The NBA has heard the complaints about teams launching too many 3-pointers and offenses looking too “cookie cutter” in the modern game, and the league is taking these complaints seriously, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told reporters Tuesday night before the NBA Cup championship in Las Vegas.
ESPN’s Tim Bontemps reported on the commissioner’s comments on the topic Tuesday. Silver wasn’t ready to call 3-point volume a problem, but he said the league is studying the trend and “constantly having discussions about whether there are ways to improve stylistically the game on the floor.”
“The answer is yes, [we are having] many discussions about the style of basketball [being played]. I would not reduce it to a so-called 3-point shooting issue. I think we look more holistically at the skill level on the floor, the diversity of offense, the fan reception to the game, all of the above.”
Silver’s comments come as the 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics are on pace to eviscerate the single-season record for 3s attempted. The Celtics put up a league-leading 51.1 3-point attempts per game, but the numbers are up across the league, as NBA teams follow the analytics trend. Even the Portland Trail Blazers, who are ranked No. 25 in 3-point shooting percentage, put up 49 in Sunday’s 116-109 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
At the moment, Silver said the league isn’t looking into quick fixes like moving the 3-point line further back, but the league is thinking about the need for more diversity in offenses.
“Historically, at times, we’ve moved the 3-point line,” Silver said. “I don’t think that’s a solution here because then, I think when we look at both the game and the data, I think that may not necessarily do more midrange jumpers, if that’s what people want, but more clogging under the basket.
“Whether there’s some tweaks we should make, and my sense is I do think we should take seriously this notion of more diversity in offense. I watch as many games as all of you do, and to the extent that it’s not so much a 3-point issue, but that some of the audience, some of the offenses start to look sort of cookie cutter and teams are copying each other. I think that’s something we should pay attention to.”
Blazer’s Edge community, have you been critiquing the NBA recently for heavy 3-point volume and cookie cutter offenses? Have these factors made watching the games less enjoyable? Let us know in the comments below!
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