As if there wasn’t enough scoring records being broken in the NBA, there seems to be talk about adding another thing added to make the league more exciting.
Recently there have been amazing performances from guys like Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Russell Westbrook and James Harden when it comes to scoring but now, it seems like one NBA Executive might want to make it even harder.
New York Knicks president Phil Jackson endorses the idea of adding a 4-point line in the NBA.
Following from Harvey Araton of the New York Times.
Now, he said, he would even endorse a 4-point shot being implemented a few feet behind the 3-point line.
A 4-pointer seems maybe a little ridiculous, but just like every NBA rule, whether it was allowing dunking, adding a 3-point line or even the newest flopping rule, might have also seemed that way when first instilled with the league, they all have become mainstays in today’s game. While it sounds almost insane to do this, maybe in time, it would become another mundane part of the game.
It’s surprising that a guy who’s trying to install the old-fashioned triangle offense, which he ran very successfully with the Chicago Bulls in the 90’s and Lakers in the 2000’s, with his Knicks would endorse a 4-point line.
While Jackson isn’t the first to suggest it, it seems to go against his basketball values as a coach and person who stuck to one style and successfully executed it.
While it’s nowhere near becoming part of the rulebook or even a topic of discussion by many people, the first step is the most influential people in the league like Jackson accepting a new idea and it could bode well for those who are pro-4-pointer.
NBA TV’s ‘The Starters’ jokingly spoke about adding the 4-point line when debating, during the January 30th episode of ‘The Drop’, if Klay Thompson’s record of scoring 37 points in a quarter should actually be a new NBA record or not. If it does come to fruition, George Gervin might not like it.
At the 20:15 mark you can hear the guys debate about the record breaking quarter and adding a 4-point line.
