The situation where everybody has an opinion on is the Hack-A-Shaq, for years we have been big men with terrible free throw percentages get intentionally fouled and we all collectively say “oh Lord give me strength”.
But we all take the lump and get on with the game because it’s only for a minute or two right? It’s not like the whole game is a free throw competition and now, Adam Silver knows. The cat is out of the bag, he knows that we don’t change channel during the free throws.
A few people came back to me and said, “Not so fast.” You can actually look at the data, Nielsen data, minute by minute. And in fact, when we look at the data, it’s not so clear people are turning the channel. In some cases, people are fascinated by the strategy.
So, I’m not saying that should be the final answer, but just looking at it from an entertainment matter, we should make sure we look at the data to see if people are truly turning out because of a Hack-a-Shaq strategy.
Now here’s an idea. Why not take this as an opportunity, the same way as timeouts? If you really find the free throws irksome, get up and go to the toilet. Go grab another beer or whatever you drink. You don’t have to watch it or change the channel. Use it as a minute break to grab a drink.
