In 1979, the NBA followed the lead of the folded ABA and instituted the 3-point line. After doing so, scoring increased and shooting specialists like Steve Kerr and Kyle Korver were forever guaranteed a niche in the league.
Now, 35 years after the first 3-point attempt in Association history, league executives are reportedly in the early stages of a discussion about whether to revolutionize the NBA again.
In a recent interview with ESPN.com, NBA president of basketball operations Rod Thorn and vice president Kiki Vandeweghe acknowledged that the league office has considered the possibility of adding a 4-point line to the league’s rule book. The proposed rule change, which is still only in the exploratory stage, also calls for an expansion of the court from its current 94-foot-by-50 foot construction.
Thorn and Vandewghe said the ideas have been presented to the league for discussion, but emphasized that the designs are still very much hypothetical.
“It’s an interesting idea and we’ve actually looked at it,” said Vandeweghe, who was a two-time all-star with the Nuggets in the 1980s. “We keep a list of ideas on what we should do and how we can make the game better, of course. But arenas are obviously built in a certain way and that would take a lot of adjusting to actually make the court bigger.”
The two league executives didn’t provide any details about the proposed distance for the new 4-point line or the new dimensions of the court. They did say, however, that the tremendous amount of size and athleticism that today’s players possess, compared to the players from the 1940s, the decade that the current dimensions were inputted, is the driving factor in potential court expansion.
Publicly, the league is downplaying the possibility of these ideas taking affect, so it will likely be a while before implementation of the proposals are seriously considered.
That’s no problem. It just gives all of us NBA fans a chance to contemplate a world in which a four-point lead constitutes a one-possession game.
Much like when the 3-pointer first came into play, the biggest change with a 4-point line woul probably be an increase in scoring. With the possibility of shooters launching from 30 feet (or whatever the distance of the line is), defenders will have to guard further from the basket, opening up bigger lanes for cutting and driving.
With defenders sticking to their man further from the basket, they’ll have a longer distance to help if a teammate gets beat off the dribble, meaning more driving layups and dunks. I like this idea already.
Of course, implementing a 4-point line would also dramatically alter late-game strategy. Teams would be able to get back into games more quickly and it would take more for teams to put games away.
One can only hope that the league decides to install the new line while Steph Curry is still in his prime. It’s easy to imagine Curry becoming the first to perfect a pull-up or off-the-dribble 4-pointer and dropping six in a game. I’m getting chills just thinking about it. Curry, from the parking lot!
Come on NBA, continue to innovate, just like you did 35 years ago.
Dylan Sinn is a freelance contributor for CraveOnline Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSinn or “like” CraveOnline Sports on Facebook.
Photo Credit: Getty
