[TripleDouble]

Magic Johnson, not a player known for his defensive sentiment, said that Kobe would never have gotten 81 as easily back in the day because someone would have laid him out. Players now waltz down the lane with very little concern. Pippen said that Kobe would never have scored that much before they eliminated the handcheck. Kobe's performance and the emergence of the Phoenix Suns as a force are signs that David Stern's goal to make the game more offensive have worked. However, I think the game is much less exciting now.

Stern has been constantly tinkering with the rules to try to avoid the Miami Heat, NYK mid-90's style of ball but it doesn't seem that the rule changes (which make it almost impossible to play good defense) have made the game more popular. To me at least the NBA was much more entertaining when players were allowed to play defense and scoring basket was an achievement.

[23]

Lets see, I've seen JR Smith get a tech for yelling at Devean George fromt he bench

I've seen Eddie Curry get a tech for staring at Chris Mihm after making a play

I've seen players get flagrants for at the refs discretion for just plain old hard fouls nothing dirty

I've seen players get breathed on in the playoffs and they go to the line

i would say so

[Gilgamesh]

You know what's funny I still remember Phil Jackson and the Bulls *****ing about the Knick's rough play.

[Diable]

If they want to encourage offense that's okay with me up to the point where they completely pervert the game.What I absolutely despise is how the game is called one way for most players and another way for so called superstars.If you are a superstar you can foul the hell the hell out of the other team all day long and hardly ever get called for anything,but when the other guy breathes on a superstar they blow the whistle and send the superstar to the foul line.

[Hairy Midget]

The Magic game against the Hawks last night was called totally differently than usual, they let almost any rough play go, but it can get out of hand. I don't think players are going to take the rough **** these days because they're not as used to it like players were back then. It has gotten very soft, but a transition back to that type of play would produce so many brawls.

[SPMJ]

Originally Posted by TripleDouble

To me at least the NBA was much more entertaining when players were allowed to play defense and scoring basket was an achievement.

Huh?

The scores today are still significantly lower then what they used to be during the NBA's golden years.

[KingHandles]

The NBA is a bunch of overpaid babies! Sure, most of them can play ball, but if one thing doesn't go their way they throw a fit...It's pathetic.

[23AJ]

I agree with the original poster. The old argument that teams from the past scored more has nothing to do with defense. Go watch the old Lakers/Celtics games. Peolple got hammered in the paint, and it was considered a typical foul. Now if you are any where near the head,neck, and shoulders area of a player and foul them hard you get a flagrant every time. Thats totally bogus to me.

side note -

Tonight A.I. laughed at the ref who whistled a foul on another Sixer for breathing on Lebron. After A.I. simply laughed about that and was walking to the other end of the court. The Ref gave A.I. a technical.

Times are changing and I'm not so sure if it's for the better in the big picture of the NBA.

[DuMa]

the brawl last year was a point where stern wanted to change the physical abuse of the game.

[Jameh]

Originally Posted by 23AJ

I agree with the original poster. The old argument that teams from the past scored more has nothing to do with defense. Go watch the old Lakers/Celtics games. Peolple got hammered in the paint, and it was considered a typical foul. Now if you are any where near the head,neck, and shoulders area of a player and foul them hard you get a flagrant every time. Thats totally bogus to me.

side note -

Tonight A.I. laughed at the ref who whistled a foul on another Sixer for breathing on Lebron. After A.I. simply laughed about that and was walking to the other end of the court. The Ref gave A.I. a technical.

Times are changing and I'm not so sure if it's for the better in the big picture of the NBA.

See that's complete BS...it's one thing to go with the foul instead of letting it slide on a close play...but when you hand out a technical when nothing was said...when no rules were actually broke, and all that happened was AI hurt the refs feelings...I can't even laugh at that.

[supermati]

Sure, the game was much more exciting back then, the rough, physical defense.
We need to bring those back, those were the days.