NBA reducing timeouts in games
Silver says expansion not in immediate plan
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday the league isn’t considering relocation or expansion right now. When it does, however, he said Las Vegas will get a look.
Speaking at a news conference at Wynn Las Vegas after the NBA Board of Governors meeting, Silver said:
“In essence, in some ways we feel like we have a team here already if you think about the presence we have. I feel that we do well in the Las Vegas market, so from an expansion standpoint, I’m not focused on having a team here. But at the point when we ultimately may look at expansion, which we will at some point — growth is inevitable — I’m sure we’ll look at this market. We’ll look at others as well.”
Silver announced two rules changes after the meeting, which coincides with the NBA Summer League at UNLV.
The league reduced the number of timeouts for a game from 18 to 14, with each side being allowed to call up to two instead of three in the final three minutes. The mandatory under-9-minute timeouts in the second and fourth quarters were eliminated.
And there will be no more 90-second and 20-second timeouts. All
timeouts will be 75 seconds.
“We’re pretty happy with the length of our game,” Silver said. “We made some changes over the last few years directed at overall length, and it’s quietly gotten the length of our game down from 2 hours and 23 minutes or so to about 2 hours and 15 minutes. We were more focused here on the pace and flow of the game, and what we heard from our fans and heard from many of our teams was that the end of our games in particular were too choppy.”
The league also changed the trade deadline, moving it up so teams would not have their rosters significantly altered during the All-star break.
This season’s deadline will be
Feb. 8 — 10 days before the All-star Game. Under the old system, the deadline would have been Feb. 22, when teams resume their seasons after the break.
Diogu auditions in Las Vegas
A one-time lottery pick, Washington’s Ike Diogu last played in the NBA during the 2011-12 season with the San Antonio Spurs.
The 6-foot-9-inch forward, an Arizona State product, still believes there’s “a lot” left in the tank. And he’s at the NBA Summer League to prove it.
“I’m here like everybody else, auditioning for an NBA team,” said Diogu, the ninth overall selection in the 2005 draft. “I can’t say I don’t feel like an NBA player — I know that I’m an NBA player. But I just want to come out and show teams I’m in shape, and I can go in there and be a defensive presence and help the team out.”
Diogu, 33, is the oldest player at the summer league. He had 15 points and five rebounds in the Wizards’ 89-88 loss to the Miami Heat on Wednesday at Cox Pavilion, the second game he has played.
“Summer league is mainly for young guys,” Diogu said. “So I respected (the Wizards) when they came up and told me the games I wasn’t going to play. That’s what the league is all about, though. It’s about staying ready. You never know when your number is going to be called.”
Diogu, who has played overseas since leaving the NBA, including in China last year, shot 2 for 6 from the field and 11 for 15 from the free throw line in 27 minutes against the Heat.
Mccaw impresses again
Former UNLV standout Patrick Mccaw scored 26 points on 10-of16 shooting in Golden State’s 77-69 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday. He’s averaging a team-high 20.0 points after four games.
“He just knows how to play,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s really good defensively, anticipates well. He’s very active and athletic. The guy’s going to be a big-time player for us for a long time.”