NCAA Committee Proposes Rule Changes For College Basketball

The NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee was in session on Friday and proposed numerous changes to be approved for the 2015-2016 basketball season. You can read the release from the NCAA by clicking here.

All of these rules listed above are aimed at speeding up the pace of play and in turn, making the game more enjoyable for the fans. I really love rule three above because it is senseless to have a team take a timeout, come back from break, only to go back to commercial just a few seconds after returning to the action for the media timeout. The stricter enforcement with a resumption of play coming out of timeouts or after a player has fouled out will also pick up the pace. Coaches also lose the ability to call a timeout with a live ball.

The plan with moving the restricted area arc out to four feet from the current three will prevent collisions at the basket that at times can cause an injury that can be serious. Strict enforcement of defensive rules? I thought that was already supposed to be happening. On the second rule, I checked around with a few different media outlets and no one seems to know what that one means. A defender has “air space” if he goes straight up and down to contest a shot so the offensive side of the ball gets that as well? We can just go with that one.

This one was experimented with during a few of the postseason tournaments this past year. After checking the data, officials found that it only added approximately one extra possession per game but with the other rules being added, it could become a noticeable difference. For Alabama fans, the faster play should really benefit the Tide as head coach Avery Johnson wants to speed the team to be quicker and balanced on both sides of the ball.

One rule that should make all basketball fans happy is the proposal to penalize players “flopping” or faking a foul and can take a look with video review. The committee also made proposals to make Class B technical fouls (hanging on the rim,  delaying resumption of play, etc) just a one-shot foul instead of two. Under the new proposal, the five-second rule on a player that’s dribbling will also be eliminated. One that could make a difference in the outcome of games if the rules are passed is referees can now review shot clock violations during the whole game and not just the final two minutes.

The only rule that I don’t agree with is adding a sixth foul to give. This one will be like the shot clock rule this past season and will be tested during some of the postseason tournaments. If they are really aiming toward more safety, it seems to me that giving players an extra foul “to give” may give them the impression that they can play a little harder until they get into foul trouble.

The proposals still have to be approved by an NCAA oversight committee but as of now, it looks like all of them will go through and the reaction has been positive.

What do you think about the new rules? Let us know below in the comments section.