Should the NBA abolish the 3 point line?

[Rubashov]

So I miss the elegance and footwork of great low post play and hate the way that analytics has removed the midrange and post game from the sport. I like the idea of pushing the 3 point line back significantly, there should always be a place in the game for a dagger but it should be harder. Discuss

 

[Rubashov]

Dammit I wanted a poll

Poll choices

1. Yes
2. No
3 Push the line back and eliminate the corner 3
4 Trial the pushed back line in the in season tournament to see what happens
5 I don't know

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Moving the 3pt line back isnt going to do anything other than make players better at shooting long 3's. It might take a certain amount of time to adjust, but the adjustment will happen. Players wont suddenly start taking more middys just because the 3pt line is further back.

You have to make the relative value of the long shot smaller. If you want more mid-range shots you have to let bigs stay in the paint longer.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

I think the court should be widened and the corner 3 should be moved back a foot. The corner 3 is way too easy of a shot in the modern NBA.

 

[Tremendous Upside]

So we're bringing back the old illegal defense rules too?

It's not all about the 3pt shot. In the old days, everything was geared toward as many 1-on-1 matchups as possible, favoring star scorers.

 

[Tremendous Upside]

I think the court should be widened and the corner 3 should be moved back a foot.

Yeah, but that's never going to happen.

 

[KqWIN]

Not going to happen, but they should remove the defensive 3 seconds rule, allow more contact on the perimeter, and also enforce carrying on the perimeter. Everyone talks about hand checking…it’s more that a perimeter guy and just infinitely run into the defender and eventually get a call. Luka is the king of this.

Playing on the perimeter is so much easier because the defenders can hardly breathe on offensive player and the ball handlers also get to carry the ball.

IMO, they’ve actually allowed the more contact on postups over the years as small ball has become more popular. If it’s a smaller guy defending a bigger player in the post, the small guy can beat the hell out of the bigger player and use all his strength to create contact. If it’s the other way around on the perimeter you’ve got a taller player trying to stick with a smaller guy who can carry the ball and gets a whistle if there’s a slight touch.

 

[Nate505]

Move it back. And if the league starts hitting it at a better than a 33% rate, move it back again until it reaches the half court line. And if the can start hitting it from there over 33%, tip your hat to them. They've perfected the game of basketball.

 

[Tremendous Upside]

Playing on the perimeter is so much easier

No way. In the "old days", you could create favorable 1-on-1 isolations on the perimeter by simply moving the other four dudes (and their defenders) to the weak side. Doubling the ballhandler far from the basket was super risky because you actually had to double instead of hang around in no-man's land in case the ballhandler beats the first line of defense.

In theory, team defenses have many more tools to stop scoring perimeter players these days. However, offenses have evolved even more than defenses.

I can't watch 80's or 90's NBA basketball anymore. In general it's incredibly slow, unathletic (yes I know there were exceptions) and the defense is laughable compared to the modern game.

Today's NBA game does have some problems that have to be solved, but going back in time is not the answer.

 

[bopahull]

No

 

[KqWIN]

No way. In the "old days", you could create favorable 1-on-1 isolations on the perimeter by simply moving the other four dudes (and their defenders) to the weak side. Doubling the ballhandler far from the basket was super risky because you actually had to double instead of hanging around in no-man's land in case the ballhandler beats the first line of defense.

In theory, team defenses have many more tools to stop scoring perimeter players these days. However, offenses have evolved even more than defenses.

I can't watch 80's or 90's NBA basketball anymore. In general it's incredibly slow, unathletic (yes I know there were exceptions) and the defense is laughable compared to the modern game.

Today's NBA game does have some problems that have to be solved, but going back in time is not the answer.

I meant in comparison to playing in the post/paint. I do not care to go back in time where the basketball was horrible. Going back in time is definitely not what I want. My post was trying to say that the balance of playing from the perimeter vs playing from the post is extremely advantageous to perimeter players.

 

[LogGrad98]

I wouldn't mind seeing modifications, whether it is a cap or moving the line out or just eliminating the corner 3 by extending the lines so the arc ends at the sideline. I don't know, but I find the constant barrage of 3 pointers boring as ****. I would love to see them move the line out another 18 inches and terminate it at the sideline with no option for a corner 3. Mix it up a bit.

Although I do seem to remember that JxmyHighroller on youtube did an analysis showing that in recent years the 2 point shot has kind of caught up with the 3 pointer for value, based on shooting percentages. Although this is largely because we have become a league of either the 3 pointer or the lay-up/dunk with virtually nothing in between. I would love to see some changes that mix this up a bit more, as the current product is just boring as hell.