Jeff Van Gundy wants to speed up NBA games, but how?
Grab your popcorn and snacks folk, because this take is quite out there. Former NBA head coach and current NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy says he wants to speed up games. But how?
Well, Van Gundy says he would eliminate free throws until the last four minutes of the game and ban technical free throws. He also would eliminate halftime as well, if load management couldn’t get any worse.
(All quotes are from Barstool Sports)
“So my most radical one is to eliminate free throws until the last four minutes,” Van Gundy said. “If you get fouled on a shooting foul, you just get the points. You don’t go to the line. And you don’t go to the line for technical free throws. They’re just points.
“Then I would eliminate halftime. I think halftime is the biggest waste of time. Or I’d reduce it to five minutes so you could go to the bathroom and come back out. This whole idea of what goes on at halftime I think is so misunderstood. It’s a lot of either praising what just happened or correcting. But you could do that in two minutes out by the bench in an elongated timeout.”
Off first impression, is Van Gundy out of his mind? You’re telling me if someone gets fouled, they automatically get the points? That is flat-out stupid. The flopping would get even worse in the NBA, and it would ruin the pressure situations we all know and love. For example, imagine Jimmy Butler’s last three free throws in Game 6 of this year’s Eastern Conference Finals — automatic three points. That’s disgusting.
With Van Gundy’s idea, Joel Embiid and Luka Doncic would be flopping out of their mind. They would average 50 points in this league.
Next, Van Gundy wants to eliminate halftime to speed up the game. I mean, come on, really? Can you imagine the NBA load management crisis with no halftime? Kawhi Leonard would maybe play 30 games in a season.
I somewhat get the halftime argument, but it would be a lot less enjoyable for the fans inside the arena watching the game. It allows them to take a break from watching the game, and grab a bite to eat and use the restroom. Not to mention the NBA players have to do the same thing, a timeout can only rest you so much.
I agree with the speeding up of the game in last-minute situations. In cases of reviewing the time on the clock or a play in the last few minutes because it can be flat out way too long. You don’t need five minutes to determine a call that should take 30 seconds.
Looking at the overall picture, I like the creativity from Van Gundy, but the NBA doesn’t need to be sped up anymore. Plus, players, coaches and more will quickly shut this idea down.
What do you think of this rule? Is Van Gundy right? Should the game be sped up? Let us know in the comments.
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