2024 Olympics basketball rules: the biggest differences between the WNBA, NBA and Olympic basketball

The 2024 Paris Olympics feature some of the biggest stars from the NBA and WNBA in the games.

While you might recognize a lot of the faces you see playing on the court during this Olympic cycle, it might feel like they’re all playing a completely different sport than what you’re used to.

—All of Team USA’s returning gold medalists

While they’re all still playing basketball, the game is slightly different. There are rule changes in FIBA and Olympic play that make the competition a bit different than what it usually is when we see all these stars competing in their respective leagues.

Now’s a good time to go over some of the biggest differences.

Game Length

The first and most apparent difference people can see is the game time limit.

In the NBA, games are 48 minutes long with 12-minute quarters. However, like the WNBA, FIBA games are only 40 minutes long with 10 minutes allotted per quarter. Overtime periods are still five minutes across the board.

Foul limit

In the NBA and the WNBA, players are given six fouls before being disqualified from the game.

FIBA rules are different. The limit to foul out of a game is five. Plus, technical fouls count, too. So, for example, if a player receives four personal fouls and a single technical foul, that player will be disqualified from the game.

Zone defense

In the NBA and WNBA, zone defense is allowed. However, players must not remain in the paint beyond three seconds on either end of the floor. Otherwise, it results in a turnover on offense or a technical free throw on defense.

In FIBA play, however, there are no three-second rules. Players can stay in the paint for as long as they want.

Goaltending

Under FIBA rules, players still aren’t allowed to block a ball in a downward flight toward the rim. However, once the ball this the rim a player can either swat the ball away or tap it into the goal.

Doing that would result in a goaltend in both the NBA and WNBA.

Timeouts

Timeouts are slightly different at the FIBA level. Teams get five total timeouts as opposed to the six they’d get in the NBA and WNBA.

Two are available in the first half and three in the second half. However, only two are available in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, regardless of if they’ve been unused before then.

Only one timeout is allowed in overtime and each timeout is only 60 seconds. They’re never carried over through periods.

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