The NBA is in an era of encouraging offense and defense, and we can see that the NBA has seen a total of 9 times in the past 13 months with at least 30+ points. On the other hand, from 1985 to 2004, it only appeared 10 times.
Moreover, the players in these years have high scores, the offensive efficiency is very high, and their main scoring comes from free throws and three-pointers, which is a big gap from the high scores of the past.
Before the 10s of the 21st century, we could see that it was very difficult for a team to score more than 100 points in the whole game. In today's NBA, it's easy for a team to score more than 110 points.
This change is more due to the league's desire to create a pleasing offensive scoring rhythm that has dampened players' defensive enthusiasm. If a team scores more than 120 or 130 points now, we think it's normal.
However, once a team scores less than 100 points, we would consider that the team is experiencing one of their worst games of the season. Recently, former NBA star Garnett also asked NBA commissioner Xiao Hua about the lack of good defense in modern games.
NBA commissioner Xiao Hua recently passed a board decision to complete a contract extension with the NBA, and he will continue to serve as NBA president until 2030. Soon, Xiao Hua also came out to explain why the league did not want to go back to the aggressive defense of the 90s.
"I believe that in the late '90s, when the sport became too physical," Xiao said. Judging by the aesthetic enjoyment of the game, it does not emphasize the specific skills that the player has. Maybe it's putting too much emphasis on physicality, and a strong player might come in and stop a highly skilled player from doing these things. ”
Indeed, we can see that in the era when Xiao Hua was in power, there were many small players. Their size, in the '80s and '90s, was barely a top star.
In the past NBA, players were mainly physically strong, but now in the NBA, players are mainly physical and technical. Xiao Hua also said that Curry has become a successful model of small players in this era under his own support.
"A small guy like Stephen Curry, when you think about his shooting and his ability to move to the box, if people can just knock him to the ground like it used to happen in the league, I don't think that's a better brand of basketball," Shaw said. ”
Shaw took over the reins of the NBA in 2014 by Stern, and in 2015 the Golden State Warriors won the championship. The Golden State Warriors have become one of the best teams in the NBA since 2015.
The Golden State Warriors have reached the Finals six times and won the championship four times. The Warriors are the best masterpiece of the NBA era when Xiao Hua was in power. However, Xiao Hua said that it is indeed necessary for the current NBA to restore some physical and fierce defensive rules.
"We have to find the right balance. We're trying to get back the physicality and people like to see tough defensiveness. People don't like the idea that guys can get out unscathed, or that you're protecting your players. We've made changes this season, unnatural rules of basketball. The players are taking advantage of the system. Good players who play by the rules find a way to be a defensive foul. We've made it clear to those players that they won't foul. ”
Today's players don't dare to go to the physical confrontation, which also puts the NBA in an era of skyrocketing player scoring. In the 2023-24 season, at least 10 players are averaging more than 27 points per game, and four players are averaging at least 30 points per game.
In the 2023-24 season, Doncic and Embiid are 4 days apart, and both have 70+ points. The NBA does need some good defensive confrontations right now, but it also needs the support of the referees, because we can see that the referees often blow some body hair whistles.