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Message: [QUOTE="Cowtown, post: 1923634, member: 2350"] Agreed, this is going to take some time to get done, but it's the right direction in which to head. The fundamental concept here is "the player with the ball must expect to be closely guarded." The corollary is that all other players must be given 'time and distance" in which to move, which translates roughly to "a step." With regard to the comment about trapping, the defenders are going to have to give a little more room, and it'll be on the refs to decide who initiates the contact - which is often difficult in the first place. :) Coaches are going to have to adjust their defensive philosophies, most notably on pick/screens. In the past they have generally taught the defender to fight through the screen, and not to switch until it's absolutely necessary. This creates a ton of contact, both on and off the ball. This has today, along with hedging, rendered the essential basketball play - the pick and roll - a historical artifact. Another factor in that is coaches screen high with players who have zero offensive skills out on the perimeter. Hell, they can't even complete the pick and roll footwork, let alone catch the dump pass and score a layup. We'll see where this goes. Another interesting idea here is the "bunny hop" in point 3. The real problem is that the NBA allows it, and too many coaches and players - and especially almost all fans - are not smart enough to understand that the NBA and NCAA rule books are different. How many times have you seen a perimeter player catch a pass, while not facing the basket and with one foot clearly on the floor (by rule, that's immediately and clearly his pivot foot), then take two steps backward to get outside the arc, then frame up and shoot a 3. Well, that's a travel. And like the article says, it's a huge advantage to the offense. And most assuredly, it's gonna take some time, and a real commitment on behalf of players, coaches and refs to make it all fly. Once again, we'll see. [/QUOTE]

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