Elam Ending

[Fred C. Dobbs]

I've watched a lot of baskball games through the B1G torunament and the first round of the NCAA tournament. Whether my team is ahead or behind or whether I have no team, I found the endings of close games to be repetative, uninteresting and even boring. The tactic of foul and hope for a free throw shooting miracle just is not interesting basketball.

The Basketball Tournament and the New Zealand pro league have adopted the Elam ending, both to great success. At the first dead ball within the last 4 minutes, 8 points are added to the score of the leading team. First team to that threshold wins.

The Elam ending rewards stops and sound offense. Tactical fouls and free throws are less important. The last 4 minutes of a game look more like basketball than a game of horse played from the free throw line.

 

[Al Bino]

I've watched a lot of baskball games through the B1G torunament and the first round of the NCAA tournament. Whether my team is ahead or behind or whether I have no team, I found the endings of close games to be repetative, uninteresting and even boring. The tactic of foul and hope for a free throw shooting miracle just is not interesting basketball.

The Basketball Tournament and the New Zealand pro league have adopted the Elam ending, both to great success. At the first dead ball within the last 4 minutes, 8 points is added to the score of the winning team. First team to that threshold wins.

The Elam ending rewards stops and sound offense. Tactical fouls and free throws are less important. The last 4 minutes of a game looks more like basketball than a game of horse played from the free throw line.

Good grief, I thought you were joking but I googled it and that is a real thing.
Just shaking my head. Who came up with this? Elam?

 

[Crayfish57]

Good grief, I thought you were joking but I googled it and that is a real thing.
Just shaking my head. Who came up with this? Elam?

Cloverdales on a binge? Why even play?

 

[Radio Zero]

Good grief, I thought you were joking but I googled it and that is a real thing.
Just shaking my head. Who came up with this? Elam?

Oh, yes. Elam himself. Mensa member.

 

[Chicago-bound Hoosier]

Sounds like a California playoff in a youth travel baseball tournament

 

[Klaus 7196]

When I first heard of the Elam Ending I dismissed it as silly gimmick. But, like many, I HATE the tedious free throw fest that plagues the end of many games. I've heard positive reviews of it in practice. I think we'll each have to see it ourselves once or twice to get a feel for it.

 

[ORG]

I've watched a lot of baskball games through the B1G torunament and the first round of the NCAA tournament. Whether my team is ahead or behind or whether I have no team, I found the endings of close games to be repetative, uninteresting and even boring. The tactic of foul and hope for a free throw shooting miracle just is not interesting basketball.

The Basketball Tournament and the New Zealand pro league have adopted the Elam ending, both to great success. At the first dead ball within the last 4 minutes, 8 points are added to the score of the leading team. First team to that threshold wins.

The Elam ending rewards stops and sound offense. Tactical fouls and free throws are less important. The last 4 minutes of a game look more like basketball than a game of horse played from the free throw line.

No thank you. The endless free-throws give a team that may be undermanned a chance to tie and maybe win the game.

 

[Klaus 7196]

No thank you. The endless free-throws give a team that may be undermanned a chance to tie and maybe win the game.

Yes, but it also gives the Top 5 team a chance to tie or beat the plucky underdog that has outplayed them for 38 minutes. No real advantage to either side.

 

[Al Bino]

When I first heard of the Elam Ending I dismissed it as silly gimmick. But, like many, I HATE the tedious free throw fest that plagues the end of many games. I've heard positive reviews of it in practice. I think we'll each have to see it ourselves once or twice to get a feel for it.

It is altering probably THE basic premise of the game. Put the ball through the hoop more than the other team and you probably win the game. The three point shot, the shot clock and the replay review has changed the game enough. When you start instituting things like the Elam ending, the game will cease being the game we all love. I would think there would be better ways to limit the foul parade.

 

[hookyIU1990]

How about stopping all the reviews instead?

That'll do more to shorten games than the Elam Ending.

 

[frikkenfrakken]

I'm way into it. I wish they would do it. It would add the excitement of a walk off homer to the end of basketball games, and end the free throw parade at the end. Wanna keep the game going, get stops!

 

[Radio Zero]

You also have to win by two per the scheme.

 

[Fred C. Dobbs]

I would like to point out that every game you have played at the YMCA or on a playground court, was played with an Elam ending.

 

[YOTHN]

How about stopping all the reviews instead?

That'll do more to shorten games than the Elam Ending.

It's not the length of the game as basketball is shorter than most all other sports, replay or not. Its the enjoyability being debated.

Watching a FT contest is boring but like Bino said, there has to be a better alternative to rewarding late game fouls rather than the Elam ending. Maybe deincentivise it by making it 3 shots at a certain number of fouls or something. Ha So add more foul shots to hope for less foul shots. I see no holes in this argument. Vbg

 

[Courtsensetwo]

It's not the length of the game as basketball is shorter than most all other sports, replay or not. Its the enjoyability being debated.

Watching a FT contest is boring but like Bino said, there has to be a better alternative to rewarding late game fouls rather than the Elam ending. Maybe deincentivise it by making it 3 shots at a certain number of fouls or something. Ha So add more foul shots to hope for less foul shots. I see no holes in this argument. Vbg

I cringe every time a ball goes out of bounds late and 13 players, four coaches and 3,000 fans all swing their arms in circles above their heads.
and the mindless TV drones yell "they want the refs to review it"!!

 

[Al Bino]

I cringe every time a ball goes out of bounds late and 13 players, four coaches and 3,000 fans all swing their arms in circles above their heads.
and the mindless TV drones yell "they want the refs to review it"!!

Why not implement a system where each coach has 2, 3 or whatever number of challenges and that is IT. The rest of the time the call of the court stands.

 

[YOTHN]

Why not implement a system where each coach has 2, 3 or whatever number of challenges and that is IT. The rest of the time the call of the court stands.

I think for all sports that incorporate replay, there is no need to have a ref on the field/court go look into a small TV in a brightly lit room with thousands of highly charged emotional eyes hovering over them to make a split second decision. We have head referees on TV who are giving their opinion much faster. Why not have a ref upstairs or remote with all the angles necessary to quickly make a decision to uphold or reverse a call. If its SUPER close it may delay the game an extra 10-15 seconds but most of those overturns would be done before the ref even got over to the side table.

 

[hookyIU1990]

It's not the length of the game as basketball is shorter than most all other sports, replay or not. Its the enjoyability being debated.

I'd rather watch the FT parade than the constant reviews. That's a positive for both enjoyability and length.

How many times do I have to watch players wave their fingers in the air and then hear commentators tell me that we're not under 2 min so it's not reviewable before the last 2 minutes finally get here and all flow in the game is destroyed every time a whistle is blown?

Officiating has gotten even worse because of the replay. Blown calls happen all game, but suddenly they're more important to correct in the last 2 minutes.

 

[go_iu]

I've watched a lot of baskball games through the B1G torunament and the first round of the NCAA tournament. Whether my team is ahead or behind or whether I have no team, I found the endings of close games to be repetative, uninteresting and even boring. The tactic of foul and hope for a free throw shooting miracle just is not interesting basketball.

The Basketball Tournament and the New Zealand pro league have adopted the Elam ending, both to great success. At the first dead ball within the last 4 minutes, 8 points are added to the score of the leading team. First team to that threshold wins.

The Elam ending rewards stops and sound offense. Tactical fouls and free throws are less important. The last 4 minutes of a game look more like basketball than a game of horse played from the free throw line.

That sound like BS, so you're up one and then you have a 9 pt lead for no reason. Basically you're just going to get the same tactics/fouling playing to be winning with 4 left, stupid idea. It just shortens the game by minutes and punishes the trailing team at that time further, even in a close matchup. In a scenario like that, a team that was trailing by 1 is not going to give up down 9 with 4 minutes left, that's absurd, just makes not sense and punishes what was competitive team, I don't mind strategy and coaching, or reviews, what bothers me most are the incessant TV timeouts

 

[Hoosier Clarion]

I'd rather watch the FT parade than the constant reviews. That's a positive for both enjoyability and length.

How many times do I have to watch players wave their fingers in the air and then hear commentators tell me that we're not under 2 min so it's not reviewable before the last 2 minutes finally get here and all flow in the game is destroyed every time a whistle is blown?

Officiating has gotten even worse because of the replay. Blown calls happen all game, but suddenly they're more important to correct in the last 2 minutes.

No thoughts more true. Absolutely nothing wrong with KISS!

 

[go_iu]

No thoughts more true. Absolutely nothing wrong with KISS!

The problem is that they are inconsistent when they do review and they often get it wrong. Case in point, MSU got screwed on one against Duke and TCU got the game stolen from them by them not reviewing a very obvious foul that allowed AZ to get it to overtime. The non call, non review on AZ is one of the worst I've ever seen

 

[Al Bino]

The problem is that they are inconsistent when they do review and they often get it wrong. Case in point, MSU got screwed on one against Duke and TCU got the game stolen from them by them not reviewing a very obvious foul that allowed AZ to get it to overtime. The non call, non review on AZ is one of the worst I've ever seen

Can they review if something is a foul or not?
They can review if some particular foul is flagrant or not but more??

 

[13thman]

Can they review if something is a foul or not?
They can review if some particular foul is flagrant or not but more??

99% of me says no, but they did change one to a foul on Race so I don't know anymore.

 

[Al Bino]

99% of me says no, but they did change one to a foul on Race so I don't know anymore.

The foul, IIRC, was on the other guy and then they reviewed it for a possible F1. That's when they change the foul to Race. I don't thing they can review to see if a common foul was committed.

 

[Sir_Saucy]

That sound like BS, so you're up one and then you have a 9 pt lead for no reason. Basically you're just going to get the same tactics/fouling playing to be winning with 4 left, stupid idea. It just shortens the game by minutes and punishes the trailing team at that time further, even in a close matchup. In a scenario like that, a team that was trailing by 1 is not going to give up down 9 with 4 minutes left, that's absurd, just makes not sense and punishes what was competitive team, I don't mind strategy and coaching, or reviews, what bothers me most are the incessant TV timeouts

I think you misunderstood. Say the score is 70-69 @ the 4 minute mark, the first team to reach 78+ points, wins. Take the lead team's score, add 8 and that is the target point total to win the game.

 

[i'vegotwinners]

so Elam is a hybrid of the old college rule, and the pickup first to 15 wins, rule.

 

[larsIU]

You also have to win by two per the scheme.

Just play to 21 then....1's and 2's.

 

[go_iu]

I think you misunderstood. Say the score is 70-69 @ the 4 minute mark, the first team to reach 78+ points, wins. Take the lead team's score, add 8 and that is the target point total to win the game.

That makes more sense, but I still think it's stupid as in who wants to watch less of a good bball game. I think it robs the coaching staff of playing towards the strengths and weaknesses against who you're matched up against with time as the equalizer. Just a bad idea, This robs coaching strategy at the end of games

 

[frikkenfrakken]

That sound like BS, so you're up one and then you have a 9 pt lead for no reason. Basically you're just going to get the same tactics/fouling playing to be winning with 4 left, stupid idea. It just shortens the game by minutes and punishes the trailing team at that time further, even in a close matchup. In a scenario like that, a team that was trailing by 1 is not going to give up down 9 with 4 minutes left, that's absurd, just makes not sense and punishes what was competitive team, I don't mind strategy and coaching, or reviews, what bothers me most are the incessant TV timeouts

You don't understand the idea. No one goes from down 1 to down 8.

At the 4 minute mark, you determine what score will win the game. First team to that score wins.

You figure out what score will win by adding 7 to the leading teams current total.