The NBA BOG yesterday "approved a rule to decrease the number of timeouts per game from 18 to 14," according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com The league also "passed a rule that limits timeouts in the final two minutes of the game to two per team, down from three per team." NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the latest change is aimed at the "pace and flow of the game." Silver: "(Previous changes) in essence quietly got the length of our game down from two hours and 23 minutes to about two hours and 15 minutes, so we are pretty happy with the length of the game. (With this latest rules change) we were more focused on the pace and flow of the game and what we heard from our fans and many of our teams, what we heard was that the end of the games in particular were too choppy." He added, "These new changes will have a significant impact, especially at the end of the game." In OT, teams "previously had three timeouts but that's been reduced to two." The BOG also "approved moving the trade deadline from the Thursday after the NBA All-Star Game to the Thursday 10 days before the game." Silver said that the NBA "moved its trade deadline up to help any players that are traded at the deadline" (ESPN.com, 7/12). In Boston, Gary Washburn notes the league "shortened halftime breaks to 15 minutes, with the clock beginning the moment halftime begins." Meanwhile, Silver said that the league has "no intentions of taking conference affiliation out of playoff seedings, meaning the Eastern and Western conferences will still remain" in determining playoff matchups. Silver added that the season "would start on Oct. 17, one week earlier than last season" (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/13).
FOR THE GOOD OF THE GAME: The AP's Jon Krawczynski wrote the NBA is "finally taking steps to make sure crunch time doesn't get bogged down by commercial time." Silver said that the "full complement of commercial-showing opportunities will still be available to the league's broadcast partners" (AP, 7/12). In Charlotte, Rick Bonnell writes the NBA "took at least a baby step" toward "avoiding the last two minutes of games lasting 10 or more minutes in real time" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 7/13). In DC, Tim Bontemps writes the "goal of all of these moves is to try and streamline the game from start to finish, all while allowing the league’s television partners to continue to make as much money as they can from commercial breaks" (WASHINGTON POST, 7/13). In Chicago, Mike McGraw writes the changes "could lead to more exciting finishes ... in theory, anyway." The point of starting the season earlier is to "stretch out the schedule" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 7/13). In Oklahoma City, Berry Tramel writes fewer timeouts at the end of games is a "memorable gift" for fans. Tramel: "Drama delayed is drama denied, so the new format figures to keep the games humming" (OKLAHOMAN, 7/13). SI.com's Ben Golliver noted the new changes "represent a win from the viewer's perspective" (SI.com, 7/12). THE RINGER's O'Shaughnessy & Uggetti wrote under the header, "The NBA Is Making Some Significant Changes Next Season, And We Have A Few Questions" (THERINGER.com, 7/12).
NBA NOTES: Silver "reiterated that neither relocation nor expansion" is in the NBA's "plans right now, and that there's no focus on putting a team in Las Vegas anytime soon." However, he added that when the NBA "looks to grow in the future, and it will, the league will look at the Las Vegas market -- which it has been fond of for years, especially the role it plays in the summer league" (AP, 7/12). Silver also addressed the "trends of teams that are heading back to urban centers after once leaving for the suburbs," which includes the Pistons moving to Detroit beginning this season. Silver: "It’s a great trend for the country. I think it’s a great trend for the league. I think we’re seeing it makes these arenas more accessible -- whether accessible through public transportation. They’ve become part and parcel with the energy in the heart of these cities. They’re multi-use facilities; they get people to all kinds of events. They’re modern city centers in many ways" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 7/13). Silver addressed Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban's comments about tanking, saying, "It’s not what you want to hear as commissioner. I will say that Mark has a long track record of being provocative, and it was something that we spoke to him directly about. I think he acknowledged it was a poor choice of words." In May, Cuban said, "Once we were eliminated from the playoffs, we did everything we could to lose games" (NBCSPORTS.com, 7/12). Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, Keith Pompey cites a source as saying that the 76ers are "expected to play" the Celtics in a regular season game at London's O2 Arena on Jan. 11 (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 7/13).
