In a chat with the media for the second annual NBA Emirates Cup this week, league Commissioner Adam Silver spoke up on various topics relating to the game, the league, and potential plans for upcoming changes. He also confirmed, among other things, that the NBA is actively investigating the complaints of too many three-pointers.
“The answer is yes, [we are having] many discussions about the style of basketball [being played],” Silver said, via ESPN. “I would not reduce it to a so-called 3-point shooting issue. I think we look more holistically at the skill level on the floor, the diversity of offense, the fan reception to the game, all of the above.”
It’s no secret that the NBA ratings are down this season and the word on the street is that it’s due to an oversaturation of three-pointers. Fans and analysts are always complaining about the lack of variety in NBA offenses, which are always built around shooting and making as many threes as possible.
For Silver, while he still enjoys watching the games, he can recognize the displeasure of fans and how an oversaturation of one element can sour the experience for viewers.
“I think the game is in a great place. I love watching the games, and I think we have some of the most skilled athletes in the world competing — and it’s unfair, I think, to the players to lump them into categories as 3-point shooters or a midrange shooter or big men playing under the basket. It’s an amazing game. Having said that, we’re constantly having discussions about whether there are ways to improve stylistically the game on the floor.”
The rise of Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors dynasty in 2015 helped spark a three-point revolution that re-defined the game. When teams figured out how powerful the three-pointer was, they all began racing against each other to see who could exploit it the most.
Today, teams are shooting more threes than ever before and practically every player on the floor has to be able to shoot in some capacity. And while this can often sometimes lead to epic, high-scoring shootouts, it more often than not results in a blowout for one side or the other.
What fans would rather see is a variety of playstyles ranging from a defensive-first style to interior-centric scoring like we used to have in the 1990s and early 2000s. By this point, it may be too late to go back to how it used to be but the league is expected to at least consider some changes that will limit just how often teams are chucking it from range.
Of course, it’s much easier said than done to incorporate a policy that will cater to everyone but with so many people advocating for change (including LeBron James), it might be what it takes to stop the decline in viewership. Only time will tell how the NBA adapts but the ideal scenario would be to find a balance between allowing teams to utilize the three-pointer without every team abusing it for all its worth.
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