NBA open to discussing addition of a 4-point shot

Update 1:44 p.m. Well, nevermind. The league issued this statement yesterday:

"No one at the NBA,nor the competition committee, has had any serious conversations about increasing the size of the floor or adding a 4-point line. Rod Thorn and Kiki VanDeWeghe were entertaining a line of questioning about out of the box ideas and ESPN chose to make a story that doesn't exist.”

So there's that.

... But they've thought about it! (Just kidding.)

1:30 p.m.

ESPN reports that NBA president of basketball operations Rod Thorn recently acknowledged that the league has at least considered adding a four-point shot to the game.

Rod Thorn, NBA president of basketball operations, didn't balk at the idea.

During a sit-down TrueHoop TV interview with our own Henry Abbott, Thorn was asked about the chances that a 4-pointer -- as outlandish as it may seem -- could be brought to the NBA at some point.

Turns out, Thorn didn't think the advent of a 4-pointer would be outlandish at all. Rather than reflexively squash the radical idea, as you might expect from a 72-year-old NBA lifer who has worn just about every hat in the league, Thorn seemed genuinely intrigued at the notion and revealed that the 4-pointer has "come up" in league discussions.

"Oh man," Thorn told Abbott, "Some of the players we have can shoot the ball from I assume it would be 30 feet? 28-30 feet. Somewhere in there. Some of the guys we have can shoot that as easily as a 23-, 24-foot shot." One of those players? Vince Carter. Thorn recalled a moment when he ran the New Jersey Nets from 2000 to 2010 as team president and general manager. As players tend to do at practice, Carter would showcase his shot-making abilities from far, far away.

"I remember when we had Vince Carter in New Jersey," Thorn said. "Well, he could shoot the ball from the seats and make half of 'em."

Don't we want to see that? Players pushed to the limits of their abilities?

"It would be unbelievable," Thorn said. "But you know coaches would go crazy because now you've got another line out there. That's crazy."

via Jamal Crawford would be among the NBA's top 4-point shooters - NBA - ESPN.

The standard idea is to implement a 4-point line somewhere beyond 28 or 30 feet. But I have an alternative. Implement circled zones. If officials can see when players in the clogged-up paint are inside the restricted circle they can see them from on the court.

Observe.

This makes the degree of difficulty higher, helps defense to defend it better and differently, and makes the shots more amazing. I'd also be fine with zones of different shapes and sizes that randomly change game by game, but the stickers on those would be slick and cause injury.

Anyway, it's a fun idea. The leader of course would be Jamal Crawford, who has four-such makes this season, but Kyrie Irving is right behind him.

Basketball Hot News

Washington Wizards reportedly tried hard to trade for Jameer Nelson

It was no secret the Washington Wizards needed point guard help behind John Wall. It’s also no secret the rebuilding Orlando Magic are no longer a great fit for 32-year-old Jameer Nelson.

The two teams would have made sense as trade partners before last week’s deadline.

In fact, the Wizards reportedly really wanted to be trade partners with the Magic.

John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com:

Has to be surreal for #Magic PG Jameer Nelson being in Wash. considering #Wizards made several attempts to trade for him before deadline.—

John Denton (@JohnDenton555) February 25, 2014

The Wizards settled for Andre Miller, and so far, so good. Washington is 3-0 with Miller, because he’s stabilized their play when John Wall sits.

Before the the trade, the Wizards were outscored by 11.7 points per 100 possessions without Wall. Since, Miller has played all 44 minutes Wall has sat, posting a modest 12 points and nine assists total. But he’s turned the ball over just twice and improved Washington’s net rating to -1.2 without Wall.

I doubt the Wizards have much regret.

But, at the time, I would have narrowly preferred Nelson if I were Washington. So, what were the Magic seeking that prevented the trade from happening?

The Wizards surrendered the Pelicans’ 2015 second rounder for Miller, so Orlando likely wanted more than that. Washington can’t trade any future first-round pick due to its trade for Marcin Gortat, so that limits options. Maybe the Wizards own 2014 second rounder or multiple second rounders? That wouldn’t be totally unreasonable, but if Orlando were willing to accept less and was just playing hardball, it backfired when Washington traded for Miller.

Either way, the Magic took a risk. At 32, Nelson’s production projects to decline further. Their best chance of getting better value for him is trading him after the season for a bigger contract to a team seeking cap relief. Then, that team could buy out Nelson for just $2 million (of an $8 million salary) on or before July 15.

Will that return best the Pelicans’ 2015 second rounder? That’s the bar for Orlando.