Earlier, the Washington Mystics and Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA competed in an analytics scrimmage with new rules that seem very out of the box. The scrimmage consisted of two halves, each of which included different rules, and took place in 10 minutes of game time.
In the first ten minutes, shots only counted from behind the three-point arc, inside the paint, and the extended low block area. Shots made from mid-range did not count, and would result in loss of possession.
For the second half of the twenty-minute scrimmage, the shot clock only had 20 seconds on it, and would reset to 14 seconds if an offensive rebound occurred. When a shooting foul occurred on a two-point shot, a point and a single free throw was awarded, while 2 points and a free throw were awarded when a player was fouled on a three-point shot. A player was also awarded a free throw if they were fouled following a successful basket.
Each team only received 1 timeout in the second half, and they were also given the opportunity to advance the ball to the 28 foot mark in the frontcourt one time.
It would be hard to see a lot of these rules implemented in any level of basketball, but they will speed up the game, and could make the WNBA more entertaining to fans. The WNBA is a league looking for changes, and a change to the rules may be in their future.
