In a recent media appearance, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver floated multiple ideas that would radically change the league. Of those ideas included shortening quarters to ten minutes instead of 12 minutes and giving players two free throws for a foul on a three-point attempt. In his decade-plus tenure as the league’s commissioner, Silver has been at the forefront of multiple major changes, including coach’s challenges, the NBA Play-In Tournament, and the NBA Cup.
For the entirety of the NBA’s 78-year history, games have been played over 48 minutes, broken into 12-minute quarters. It stands alone in that sense, as college basketball and other professional leagues worldwide play 40-minute games with four ten-minute quarters or two 20-minute halves. Silver stated that this change would help globalize the game and fit better with viewers’ preferences.
Changing the length of games would drastically alter the historical stats in the NBA, as previously held records would become nearly untouchable. The league prides itself on records, with Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game, Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game, or Klay Thompson’s 37-point quarter seen as staples of the NBA game and its players’ dominance. The rule change to 10-minute quarters would be a marker in NBA history, with the league being separated into two groups: the era with 48-minute games and the one with 40-minute games.
The average runtime for NBA games is two hours and 15 minutes, and the new change would allow them to fit in a two-hour window that Silver believes would do better for ratings.
“Putting aside what it would mean for records and things like that, I think that a two-hour format for a game is more consistent for modern television habits,” Silver said. “I don’t think most fans would be disappointed if it was a two-hour presentation.”
Silver also believes that having a universal length for basketball games around the world would be beneficial for the sport. With a ‘more consistent set of rules around the world,’ new players coming into the league would be better suited rather than adapting to longer games and increased playing time.
The NBA has struggled in recent years with star players getting injured or sitting out due to ‘load management,‘ and shorter games would most likely see a drop-off in those types of issues. In this potential world of shortening NBA games, teams would play 656 fewer minutes, equivalent to 13.7 fewer total games. These games would be 17% shorter and result in star players playing close to 28-30 minutes a night rather than the 32-36 minutes they currently average.
Silver clarified that his proposal to shorten the length of the NBA games is just an idea, and it would have trouble ever getting passed. While he has been at the forefront of major changes to the league, it’s hard to say if fans would ever get on board with something as drastic as shortening games.
Along with the idea of changing the length of NBA games, Silver also brought up the idea of changing how many free throws a player gets after getting fouled on a three-point shot. The league has seen a significant increase in three-point shooting in recent years, and many associate it with a drop in viewership. Giving players only two attempts from the free-throw line could disincentivize foul-baiting on long-distance shots.
While this might be a good idea in theory, the league averages less than one foul on three-point attempts per game and would most likely have little to no effect on scoring or the result of a contest. Silver did make it clear that if this change would ever come into effect, it wouldn’t be present in the last two minutes. If implemented, it could give a greater advantage to defenses rather than protecting against players trying to get an easy foul.
As commissioner, Silver has always favored more scoring and exciting offensive play, it is difficult to say if a rule change like this would have any long-term benefits to the game and how it is played. In a credit to Silver, he does seem to understand that fans aren’t happy with the number of three-point shots taken in the average game today, and his idea shows that he is listening to the complaints of those who care about the league.
Since he became NBA commissioner in 2014, Silver has been a leading voice in making changes to the game. In a stark difference from the previous commissioner, David Stern, Silver hasn’t been afraid to take chances or ruffle feathers to make the world’s biggest basketball league more exciting and appealing. One of those ideas was the coach’s challenge, which many fans would agree has benefited games in order for officials to get the right call on a play.
Silver’s recent ideas, such as the Play-In Tournament and NBA Cup, have become a reality. While still in the early stages, both of these have resulted in more basketball games being played that have value. Many might see them as gimmicks, but they’ve helped draw in more viewers and give more teams a chance to compete for something that matters rather than tank the whole season and hope for a high draft pick.
It’s hard to say if the NBA would ever change the length of games, but it’s an idea nonetheless. Silver has proven that he isn’t afraid to think outside the box to improve the league’s product; this idea is another example.
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