Rule Changes Put To The Test In The Summer Leagues

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

      Boston Herald       

      Changes put to test: Celts set for summer play 
      by Mark Cofman 
      Monday, July 19, 1999
      The summer league hosted by the Celtics next week at UMass-Boston will 
      serve as a testing ground for a series of rule modifications the NBA is 
      considering for the upcoming season. 
      The modified rules are the latest attempt by the NBA to loosen offenses 
      during an era that has been marked by a steady decline in scoring. 
      Referees working the Celtics' summer league, which begins next Monday and 
      runs through Aug. 1, will blow the whistle on a number of violations that 
      in the past have gone unpunished.
      Veteran NBA official Dick Bavetta will keep a watchful eye on referees 
      working the games to evaluate their overall performance and effectiveness 
      in observing the new rules.
      Bavetta, in what amounts to a classroom environment, will critique the 
      referees each day and tutor them with the aid of game films.
      Those game films eventually will be sent to the league office for review 
      and will play a role in the final recommendations of a 16-member rules 
      committee in September. At that time the league will decide which rules to 
      adopt and which need further adjustment.
      ``The rules under consideration are like works in progress,'' said 
      Bavetta, one of four veteran officials appointed to supervise referees at 
      the four leagues hosted by NBA teams this summer.
      ``They're guidelines for referees that are still in the experimental 
      stages and these leagues (Boston, Long Beach, Atlanta, Salt Lake City) are 
      where the experimentation will take place,'' he added.
      The extensive series of new or modified rules can be divided into five 
      basic categories - post play, off-ball cutting, screens, defensive holding 
      on screens and off-ball coverage. The following is a brief description of 
      each:
      Post play - Referees will call an immediate foul when a defender dislodges 
      or displaces a post-up player through force (knee in butt, forearm, etc.).
      Off-ball cutting - A defender rerouting an offensive player trying to cut 
      in the key area through force (forearm, shoulder or hands) will be 
      whistled for a foul.
      Screens - The literal interpretation of the stationary screen will be 
      observed. The player setting the screen must maintain position, giving the 
      defender an opportunity to shift around him.
      Defensive holding on screens - When a player setting a screen tries to 
      move away from his spot, an attempt by the defender to stop or impede his 
      progress will be a violation. If enforced, this rule should help bring the 
      conventional pick-and-roll play back into vogue.
      Off-ball coverage - Any attempt to stop or impede an offensive player from 
      moving without the ball - customarily through one- and two-handed 
      clutching and grabbing - will be a violation.
      ``The overall theme of these rules is to draw a more literal line between 
      aggressive play and rough play,'' said Bavetta. ``It will be up to the 
      league to decide which rules work well and which ones might still need 
      some tweaking (during the committee's review following the summer-league 
      schedules).''
      A few additional rules are under consideration by the league and will be 
      enforced in summer-league action. Players will not be allowed to use 
      forearms to defend until the ball-handler has reached the foul line 
      (extended).
      Ball-handlers backing their way toward the basket past the foul line 
      (extended) - trademark moves of Mark Jackson and Charles Barkley among 
      others - will be allotted five seconds before they are whistled for a 
      violation and resulting turnover. Once the ballhandler has either picked 
      up his dribble or moved back out toward the perimeter, the referee will 
      discontinue his visual five-second count and play will continue.
      The NBA will also experiment with legalizing zone defenses on the strong 
      side (side of the court with the ball). Weakside defenders can only enter 
      the lane to cover an unguarded cutter or double-team the ball. Also, the 
      shot clock will no longer be reset to 24 seconds on non-shooting fouls or 
      violations (kicked or punched balls) in the frontcourt. If the shot clock 
      is at 14 seconds or less, it would be reset to 14. Otherwise, the time 
      left on the clock would remain unchanged.
      Besides the Celtics, the NBA field for the Boston league includes 
      Washington, New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, Indiana and Seattle.