[MatosParticipant]

 I think it’s safe to say this finals series is over (barring a historical turn of events). And to most its looking like the W’s have this title situation locked up for the next couple of years. Over the past two years this team has been compared to some of the great teams of the past. Difference obviously has been the hand checking rule and many think that the W’s aren’t physical enough (sans Draymond probably) to withstand the physicality that teams from the 80s/90’s displayed. I know a lot of you think LeBron too would not be as dominant because he wouldn’t be getting as many calls. Same for Harden.

So I ask this as a two part question:

1) With the W’s being as dominant as they are, would the league ever consider allowing more physiciality in today’s game similar to that of the 80’s/90’s? 

2) If so, which teams would thrive? Which teams’ stock would plummet?

 

Thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ChewyParticipant]

 1. I don’t see Silver going backwards and allowing more contact. In this current PC culture even the NFL (whose bread and butter is violent hits) is backtracking on physicality. The Warriors are the funnest team to watch (if you throw loyalty bias out the window and just look at playing style). I see more teams focusing on passing and shooting and the NBA protecting teams that are trying to play "pretty" basketball over "gritty" basketball.

2. If the league did become more physical, off the bat, Memphis would be better. Their defense is already amazing. Add handchecking back into the mix and they would be great. Back to the basket bigs would be valued again because there would be less driving lanes and opportunities, which means more half court ball. Players like Oakafor and Vucevic would have more value. 

 

[losnopesosParticipant]

 glad to see someone else see that the wussification of the NBA and basketball in general is due to the PC culture.  

[zcnumerounoParticipant]

I honestly hope they do, but this would hurt the NBA in the wallet. Hardcore basketball purists may enjoy it, but the fairweathered fan wants to see high scoring games with lots of 3s.

Hardcore basketball purists will always watch the NBA (the same with any other sport), and the NBA knows it. Fairweathered fans, on the other hand, won’t necessarily. And these fans want a ton of scoring.

So, no, I don’t see it happening, although I would definitely approve of it.

[SubZeroParticipant]

I and lot of other people would like it because we miss the grittiness and physicality, but fairweather fans who just want to see 3s and 120 point games wouldn’t which would be bad for the league as a business

[GronounoursParticipant]

 I’ve always been in favor of hand-checking in general, so why not in basketball? 

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 I don’t think it would be possible, even if he wanted to. You have to remember that there was never a rule in place that allowed you to hand-check a guy in the 80s and 90s. It just wasn’t something that the refs enforced as strictly back then. When the game began to be too physical and cluttered in the late 90s, it became a point of emphasis for the refs to enforce the rule that was already in place. And it wasn’t something that happened overnight. It took years for the refs and NBA teams to adjust, and for the game to evolve into the style we see today.

So Adam silver couldn’t just decide to reinstate the rule that allows players to hand check because there was never a rule in place to begin with. He would have to meet with the refs to de-emphasise freedom of movement and allow more physical play. But still, you are talking about a very fine line between what is a foul and what isn’t and it is still completely to the refs discretion to decide. So even if that were to happen, it would likely take years for refs to adjust and even longer to have any real substantial impact on playing style.

 

[MatosParticipant]

 Understood. I wasn’t implying a flip of the switch. I was just pondering if it was a possibility to have the game ref’d similarly to that of the 80s/90s. Nonetheless, it would still take some time to adjust and I completely understand where everyone is coming from in regards to it not likely because of the casual fans and money.

[nill650Participant]

 half of the allstars of today would be role players.

[Author]

Posts