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No More Three-Pointers? NBA Announces Major Changes!
Correction of Three-Point Attempts
Recently, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver responded to the issue of excessive three-point shots affecting viewership ratings. When asked about the impact of too many three-point attempts in a game, Silver replied, "We are addressing this issue. As managers of the game, we will make adjustments and work to correct these problems."
Does this signal the end of the small-ball era and a return to an era of physical play? If the league truly "corrects" the number of three-point attempts, wouldn't that be unfair to many sharpshooting players?
It's worth noting that several players have also voiced concerns about the impact of three-point shots on viewership ratings. Shaquille O'Neal even directly named Stephen Curry, claiming he messed things up.
However, at the time, Silver was still defending Curry, responding, "I don't think it has anything to do with three-point shots. We're just looking at a few weeks of ratings, during which some special events occurred. For example, the baseball World Series between the Yankees and Dodgers featured two very attractive teams that drew a large audience."
Now, with Silver's change in attitude, it seems that three-point attempts will be strictly limited in the future. At that point, many players may no longer favor shooting three-pointers, effectively eliminating them from the game.
Let's talk facts and figures. Recently, the well-known sports business media outlet Sportico compiled a list of the Top 100 U.S. viewership ratings for 2024. Only one basketball event made the list, and it wasn't from the NBA. It was the NCAA Final Four championship game featuring WNBA rookie of the year and No. 1 draft pick Caitlin Clark's final college game against South Carolina, ranking 76th with a staggering 18.9 million viewers!
Last year, the highest-rated NBA game, Game 2 of the Celtics vs Mavericks Finals, only ranked 153rd. Looking back, the last time the NBA made it into the Top 100 was in 2019 with two Finals games between the Raptors and Warriors, both making it into the Top 50.
It's clear that the NBA's viewership ratings have indeed experienced a significant decline.
Kevin Durant has also questioned whether three-point shots affect viewership ratings. In a previous interview, he said, "I take this seriously, and I've been thinking about why people don't want to watch us play anymore, or why they dislike the three-point line, or what the real problem might be?"
In fact, returning to an era of physical play has gained the approval of many players.
Do you remember last month's game between the Mavericks and the Suns, where Nurkic faced off against Marshall and Washington in a 1v2 situation? Both three-point attempts were fined, and Irving took responsibility for his teammates' fines. Irving commented, "Sometimes this is part of basketball. I haven't seen it before. Maybe this is how we'll end 2024, because there are really people throwing punches in the NBA. Maybe this will boost our viewership."
What are your thoughts on this?
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