Shot-blocking 15 years ago compared to today

[Vides990]

The quality of centers argument is dumb as is the league is soft argument... 3 seconds in the key on defense is a bigger reason

I've mentioned before that this is a huge HUGE misunderstanding from what I can only assume are younger posters. The defensive 3 secodn rule has ALWAYS been there, including in the era of big shotblockers.

Pre-2002? Whenever the zone was allowed, and the three second rule instituted, centers STILL could not lurk in the lane 3 seconds. That was the illegal defense rule. You had to be always guarding your own man, staying withing reasonable reach of him, or it was illegal. Big centers couldn't just lurk around in the paint unless their man was standing there too. Which is pretty much the same as today. You can be in there 3 seconds today too just as long as your man is there. Basically the three second rule isn't anything new at all. All it is is the last bit of the illegal defesne rules still remaining.

Basically you don't understand the illegal D rules which is odd since you posted them. It wasn't the same rule at all.

Today's rule is easy. 3 seconds when not actively guarding a man and that's it.

Old rule was as long as your man didn't pull himself above the FT line and was withing 3 feet of the key you could do what you want. Camp out all day. You didn't have to be withing 3 feet or arms width or whatever other stuff people like to dream up, it was broken into areas. You had to be within one area. Or 2 for 2.9 seconds. Your assignment could be close to the top corner and you could camp under the hoop as long as he didn't go above the FT line or 3 feet away.

Teams started to pull defenders away by pulling their offensive players above the top of the key and providing isolation for the player with the ball.

Gerbil had it right, you my friend are very wrong. Big men have never been able to "camp out in the lane" this idea is truly asinine.

[Shot Clock]

Gerbil had it right, you my friend are very wrong. Big men have never been able to "camp out in the lane" this idea is truly asinine.

Assinine is having the definition right in front of you, then having it explained and still not getting it.

b. When a defensive player is guarding an offensive player who
is adjacent (posted-up) to the 3-second lane, the defensive player may
be within the "inside lane" area with no time limitations.
An offensive player shall be ruled as "postedup" when he is within 3'
of the free throw lane line. A hash mark on the baseline denotes the 3'
area

As long as he doesn't go above the FT line or more then 3 feet from the lane then the defender can do what he wants

The court was divided into "areas" Upper,middle and lower defensive areas. You had to be within one area of your opponent.

The areas were from the baseline to the bottom of the FT circle (lower)

FT circle bottom to the FT line (middle)

FT line to the top of the FT circle (upper).

So teams would pull the defending center by giving him no one to defend below the 3 point line. If they were out there the center would have to be in the upper defensive area. He could drop to a lower area for 2.9 seconds.

[Vides990]

^ Yes but those areas were defined by the location of the offensive player no? So if the offensive player moved out of the area, the defender followed suit, hence no camping in the lane.....or am I really struggling with english today lol

[Mamba Venom]

A few reasons why

Players today are taller than ever before at the positions SG-PF. Back then Jordan was a giant at 6-6 guard (in fact when he came in the league he was listed as a forward because of his size), now its the average height for SGs is 6-6. Back then forwards were 6-8, now they are 6-11 and we have some 7 footers.

In the 80s and 90s it seemed they were looking all over the world for the giant (Mutumbo, Hakeem, etc.) to teach to play the game. Now days the talent scouts are only looking at guys that ALREADY play. There are many stories of all-time NBA greats not picking up a basketball until after they were old enough to get a drivers license. If you find a 7 footer and teach them how to play D and block shots and tell them that this game can change help their family and their village, they play hard.

Back then the next gen kids were watching Wilt and Russell play big, now it was Magic, Jordan, AI, Kobe, etc. Small ball and difficult shots have been the main focus of basketball for the last 25 years.

[Don Draper]

Rule changes mostly.

[Jimmy Recard]

Also, the league HAS gotten softer. The rules back then allowed players to be far more physical. Trying to block shots wasn't going to get you quick fouls...

Agree with this.

[_Game7_]

Less bangers inside.

[peja_the_legend]

^^there is no shortage of Bangers in the league.It's just that 90% of them suck

[Roger Murdock]

The biggest difference is much more in regards to perimeter players being smarter and getting their shot blocked less. Dwight Howard would have averaged 4+ blocks in the 80s easily.

Perimeter players have gotten smarter much moreso than Bigs today have gotten so much worse that they can't block shots 1/2 as well as guys in the 90s.

[NZB2323]

Players shoot more 3's now.

Larry Bird isn't in the top 30 for 3's made.

The top 10 is Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, Jason Kidd, Peja, Billups, Dale Ellis, Rashard Lewis, Jason Terry, Paul Pierce, and Steve Nash.

8 of the top 10 are currently playing. A center can't get a bunch of blocks if teams are raining 3's all day.

[Scalabrine]

there was illegal defense back then which was very similar to the 3 second rule but it didnt allow for zone defense. The big men were just bigger and the guards couldnt get to the rim as fast with hand checking rules still in place.

1. Dikembe Mutumbo
2. Alonzo Mourning
3. Shawn Bradley
4. Gheorghe Mursean
5. Patrick Ewing
6. Hakeem Olajuwan
7. Shaq
8. Elden Cambell
9. Ervin Johnson

all of those guys were great shot blockers, then you had Camby and Wallace still in the 90's.

Bogut, Camby, Noah, and Howard, those are really the only guys on that level in todays game.

[magicman1978]

Marcus Camby, Ben Wallace, and an old Alonzo Mourning were blocking more shots than Dwight Howard after the rule changes. If Dwight is going to be averaging 4+ 15 years ago, how much would prime Alonzo, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dikembe Mutumbo average? I don't see Dwight really having the same type of timing the great shot blockers had - he relies more on pure athleticism.

[kelvinkwl]

Marcus Camby, Ben Wallace, and an old Alonzo Mourning were blocking more shots than Dwight Howard after the rule changes. If Dwight is going to be averaging 4+ 15 years ago, how much would prime Alonzo, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dikembe Mutumbo average? I don't see Dwight really having the same type of timing the great shot blockers had - he relies more on pure athleticism.

I kinda agree with magicman here. I believe that Dwight is able to perform the way he has because he doesn't have much competition at his position now given that it's a more guard/winger era. D12 is only able to do what he wants in the paint because there isn't many solid C nowadays that could stop him.

In terms of shot blocking, it could be because it's a faster pace game now where fast breaks are just 3-5 steps for some players, and that the game has evolve into a more shooting 3s and long shots are used more than a post up game.