driving to the lane or double-dribbles as they move the basketball up the court. While the complaint gives you a chuckle, it also makes you wonder what a travel is anyway?
Like a catch in the NFL, no one knows what traveling is anymore. Some movements look like obvious travels, but gifted players use Euro-steps to get away with it. Either strictly enforce traveling violations or turn basketball into a game of rugby without the vicious contact.
Four-Point Line
Stephen Curry may have broken the game of basketball. Mid-range jumpers are outdated, and corner threes and layups account for half the shots in a game. Now is the time to make the three-point shot into what the 15-foot fadeaway is today—an inefficient shot.
A four-point line would allow shooters to showcase their skills more than ever before. If the league is worried a change like this could ruin a whole game, they could incorporate it when there are less than two minutes left in a quarter, limiting the opportunities. Plus, this gives teams a fighting chance if they are down big late in the game. Think of it as basketball’s version of the Hail Mary.
Make Free Throws Fun
What makes college basketball so exciting or frustrating, depending on which side you’re on, is the one-and-one free throw. Nothing gets your heart racing like a one-and-one attempt when your team is down with six seconds to go. Using this in an NBA game puts added pressure on teams late in the game, providing the viewer with more excitement.
If you want to get wild with more free throw changes, you could say that a player that shoots them with their offhand gets two points rather than one. Considering Lebron James is ambidextrous, you can forget his lousy free throw percentage if the Lakers are down four.
Less Is More
It only takes a month for you to separate the contenders from the pretenders, so what’s the point of an 82-game season? Players are taking days off because of load management since the season is too long. Making it shorter gives teams more urgency to perform at their best.
Additionally, the NBA should bring back the five-game series in the first round. Everyone knows the seven-game opening round series is a money grab, and seeing the two-seed beat the seven-seed in five games is a waste of time. If not, shorten the series and at least limit the teams that get in the playoffs.
Each season would be far more exciting if the league instituted these rule changes that would make the NBA better. The ending of games would not be as dull with the free throw and four-point line, and there would be more exciting, with each game meaning something.
