COLUMN: The shot clock rule
We live in a TV-dominated few seconds of sound bites...for better or for worse.
Everything seems to be in need of “quick” action.
Take, for instance, the controversial 35-second shot clock that has been added to high school basketball games throughout this beautiful state.
As a member of the TV “indoctrinated” Baby Boomer generation, I have mixed feelings about forcing a team to throw up a shot in 35 seconds.
I remember watching the “old” college basketball games where teams would try to run off large portions of the game clock by skillfully and artfully PASSING the ball in a game of keep-away.
Legendary college coach Dean Smith of North Carolina was a master of coaching the “four corners” offense in years gone by. Some saw it as a boring way to conduct a basketball game, while others applauded the initiative of keeping the ball out of an opponent’s hands for as long as possible.
When the idea was introduced this year in Montana high school events, many were skeptical, some about the cost and others about the element of strategy it would take from the game.
I watch a lot of basketball, almost all of it Montana high school. I’ve found if you are going to write about basketball, you better watch a lot of it.
I am not a fan of the NBA, the pros are too egotistical and arrogant for me.
But that’s another matter.
Here, with the season rapidly lunging toward playoff time, it’s as good a time as any to share some thoughts on the 35-second clock rule.
Basically, I see no major changes to the way the game has been played. High school round ballers still have an open policy when it comes to hoisting up a shot. The basic rule there is often “if you have the ball, even if you are well-guarded, go ahead and cast it up”.
If there is a detriment to the time limit, it is that the art of passing the ball may be the biggest loser.
In the myriad of games I have watched this year, both on-line and in person, I have seen, on average, two or fewer “shot clock violations” per game. Going beyond the 35-second limit without getting off a shot that at least hits the rim is like a traveling violation or any other turnover….the other team gets the ball.
So, I’ve been thinking of ways to examine and evaluate this new rule. Several examples of applying the 35-second clock rule to life’s daily routines give an interesting, if not insane, look at the thinking behind the new rule.
For example, what if a 35-second clock were hung from each traffic stop light. When the light turns green, you have 35 seconds to take your foot off the brake, apply it to the gas pedal and move forward in a safe and sane manner.
Failure to move would results in a loud whistle followed by instructions to pull over and sit out the next light sequence as your penalty.
Hmmmm.
Another practical use would be at the drive-up window of the local burger (or taco) joint. The clock would begin ticking down from 35 seconds once the person inside the business said the “welcome to” line and asked you to “order when ready”. The patron would then have 35 seconds to order and move forward. Failure to do so would result in denial of service and a trip to the back of the line to try it again.
Dude, if you don’t know the menu at 99.9% of the fast food establishments out there, you ought to get out of your vehicle and go inside to see what they have.
Christmas lights, and I’m not sure which way I would go on this one, could be regulated in the same way.
As of noon January 2 each year, residents who hang Christmas lights would have 35 seconds to begin removing their lights and putting them back in storage. Failure to act would result in a limit on the number of lights each violator could hang the next season.
As I get older, I would have more trouble adhering to this limitation...not physically but because as everyone knows, time speeds up as you age.
There are no doubt all kinds of practical uses for a shot clock. What this society needs (tongue in cheek here) is more rules and regulations.
You’ve got 35 seconds to think of new uses for the shot clock.
Begin now.