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Pastimes : Basketball Junkie Forum (NBA) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Wildstar who wrote (510)	4/6/2001 11:05:28 AM
From: Thomas M.	Respond to of 2231

Looks like it . . .

To: Wildstar who wrote (510)	4/6/2001 12:38:54 PM
From: 10K a day	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2231

> ...Shawn Bradley - martian LOL!!

To: Wildstar who wrote (510)	4/9/2001 10:09:53 AM
From: Thomas M.	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2231

Rules change could rezone scoring away Jeffrey Denberg - Staff Monday, April 9, 2001 Detroit --- The NBA Board of Governors apparently will legalize zone defenses Thursday. For the NBA, this is heresy. So Hawks president Stan Kasten wants to know "Why isn't anybody upset about this? Why aren't people up in arms?" Kasten says he is inclined to vote yes, even though his heart and mind say no because he remains highly skeptical that eliminating zone restrictions will increase scoring. "I mean if you are expanding the arsenal of defensive weapons coaches can use, how is that going to promote scoring?" He may be willing to go along, he said, because he respects the opinions of the special committee that proposed this monster among accompanying adjustments that are trivial by comparison. "These men are our best and brightest --- Jerry West, Wayne Embry, Rod Thorn, Jack Ramsay, Dick Motta. They feel that this is the way to eliminate slowdowns and isolations. Now, I have plenty of reservations that it will improve the flow of the game and improve scoring because typically the way to break a zone is with long-range shooting," Kasten said. "One thing we've learned, we don't need more perimeter shooting." Kasten said he was told that the new rules will promote passing and movement. The Hawks coaching staff is utterly skeptical of this and is united in its own opposition. In fact, top assistant Gar Heard says, "If they do this, you can expect scores in the 50s and 60s, and I'm not kidding. Guys just can't shoot." What Heard and many others wonder is why the league could not have done away with complicated anti-zone rules and come up with a simple declaration: a defender must be within 6 feet of the man he's allegedly guarding. That worked in the old days and would eliminate the boring isolation offenses that stilt today's game. Hawks general manager Pete Babcock also is against the zone defense. "I think its bad for the game," Babcock said. However, a straw poll after last week's governors meeting indicated about 75 percent approval for the new rules package, which includes a drop to eight seconds to get the ball over half court and elimination of goaltending rules once the ball hits the rim. To prevent 7-2 Dikembe Mutombo or 7-6 Shawn Bradley from camping in the lane, a three-second restriction will be in place, but difficult to enforce. Babcock has been involved in a series of meetings among general mangers in which concern over the defensive changes is being expressed. Some, including Michael Jordan, feel that by legalizing zones, star players' ability to slash through the lane will be negated. The Wizards president of basketball operations said, "It eliminates the marquee players. If you play Vince Carter and Kobe (Bryant), Shaquille (O'Neal) you're going to zone them. One thing they want to eliminate is the isolation play. Isolation, in the past, always has been the flagship of where creativity has come from." Still, Kasten leans toward a yes vote because, "if this is what (the committee) wants, OK. . . . But I'm not at all certain this is going to work."