There weren’t too many changes to the NBA when the season started on Tuesday night.
Most of the teams had a few new players and TNT changed how it showed the score during the broadcast.
But, generally, things were pretty much the same as last season.
One overall takeaway from the opening night games:
The transition take foul being a thing is so much better for the game. Both games featured several fastbreaks that likely would have been stopped in years past by a foul be given.
Next step? Defenders actually get back on D!
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 19, 2022
There was a major alteration to the rules that some people didn’t even notice.
Tuesday marked the first time that referees followed new rules regarding transition take fouls.
These fouls often called “fast break fouls” feature a player stopping another who has a clear path to the basket.
It’s undeniable that these were cheap, easy fouls that slowed the game down and seemed lazy and unsportsmanlike.
NBA writer Keith Smith was proud of the league for stepping up and putting an end to them.
“The transition take foul being a thing is so much better for the game. Both games featured several fastbreaks that likely would have been stopped in years past by a foul be given,” Smith said on Twitter.
He added: “Next step? Defenders actually get back on D!”
One thing at a time, Keith.
Hello, Fast Breaks!
You have seen this newly-banned type of foul many times before.
A player gets the ball and has a straight-away path to the basket, leading to an easy bucket – usually in the form of an explosive dunk.
But then a defender catches up with him and wraps his arms around him, causing an obvious foul but preventing the dunk and two points.
The NBA had enough of these fouls and how they slowed down the game and just made stoppage too easy for defenders.
Now, refs punish the defending team that commits a fast break foul.
This will keep the games moving faster and that’s always a good thing.
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