Monday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves — having paid tribute to Flip Saunders — wanted to make the moment count in their home opener against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Andrew Wiggins wanted to make a moment, period.
In the final minute of regulation, he did… for the wrong reasons.
With the Timberwolves trailing, 103-101, Wiggins did something unpardonable and unforgivable: He tried to make a play, and in the process of working hard, he beat his defenders to the rim on a putback attempt. HOW DARE HE?
Can’t do that, pal. Not in American basketball, where FIBA rules have not yet made their way to our shores:
Two looks at Andrew Wiggins tip-in, I see why they called it no basket…but that's a basket https://t.co/ENMzZvYcWq https://t.co/a0gZYtXyDk
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) November 3, 2015
C.J. Fogler is exactly right — the rules of the NBA technically say that’s no basket, since a sliver of the orange sphere was in fact in the cylinder.
Yet, in much the same way that Dez Bryant CAUGHT that ball against the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs last January, and in much the same way that the Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Falcons scored touchdowns earlier this season (only for ridiculously complicated rules about legal pass receptions to wipe those touchdowns off the board), we can all recognize that Andrew Wiggins scored a basket to tie the Minnesota-Portland game at 103-all in the final minute.
Wiggins made a basketball play. He out-hustled his man. He showed superb athleticism and timing. He artfully out-maneuvered the opposition to put the ball in the dang basket. This is what fans pay to see. It’s what writers love writing about. It’s just one snapshot of why we love the NBA: Great athletes showcasing their immense skills, giving us a taste of how dynamic they can be… all in the service of a team goal on a night when a band of basketball brothers wanted their beloved coach — his life gone much too soon — to be honored with a victory.
*
Year after year after maddening year, we see offensive basket interference wipe out baskets… and something much more than two-point scores.
The basket interference rule, however well-intentioned it might be, is something which needed to be severely reduced in scope and influence years ago. Sure, shaking the basket or grabbing the net should not be allowed (those are not basketball plays, after all), but grabbing or tipping the ball when in the cylinder should be legal. It should have been legalized many years ago. This one rule provision must be tossed out of the rulebook for every obvious reason.
The object of James Naismith’s game is to put the ball in the basket. Should it matter if a ball is just outside the cylinder? If Player A is able to get to the rebound before Opposing Player B, he has demonstrated effort, quickness, leaping ability, positioning — any or all of those in combination — in pursuit of the sport’s central goal. Why is this restriction placed on athletes? Why do we have a rule which punishes athleticism and causes players to hesitate in terms of putting forth effort?
FIBA gets this. FIBA’s more limited basket interference rules don’t inhibit movement and reactions. They allow players to fluidly and instinctively play what is supposed to be a sport built on fluid and instinctual movements.
Andrew Wiggins did what should come naturally to basketball players. He did something which his teammates and coaches should applaud. He did what commentators and analysts love to see in a player: He worked his butt off. He’s a highly-compensated player who is earning that paycheck and not coasting on newfound fame or riches.
Yet, Wiggins got punished for it, and the T-Wolves couldn’t win on Flip Saunders Night as a result, just to twist the dagger a little more.
No, I won’t harp on this all season long; in fact, this piece serves to get this issue on the record and out of the way at an early stage in the season, so we can move on to other things.
However, let it be said, for everyone to see, read and hear: Get. FIBA. Rules. Into. The. NBA. (And. College.)
Now.
(Yesterday, really.)
