In what could be called a "beta test" for rule modifications, the NBA Developmental League will be implementing two new changes to the game of basketball. First off, the concept of goaltending will be redefined to the one used in international competition. At the same time, overtime periods will be trimmed down significantly.
That is, goaltending officiating will now allow players to knock away balls while they are on the rim. This eliminates the awkward situations where players must sit and watch while rogue shots spin around the rim for excessive amounts of time. This also means that "lucky bounces" may now be negated by a vicious swat from an opposing defender.
As for the overtime rules, the length of post-regulation periods will be shortened from five minutes to three minutes. This elevates the intensity of overtime matches as teams will have less opportunities to score. On a side note, this rule would benefit network programming as it will reduce the problems associated with overlapping scheduled programs.
The D-League serves as a research and development arm of the NBA and will put these new changes to the test for potential transition into the pro game. One successful experiment in the D-League that will debut this upcoming 2010-11 NBA season is the use of adidas-developed NBA Revolution 30 uniforms.
Thus, if the new rule changes yield favorable results there can be changes coming to the Association as early as next season.
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