What does the NBL hope to achieve by changing the timing. Is it that they are looking to cut the venue hire and electricity bill? Unless someone can explain what logical benefits there are for the game of basketball, then why change?
Change for the sake of change is plain stupidity.

Is it to fall in line with FIBA?

Brings the NBL in line with other competitions (all but the NBA?) and might make games more attractive for showing on TV.

I still don't like the idea much though.

Reckon fans will get cheaper tickets because they're watching shorter games? I doubt it!

The NBL - and most senior professional leagues - are more about entertainment than pure basketball, hence the longer games. Dumb move.

If you would think that an average score was 100 (with Goorjian teams scoring more like 85-90), then with game time reducing down to 83% of previous, you could expect that scoring will go down to more like 85 average (with Dragons aiming for 70-75 a game).

I know that high scoring doesn't mean a good game, but for the average "punter" (and I would also include myself in that), I would much rather see a 125/122 game (with minimal defence played) than a grind em out 84/81 game.

To me, I think that although this would bring us in line with FIBA and International Games, it could possibly not bring in new spectators to the games. A lot of people may just think the standard slipped, not that the games were shorter.

I also think Isaac's point about minutes could be important. In the shorter game, there is only 200 minutes per team to share, not the current 240 minutes. If the 5 starters play their 32-35 minutes a game, you only need a total of 35-50 minutes off the bench, meaning positions 9-12 are very unlikely to see the court (even in blowouts). Will that help the development of the younger guys?

I for one will be eagerly awaiting my 17% discount on season tickets!

Stupid idea, totally senseless.

Perhaps with less minutes to spread around there will be less minutes played by the 9-10 guys, and even the 6-8 guys. This would mean those guys would demand less salary, and the 1-5 guys could be paid more, thus luring a higher quality player to our shores. It may also improve the standard of games because the 1-5 guys and the first few benchies would see many more minutes.

One upside I guess

Any word on the official rationale for this? I mean, it's so random! Why not concentrate on pertinent and well-established issues, like fixing the broken and totally arbitrary points system, or working on the competency of referees or whatever. Where did this come from?

They could also reduce the 24 second clock to maintain excitement - 5 seconds to get it over and then another 15 to get the shot off!!!!!!!!

Cant see ticket prices going down.

Cant see players getting paid less.

This is a move to make the game more marketable to fans. Speaking to non-basketball people they say the games go to long (they are generally refering to the time outs, especially late in the game). I have had it suggested to me many times that they would not come to another game due to this fact alone. The suggestions are to shorten the game, reduce time outs to 1 per half for each team and to remove time outs in the last 2 mins of each quarter.

I dont buy that Cricket is one of the largest spectator draw cards and the game goes for 5 days even the shortened version is an entire day.

AFL goes for how long 2 hours? Soccer a little less than that.

What i have heard is football follwers complain that situations where the game is tight and there is under a minute to go on the clock may take more like 5 minutes to get to the end.

I always countered this argument that with less than a second to go you could still get a shot off to win you the game so hence the needs for time outs etc.

Maybe the Basketball game is to cerebral for the average AFL supporter??

What does cerebral mean?

Games are too short now, 90 minutes and it will be over.

Why don't we just pluck some kids from the crowd for a 10min exhibition game and then go home?

Stupid move

I prefer the 4 quarters of 10 or 12 minutes please.

Was that an attempt at humour Average AFL Supporter, or a serious question?

Games are too long? I agree with Kent, other games seem to go longer even if you do account for breaks.

I would feel like I was just going home at 3/4 time if games were shorter (ie ripped off)... I could be very wrong but would it be fair to say that the average basketball purist would be against it while the average spectator "dragged along" (or maybe say "other spectator") would be for it?

Kent would these followers that complain be any different if the game was 10 min 1/4s, but still with time outs? I am guessing they would have the same complaint ie they see 1 min to go and have to wait 5-10 for the true finish. So the 2 mins more or less is not their issue?

humour

Cerebral explained

Maybe there's a case for it in a league playing 3 or 4 games every week, but when it's 1 or 2 then how can this be justified? Agree with others in saying I'd feel like I'm only watching 3/4 of a match.

This is a freaking disgrace! Im finding my self torn between loving the Adelaide 36ers and hating the NBL organisation with a passion! STOP ATTEMPTING TO KILL OUR LEAGUE!

Perhaps its this - most non-basketball people think you only need to watch the last 5 minutes of a basketball game because that's when the excitement happens. The rest is just running up and down to them (see NBA regular season). Reduce the minutes to 40 (4 x 10 min quarters as per the international game), conform to the international game and prepare better for the international game (remember BA and NBL are going to be one and BA's driver (and funding criteria is international performance) and increase the intensity for the entire game at the same time.

Yeah, less opportunities for the bench guys but perhaps a better and more viable product for the masses (remember, we basketball people can't pay it's way - surely we've shown that well and truly by now). The novice spectator may not be too 'cerebral' but they know effort and intensity (particularly when its only 20ft away).

Just a thought....

Deckchairs -> Titanic -> Again

We need the NBL to start coming up with FRESH ideas, not just tweaking pointless aspects of the game.

This "have to be SEEN to be doing something constructive" routine is crap. If it's not going to help in any way (which I don't believe it will) then leave it the hell alone.

Who wants to travel, park, walk to the venue to watch a SHORTENED GAME and do it all in reverse.

IMHO, One of the things that makes basketball LESS attractive already is that there is less action for a Night out. A game of footy goes for 2 hours, basketball goes for 1 and a bit....still takes the same amount of crap to get there.

To make it less again is stupid.

I hate saying this, but this is the sort of thing that actually WOULD actually make me reconsider going. An hour and a half getting there and home for 40 minutes entertainment?......Idiots.

Since when do the public want 4x10 minutes? I have taken a number of newbies to 36ers games and can't recall any of them thinking that the game should be shorter.

Yes, the game can turn into a grind if the scores are close at the end (foulfest, timeouts, etc) but the same happens in the AFL (e.g., I read that the Crows did it just last weekend against the Dockers).

While I don't think I'd stop going because of a change like this, I'd certainly whinge a lot about the drive over to the Dome for a significantly shorter game. I like seeing the benchies get a run. I like the high scores and statlines. I don't like those games where it's the fourth quarter before you realise it, and you wish there was more to come.

Are these the same average punters that sit in the stand and ask "how many quesrters does the game go for?"

sorry should read "quarters"

Realistic options?

how about running and ad campaign that actually tells people that the league is on.

I spoke to a guy on the weekend who asked me where the sixers where on the ladder. I explained that we missed the play offs etc.

His response "since when have the been playing in the summer? i used to go to games every now and then"

How about owners who make promises to season ticket holders actually following through on them.

How about making the game accesable to all fans with varied ticket prices.

How about producing and sending a Media guide to the media that would save editors of newspapers having to go to websites like this to get scores of games so they can report them.

On the subject of scores how about fixing the website and the live scoring

How about the average Australian being told that we are the second basketball nation in the world.

Just a few things to kick off with

Kent

I agree with all your points above but
'Second Basketball Nation'?

Womens and mens combined ranking - we are second. Illustrates the point nicely - even serious bball fans don't know this.

I agree that it's a sucky idea for the multitude of reasons put forward so far.

But let's say it becomes law. Rather than wail about the way things used to be, I've value-added and come up with some ideas that will keep scores, entertainment and interest high:

1) Reduce shot-clock to 16 seconds

2) Reduce height of ring to 9 feet

3) Reduce size of ball

4) Dilute league by expanding internationally without establishing strong enough base in homeland first*

5) Increase size of rim

5a) Increase the number of rims at each end to say 3 spread equi-distantly along baseline (you know, like you often see in high-school gyms along the side walls)

6) Increase the number of balls in play (increasing it by one, from one to two, would be enough)

7) Play games on Wednesday nights to satisfy no-one except pay telly provider*

8) Bonus point if score occurs within 5 seconds of shot clock starting

9) Implement elements of War training drill: offensive team has 5 on 4 advantage with defending team only allowed to send in 5th defender once ball crosses the halfway line

*Tick: already done

LOL at Bo Hamburgers Ideas!

I can see the NBL's new marketing campaign now (this is clearly a fictional scenario - marketing? as if!)

'Basketball: the shortest game in town'

'Basketball goes 20/20 on its own ass'

'New shorter games: waste less time watching it'

'Now with only 40 minute games - its all fun!'


One advantage that is probably in the minds of the NBL is that: shorter games = closer scores = appearance of parity between the best and worse teams. Clearly the Slingers/West Sydney fans will be the big winners as they will have to suffer less pain during the huge blowouts.

Bo, you forgot the trampolines...

Bo, classic ideas. I want to see someone try to "20/20" basketball, and you have some good options there - would love to see what would happen if you had two rings at each end.

When Julius Hodge came to Adelaide and the team knocked off a strong team, word spread - exciting basketball to be seen. Marketing didn't change, there weren't more games on television, or anything like that. Why did crowds jump? Word of mouth (people hearing about something they wanted to see) and media coverage.

In the final game between Sydney and Melbourne, the same again.

The league needs to seed interest. Tell people when the season starts at the very least. The NBA has a TV campaign that shows absolutely no action, nothing exciting, just players talking and then the date the finals start.

The length of games wouldn't make a list of priority issues when it comes to rejuvenating the league unless there has been an ultimatum from FTA or Fox.

Isaac, you raised the point of foulfests towards the end of games. There is an answer and it's called an 'unsportsmanlike foul'. When MOST of these fouls are called there is no REAL ATTEMPT to play the ball. If the NBL had any guts (ha ha) they would instruct the referees to make the tougher foul call and I guarantee that the number of fouls would be eradicated due to the penalty (2 shots and possession) involved. The trouble is that the people running the NBL can't see that this type of play boors the fans to the point where they walk out. They should take a page out of the NBA's rules with regards to this type of tactic.
With regards to changing the length of the game - maybe this is a smokescreen to take the pressure away from the other problems that the NBL have.

I'm sure there's previous topics/posts on basketball 'abbreviations' somewhere in the bowels of this forum: I remember posting on FIBA starting up a '33' comp or something similarly-named.

Really, when you boil it all down, the best basketball abbreviation has already been invented: NBA Jam.

It would slay me - I would be curled up in the foetal position, a blubbering mess - if a court announcer sometime in the next NBL season, after some massive dunk, asks the crowd: 'Is it the shoes?'

re NBA Jam - I'm with you. Skip is our hope here. Please Skip, can you check the legality of running NBA Jam clips during games? "Is it the shoes?", "Boomshackalaka", "He's heating up" and that sound effect when you get a steal.

Maher, for 3. Yes!

As a late arrival to the basketball scene (i never played, was a bandwagoner in the 80s...really discovered it and became a true fan in the mid 90s ) my thoughts are...

1) The game is not to long, if you are interested in it.
2) the drawn out foul thing at the end..is not a problem if you understand it


How to solve the problems?...something i have been advocating for years...Marketing... promotion... advertising...call it what you like, but you must generate excitement and give the punters someone to relate to (Ahh Brett, we wasted you)and not on radio, its a waste..if you cant do TV..then use the press.

spend some good dollars promoting the game, get people along to a few games and they will be hooked..well it worked for me.

Free tickets, not for clubs..for people who dont usually go. free tickets for season ticket holders to bring a friend, explain the game to them..so they really start to understand it.

Hard to market something to people who don't know they'll like it until they give it a shot - bit of a shotgun approach really.

Could do worse than drop free tickets in the letter boxes of every house within three blocks of the Dome though.

I have been to well over 100 Sixers games and I cannot ever remember thinking "Christ, this game has gone forever tonight". How short is the attention span of the average "punter" if they can't handle the 1:30-1:45 hour game time of an NBL game? God, I've taken shits that lasted nearly that long!

I can guarantee you though that if the game time is to be cut by 1/6th, then I would be EXPECTING a similar reduction in the price of my season ticket.

I know from going to Crows games as well you are talking about more of a 3-4 hour commitment, usually/often in the middle to late afternoon. If people can handle that then they should be able to sit through half of that at an NBL game.

Making the game shorter DOES NOT make it more interesting to a prospective viewer. Reducing the shot-clock may well speed up the tempo of a game. Resetting it to 14 seconds rather than 24 on fouls etc may also add something.

I still think the idea of a "marquee player", whose salary does not count towards the salary cap is worthwhile, as then maybe Newley, Neilsen, Anderson, ... would still be playing in the NBL instead of in Europe.

Also, there is not a player in the NBL that will think:

Local - "Oh, the games are shorter. Ok, it makes sense for them to pay me 1/6th less per year than I am used to earning."

Import - "They only pay what? Well, at least it is only a 40 minute game so my stats will be down."

So where is the true value?

and you have suggested what thus far?

Dear customers,

"You guys are no help at all."

Love, the NBL.

---

FWIW, many of us have suggested a good number of ideas in other threads that have some value.

Dear NBL,
I seem to recall when test cricket had problems and the one day game fixed it.
We could still have our competition, like test cricket, but have some ' 20/20 ' games, with two rings at each end.
It worked for cricket, it would work for us.
Regards,
Camel 31

um, why is everyone talking about basketball? I may have missed something here, but is this not about the NBL shortening the minutes of play, not the NBA?