Are NBA Players Getting Too Good At Basketball?

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[@_bobo123]

The NBA has really evolved to the point where defence just isn’t enough anymore. The scoring is too prolific

[@vedantgupta2145]

3 second rule is way too harsh, it should be atleast 6-7 seconds . Also if they actually call charging fouls, defence would be much better

[@Heatlifer77]

No, refs just need to stop being inconsistent pussies

[@ND-OPS]

😂I don’t think so, it’s easy too look good on offense when the League office makes it more offensive focus and eliminated a lot of the defensive rules.

[@b111x]

They eliminated hand checking in 2005. Ever since then, they have banned even more physicality on defense to make scoring easier. It’s an offense focused league.

[@user-ht9mh4cm3f]

your comment came in a whopping 1 min after the video was posted - props to you for watching the (15-16 min) video and fully absorbing it all, then formulating some thoughts, then speaking.. you wouldn't happen to be american by any chance..?

[@HeisenbergFam]

Jimmy is like a barn cat that visits you after a long time, makes you happy and leaves

[@JeremiahIsrael144k]

Fr bruh it’s been a month I was getting irritated. Lowkey was looking forward to a lebron or laker vid 😅

[@thankyouforwatching7256]

Or your dad

[@flozirkus7618]

@@JeremiahIsrael144k stupid lebron fans...

[@JeremiahIsrael144k]

@@thankyouforwatching7256 not sure if you were trying to be funny. Lol but uh nah not that 😐

[@Cdroh]

Jimmy do a video on defence like blocks steals rebounds how they’ve evolved since the 90s

[@nickpfeifer6999]

The increase in scoring has made playing defense and getting a stop the impressive part of the game. With scoring being easy and so frequent, fans should cheer more when their team gets a stop

[@gibbers313]

Unless you play the pistons

[@lecygnenoir4313]

I'm with you there, and the League is noticing. The stops are coming. The most valued talent in the league right now aren't just offensive powerhouses, because offense has become relatively cheap. Victor and Chet are projected game changers because they can provide star level offense *and* game changing defense. The 3 Revolution was about team reaIizing just how much unused ceiling there was for offense in the 2010s, but feel like the potential of offense is slowly running out, and we're about to see a new, defensive arms race. It probably won't be about volume, I don't think we'll ever get back to dead ball era scores, but destroying the other team's efficiency is where the games will be won. The Wolves are further ahead in that process than any other team right now, but I feel like they have a very limited window of opportunity because other teams sure as hell are noticing what they're doing.

[@frankguy6843]

That's actually so true, I find myself so hyped for a defensive stop / forced shot clock violation / clean steal. Noticed fans at games are starting to cheer for defense similarly. Making my man Alex Caruso feel more and more valuable by the day, and he's instilling his mindset in the Bulls young core

[@DublinDapper]

Not all at...getting a stop means absolutely fucking nothing when each team is scoring 130 points a night. Tell me you understand that right?!

[@dorianthemenace]

​@@DublinDapperit does matter because yes the game might be pushing 130 but once again that makes every single defensive stop and miss that important because the offensive is just that good that you really have be amazing at defensive or pray that team misses

[@roblunquest3311]

1. Call carries 2. Call travelling (only 2 extra steps after your last dribble) 3. don't call fouls when the offensive player initiate the contact (that applies to jumping in defenders & the swing motion..which is the worst of them all) 4. Remove the zone 5. Remove the defensive 3-second 6. Bring back partial hand-check

[@WorldConflictsTV]

We have already seen the worse of point #3. They cracked down on that a long time ago.

[@Aisluin]

remove zone? you can't be serious.

[@rogoznicafc9672]

partial hand-check is already allowed

[@rylo8266]

Hand checking is still allowed

[@spy_kek7609]

just 1 and 2 will make it a lot better. Imagine actually following the NBA rules I mean smh who need carries and travelling just make it the NFL

[@TBIRD0625]

One of the main things that I noticed while growing up playing ball was how the perspective shifted to every player on the court had to be able to shoot the ball now. You used to have specific guys who could pass, guys who could rebound, guys who got blocks, steals etc and now after all the euro big men who could shoot entering the NBA it became a requirement that literally every player on the court needs to be able to shoot the ball. If everyone can shoot, scores go way up!

[@oskardalecki9034]

That's really good point. In MJ's era every team had at least 2 guys just to pass/defense so it's not shocking that the overall score were lower. And also, defense has a much easier task when they had to guard 3 shooters, when now it's 4 and sometimes even 5. You can't eveb really double teamed guys like Jokić and Embiid cause they can easily pass to open teammate who can score

[@jakeeditz03]

yeah, i agree sadly, how you gonna battle glorious king curry, and not be able to shoot.

[@_MM03]

⁠​⁠​⁠@@oskardalecki9034Which makes MJ, Bird, George Gervin, Alex English, Bernard King & many other great scorers of the 80s & 90s far more impressive. Their lanes were always clogged & were basically playing 4 on 5 a lot of times on offense yet were still so dominant & efficient. In todays NBA where 1v1 basketball has taken over & if you help off your man they dish to a wide open shooter it’s crazy to think the averages they would’ve put up in game as easy as today. Plus no carrying, moving screens, traveling calls anymore.

[@SosaA11]

@@_MM03lmao no more moving screens? Thats how Steph Curry career started

[@mrlaybackvevo264]

It stretch the court for easy points in the paint

[@MeLoveParisHilton]

The really obvious change from a casual fan perspective is how much better the role players have become. The stars and the greats were amazing in the 80s and 90s but the role players seemed quite limited and many couldn't even hit a three. Today even the last guy on a roster has a full bag, can shoot, pass and dribble.

[@IamDevron]

Cam Thomas the perfect example. Regularly coming off the bench and dropping 30 is unheard outside of the current era

[@kawaiiafangirl]

I kinda see you on this. bc the best 2-3 players on the team would play 35-40 minutes per game in the 90s and 2000s, role players didn't always get as much playing time. They try to play mostly 9 guys nowadays and star players probably only play 33-35 MPG in this era so bench and role players get more playing time. Still, there were some role players on teams when I started watching basketball that were brought in to do one thing at times. Shooting Guards were expected to shoot 3s only, a Small Forward can be an average 3-Point shooter but is meant to slash to the basket more, a Power Forward or Center was only a low post defender and rebounder (not exactly scorers or shot-blockers either), and some backup Point Guards were only meant to distribute the rock and not even expected to score more than 5 PPG.

[@raviatm]

not even remotely true

[@rosgill6]

there are no "bums" at the end of the roster any more, like there used to be. I wouldn't go so far as to say they have a full bag, but they are almost all athletic

[@icommentsometimes]

@@raviatmit 100% is

[@DrZoomer]

I think a big part of the point “guys are getting better/more open looks” is because moving screen is never a thing called any more, and travels and carry are never called either. When the ball handler is able to break the rules to make it impossible for the defender to tell if he’s pulling up or doing a dribble move, that is an unfair advantage that will always leave the defender on the back foot

[@DublinDapper]

Agreed whole thing is a farce to watch

[@shepardice3775]

The NBA stopped calling carries since AI came into the league and yet offensive efficiency was at a low point in the 2000s. That's not the reason why

[@jame8618]

ngl i think thats only about 10% of it. Travelling was common even during the worst scoring era of the 2000s. Nowadays everyone is a shooter so "looks" are more common. Back before 2010 youd never see a big man take a 3, now hardly there isnt a big man who cant shoot 3s. People are just too good on offense now

[@isaacthomas9437]

I think that it gives the player creativity doing dribbling moves, and it takes skill to do all this without dropping the ball, and it also makes guards have an advantage over centres to combine their dribbling skills with speed, so that you don’t have to be tall to play basketball, because generally big men aren’t good at speed, and dribbling, but right know I’m seeing big man like Giannis Kevindurant add both of that, and Victor wembanyama

[@noob.168]

and flopping gets you free throws. defenders landing space aren't protected like shooters'. etc etc

[@collinfyffe3376]

I’d still like to see how the defensive ratings compare to how the offense has changed, is it really only the offensive that got better or has the defense just also slowed down because of the rule changes

[@goldmo2427]

Well you can also argue the defensive y’all want to hype actually isn’t that good and it’s just players and talent and game they played was terrible .. now if you took defensive players now and offense they play vs a player in past a average defender today would look elite in past 🤷‍♂️

[@ORLt]

defense back then didn't stop AI

[@tepsicouch]

What rule changes? Legalizing zone defense in 2001 was the biggest change in rules since the 3 point shot was invented. It led to the lowest scoring decade in NBA history in the 00s. Teams had to learn to shoot to beat zone defenses, there's just no other way. But the shooting revolution ended up growing to the point where offense not only recovered but became better than ever. There really haven't been many rule changes that have effected defense besides zone legalization. There's actually less free throws now than at any other point in NBA history. What we need to recognize is that every rule that was put in place (3 point shot, 3 in the key, goal tending etc) was designed to make bigs less OP, and it worked, but now non unicorn bigs are obsolete. It was an extreme over correction. We should remove the 3 jn the key rule, which will allow defenses to set up with a more even playing field. Let's make bigs important again.

[@FJoshE]

Defensive ratings are how many points are allowed (per 100 possessions usually). If the league average for offensive ratings go up by say 10 pts, defensive ratings move exactly the same.

[@stevenygabbyperez695]

I grew up watching basketball in the 90's. There were a lot of low skill bigs who were in the league because they were big and could get you 6 hard fouls per game. Defense wasn't better back then, but the rules allowed for thuggery.

[@thisguy8106]

When I was in 10th grade.. We played a 3A school named Buffalo Island Central. This was 2003.. And they started 5 guards. Their entire offensive strategy was to get the ball and shoot a 3 as fast as possible. They beat us by 30 (we were a 1A school playing them at their place, we didn't have a chance 😅) but I'll never forget at halftime my coach saying "this isn't basketball. This isn't how you play the game." I never dreamt that 20 years later, its exactly how basketball would be played, everywhere. I bet my old coach hates it. 😅😅

[@Aaron-tl5fy]

That grinell system is a mf 😂

[@chancedriscoll5350]

Dumb question: In your state is the bigger number the bigger schools? Like 1a is tiny and 5a is the big schools? I ask because where I am from (Ohio), Division 1 is the big schools and the bigger your number gets the tinier the schools. Division 6 in football here is schools where every boy in the school (Freshman to Sr) needs to play football so that they can field a team.

[@ninjabieber7695]

@@chancedriscoll5350in high school larger number is better and earlier letter is like A is the better division. College d1 is all the same nationally

[@acidmana6141]

you can see where the trend the league scoring skyrocketed. Yep you guess it right. Steph Curry destroyed the league, in a good way.

[@kant1307]

As a casual fan that can only catch a few games here and there, I feel this. I generally felt like 50% from the field and 33% from 3 was a decent benchmark to apply to volume scorers, but that line only seems to be going up. Now that percentage is like 55-58% and 35-37% is considered "good"

[@freshlettuce502]

Listen I still think that like 45- 48% from the field is really good. Also 33% from three? I personally would lose my confidence if I only made 1 out of 3 of my shots. I personally think that 36% from three should be the average, but that's just me

[@dasupremegentlelad4321]

Average percentage for a 3 is about 33-35 yearly. A good stat to look at is how many 40% shooters we have at the end of the year compared to back then

[@gillfreddie4100]

I'd say 40% three point is the minimum to be considered "good" for three point shooting nowadays.

[@zwoptf]

@@freshlettuce502there’s a reason you aren’t a basketball player

[@floppyip3447]

@@gillfreddie4100 40% is elite elite, barely anyone reaches that mark (*only 10 players last year)

[@tunesntrix]

So glad that you highlighted elite players today learning from the past. Jordan perfected the post-guard game and literally everyone is training to use his moves with varying degrees of success. The talent floor of the NBA is the highest it's ever been because even the last guy on the bench was training to be like Mike since he was 12.

[@michaeld3546]

It reminds me of the 4 minute mile phenomenon. I think when the offensive ceiling or standard was broken it truly expanded the bounds of ability in these new hoopers

[@slimshady8252]

What’s the the 4 min mi phenomenon ??

[@michaeld3546]

@@slimshady8252 It was deemed impossible to run a mile under 4 minutes for decades until one guy did it in the 1950’s. Once that barrier broke, suddenly many others werw able to complete a 4 minute mile

[@hoki0624]

It's proof of how humans can eventually break any barrier or record given enough time. A lot of factors affect these things, of course, but once a method has been found to conquer something "impossible" then the "impossible" task will eventually turn trivial.

[@Benjackson17]

You're exactly right. I think about this often when I watch Steph. I think it's just seeing someone that's able to do it that inspires others to recreate it. Shows how collaborative and community oriented sports are, even when it seems like talent reigns supreme. Gotta have a role model to show that the sky is the limit, then you can reach it

[@slimshady8252]

@@michaeld3546 huh. Well it still is impossible for me lol

[@quiet451]

The increased free throw percentage is the most telling stat. There is no defense on a free throw, so increased free throw percentage can only be explained by the fact that players in today's game are just better at shooting the ball.

[@theslickrips5904]

Solid point. Shooting has gotten better. I don’t buy that the nba tinkering with defense and how fouls are called doesn’t play a role in overall offense scoring.

[@OfficialTomsSkujinsFanClub]

this is a fantastic point i’ve never thought of it like that before, i think it also has to do with the decrease in true big men and the death of the classic power forward

[@Bertza00]

Kind of, I would argue in the past most free throws went to player like shaq but nowadays guards get much bigger share of free throws. Then add the better more focused coaching on shooting etc.

[@jonm7888]

Players are better shooters now, but they can carry the ball, and hand checking is illegal. Most guards wouldn't put up the same numbers with the old rules.

[@NoisqueVoaProduction]

Although context should be considered, because, like someone has mentioned, who is being fouled may be the reason (people used to make tactical fouls to make worse FT shooters on the line). If you compare bad FT shooters and good ft shooters from each decades it will still be easy to see that we just got better throughout

[@bluenightsky]

I'm surprised you didn't mention that the officiating is also stacked against good defense. Defense is more often than not penalized in the current NBA. I feel like the calls should be more balanced. You have amazing defensive players that are getting overlooked for their talent because it's just so hard to not get a call from the refs as they favor a faster paced game. Don't get me wrong, I like the new take foul calls and it's exciting to see the fast breaks but don't over officiate defense. That is an exciting part of the game too! A huge block is a crowd pleaser.

[@meepk633]

It's not stacked against a good defense. It's stacked against a cheap and easy defense. Rule changes have increased the skill ceiling of basketball defense by a million. You can't just have your biggest oaf drop shoulders anymore. You have to earn stops with technique and teamplay. While it is harder for the filthy casual to track and understand, sometimes you just need to evolve the game and let people catch up.

[@fredbradshaw4308]

Also, you should compare the 90’s to now. The defense wasn’t that physical back then aside from the occasional clothesline. The concept of a defenders verticality was non existent back then. Any contact on a drive was called a foul

[@reignmans]

@@meepk633 yeah now your big oafs attacking are allowed to do the dropping shoulders , chest bumps, elbows to the chests while driving to the basket. good call. oh wait.

[@josemasarate]

The league has relaxed travelling calls allowing players to be more "creative" with evading great defense. That's the most frustrating part, in my opinion. Kobe, MJ, Curry, KD, these guys prove that you can be an all-time great scorer while having fundamental footwork.

[@goldmo2427]

@@fredbradshaw4308I use to believe in the narrative the defense was way better and I started watching old games and defense wasn’t really good even in dead ball era I didn’t see the hype .. what I saw was bad basketball and bad shots and a lot of stars at that time took bad shots .. the style slow and nobody moving as well .. I don’t see hype for defense or overall game or talent .. only real criticism I have for recent nba is it’s not as balanced and it’s just to much 3s but I also understand analytics but sometimes they should chill with 3s and go in but the thing is in previous era those long mid range shots were actually worse shots than 3s so it’s funny .. but yea I don’t see hype for previous eras and people also still compare players from 60 years ago like wilt and won’t talk about how those superstars actually had massively inflated stats in 5 team league but complain this era is super inflated ..

[@SL-rn4ev]

I really love your videos. I can’t imagine the time it took to gather all the stats, then put it together into this video. Thanks for your hard work and I hope to see more… Luka 😁

[@setentavezessete6361]

Fantastic job, Jxmy! Please do a video on how the Dead Ball era came to be! Like, how did we go from an also dynamic and fast paced game in the 80's and 90's (even if not comparable to nowadays) to what happened in the early 2000's?

[@McDeezy_]

It’s the best Christmas when Jxmy uploads ❤

[@Hyrumjohnson23]

Fr😂

[@utubebroadcaster]

If he reads this, I think it's also worth thinking about the correlation with expansion teams joining the NBA. When there's a high concentration of talent, the NBA expanded and the talent was then slightly more diluted (e.g. Minnesota, Charlotte.. then Vancouver and Toronto, New Orleans, etc). When those franchises joined, depth was also lost as a result. It would take years for the depth and quality to pick up again. With no expansion in so many years, the NBA has an even greater concentration of talent that's not been diluted.

[@fruitsnacks155]

this is exactly what i told my wife when i saw jxmy uploaded

[@kanetheundertaker3745]

bros horny

[@ExtraterrestrialBeing-jc7to]

🧢

[@wreckthemic]

I think there's a big point that's missing about defense. Yes, the players today are unstoppable on offense. I feel it's because the offensive game has evolved through rule changes and such. They are allowed to do more. The travel is not called nearly enough. People are able to palm the ball and manipulate it in such a way that it's unguardable. Offensive sets have changed, but defenders are still only able to play the same defensive schemes that were available 25 years ago except with none of the physicality. The guys today are skilled offensively so of course they're able to score on open shots, average height defenders, and no banging in the paint. If you want a great example of what happens when the physicality is brought back, just look at how KD (who is considered one of the greatest scorers of all time), when he played against the Celtics a couple years back in the playoffs. They played hard, physical, 90's defense on him (because the refs allowed it), and he had one of the worst series of his career because he was not used to having people bump him and not be given fouls.

[@ghf9945]

The league is protecting their assets. It is a superstar driven league and making defense obsolete is the best way to do that. There is a lot of money tied up into superstars and owners don't want to be paying all that money for a player to sit injured

[@bridgetekcommunications332]

I can not agree more. Today’s players play 0 defense because they need to “rest” for offense.

[@dylanparadis5360]

You kinda broke your own argument. If what you saying is true then what the Celtics did to KD should not have happened a couple years back. The rule changes should have prevented it

[@wreckthemic]

@dylanparadis5360 the rule changes normally prevent it. However, for whatever reason the refs allowed them to play a more physical brand of basketball for that series.

[@216walkthroughs]

​@wreckthemic it wasn't that physical. Tatum was a perfect match-up and any switch took KD into another 6'9" guy. The Celtics didn't respect any of the other shooters on the floor. The Lakers play like a 90's team, check tape from IST but they are middle of road at best right now.

[@neil-uk6ge]

Thankyou jimmy for always making some of the most high quality videos I’ve seen

[@dannyv2230]

Such a great video. Thanks for being a channel that highlights a game I love.

[@RMTren]

I wonder how NBA offenses would do if FIBA's rules are to be implemented. It might help bring down scoring while allowing for a more physical game, which in turn would give more things for offenses to solve

[@krystalissoojung5114]

I think about this too... nowadays they foul every contact, that's why

[@Dr_Trinh]

Maybe get rid of defensive 3 seconds? Get back to basketball rules, not NBA rules and give the defense a chance

[@emmetkeane4807]

​@@Dr_Trinh 3 second rule ain't gonna change much. Centres can't just sit in the paint when there are stretch 5s

[@EthanIzeta]

@@emmetkeane4807 true, the only reason it works in Europe is because the courts are also smaller than they are in the nba allowing them to have the center protect the paint without giving up open threes.

[@migsnaidas4107]

Very well said. Teams will bleed for points. This is where luka and jokic exploit the scoring in nba. Physicality in nba games are nothing compared to fiba games.

[@MoneyMadeKade]

A Jimmy upload at 3AM on Christmas? This day couldn’t be better.

[@sulwhale3171]

Your awake to huh

[@The_Space_Dex_]

Same

[@frosty2045]

@@sulwhale3171 cant go to sleep either

[@slothminion4620]

@@frosty2045 its mad but like here in australia its 6pm on christmas. worlds weird huh

[@GOREDO5]

12:45 here in so cal...

[@austindurham480]

Great video as always! I'd love to see you make a video comparing this season's Detroit Pistons to previous decades. Aside from the record, are their other advanced stats lining up with some of the worst team's seasons in NBA history?

[@jessedubay5964]

Agreed!

[@smoke_dogfight112]

Bro predicted the next bid

[@carlosnunez7196]

Good points! And yes it’s a combination of the main two things you discussed but i would say it’s more the change in the style of play(should be more attributed to coaches and stuff) and less defense being played than players now being better than before

[@alphamaster5455]

We might have to bring back some more defensive rules so that people can be guarded at some level where not every little tiny bit of contact is a foul

[@sci-fiknight8084]

Yeah, the no flopping rule was a first step to better defenses but it only lead to godly offenses

[@sci-fiknight8084]

The 2024 class is mostly forwards and a lot of defense and as well as “offensive threats” type of players

[@Anthonydu01630]

Did you listen the video ? There are less fouls called per game than ever lol, old heads love talking about physicality but go watch any games back then in the 80’s or 90’s and you’ll see a shit ton of fouls called

[@whocares3201]

Except it already is not. Fouls called have been at an all time low. There are some types of fouls that indeed are bad (giannis/embiid types just plowing opponents) but that has alwways been the case. Players are just infinitly more skilled. If you want to slow down the game, you will have to change the ballhandling rulles. Maybe take away or change gather step and most of all, CALL the travels, carries, dubble dribbles and shit, that makes it hard to watch anyway and players are good enough to not need it. Also things like no defensive 3 sec NEEDS to happen. Like what even id the point of that rule, we are not in the 90s anymore.

[@romnesia7729]

​@@Anthonydu01630 It's because gen z players don't play defense 😂 how can you foul when you run away from the guy you're supposed to be guarding? These kids are too scared to end up on a Twitter poster so they don't contest dunks. 95% of players under 30 are cowards. Of course there are less fouls.

[@kuruptzZz]

It's easy to overlook that it's not just players and coaches who are professionals. They also have an entire team behind them, who are constantly trying to innovate and improve efficiency...training, analysis, scouting, experimenting...this is why defenses are having a tougher time than ever

[@ajbucher9440]

True, more simply I just think it’s damn near impossible to stop these super athletic giants who can dribble, shoot, and move fast on a basketball court that’s more spread out than ever

[@AndrewSBaker]

So, none of these professionals and scientific advantages have any application to defense?

[@ninaando2952]

​@@AndrewSBaker they do but with 4 to 5 excellent offensive players on the court at any time, modern defenses have become more of a "pick your poison and stick to it" strategies. A great example would be drop coverages vs teams without great shooters and hoping they will play according to their average. If they somehow have a great shooting night then you either change defensive tactics midgame or just call it a day.

[@AndrewSBaker]

@@ninaando2952 - no one has yet made a case for why science and stats and training can result in a much greater percentage of players improving offensively (which is objectively happening), not not producing any corresponding advances in either individual or team defense (especially since all the speed, movement and ability that aids offense would ALSO aid defense -- if the rules changes didn't also handicap defense). High scoring was also done in the past. Remember the 1990-1991 Nuggets that scored prolificly under Paul Westhead? It was all a result of prioritizing offense over defense, without necessarily improving offensive skill. It's not *just* about skill improvements...

[@ryieebelarmino]

​@@AndrewSBaker i think they have a way to stop the offense. cuz i know back then even in the 2000s when someone is a really good shooter. you just man that guy and always hit him in the chest. maybe a push an elbow or stop his movements then bump him hard(just be cheeky that the ref wont see it) just anything to get him off his rhythm. eventually it will take an effect on the player 🤣🤣🤣 but they call a foul on just everything now 🤣🤣 even saying this stuff makes people say "you dont know basketball" ITS A CONTACT SPORT DAMMIT. 🤣🤣🤣

[@domijay3330]

I respect how much effort and data you put into this. Add 5 points to the avgs and that adjust the scale. Instead of 2 guys avg 30, 5, 5 there will be like 5 guys avg the same

[@Bushidotito1990]

Great content as always

[@rafajuerto1009]

All good points. We also have to consider the changing rules on carrying and traveling. Players are able to get better shots because of these changes in officiating. We routinely see players change pivot feet and step through for free layups when even 10 years ago this would be an immediate call.

[@fattttb0y]

This ! Disappointing not to see this mentioned and the #1 reason why I hate the modern NBA - the offensive players simply don't (have to) follow the rules and that extra half-step at that level makes all the difference. Note that interpretations of charges appear to be weighted more towards towards the offensive player's benefit too.

[@yousedbucket]

Let’s not forget the stupidest invention of all, the gather step. How can you not get to the basket that easily if you can take three steps now without being called as a travel. What’s next? Double step back?

[@yuwanmiguelsaylon373]

Pls make a video abt this jimmy and put this stiff headed crazy old heads back to school. Basketball evolves, the game will change and it's inevitable, those guys who say "that's why i hated nba today" need to just shut up and watch other sports. The basketball you perceive will change and you can't do anything about it. When the 3 point era started all you guys hated was the all grit and grind era was gone. cause that's what you want, cause that's how the game was played before. Now you hating bout the gather step cause you just simply can't comprehend what's happening inside the court right now. Old head players still appreciate the game the way that it is played right now. But these old head fans can't seem to accept the fact that they've gone old and the way that they play the game before will be left to dust by the new style of basketball. PLAYERS AND PLAYS GOT BETTER, YOU OLD HEADS JUST KEEP ON HATING CAUSE YOUR FAVORITE SUPERSTAR PLAYERS HAS LOOKED LIKE AN AVERAGE TO MID STAR PLAYERS INTO TODAYS GAME. But seriously, if you love the game go ahead and enjoy it, don't go around saying this is not basketball anymore or how the game was played. dr naismith rules were far to the rules that you guys have said that the game is supposed to be played. Stop hating. This game is still the game we love. it just keeps on evolving.

[@jaman2159]

@@yousedbucketPretty much! And I’m pretty sure James Harden already half-made that a thing. 😂

[@perfectbeat]

Yes! "changing rules on carrying and traveling"

[@Goxilla]

Another big factor is the introduction of the key-area under the basket. It was first introduced in the 1997-1998 season and after that scoring went up as you can see here 6:26. Also the fact that carrying the ball, pushing off the defender and slapping away the blocking hand doesn´t get called at all nowadays is another befefit for offense.

[@paquinraino8180]

Pushing ff the defender and slapping away blocking hand has been around since the late 90's, like don't act like Shaq or even young Duncan wasn't out here push back defender and was at the limit of offensive fouls (especially Shaq) 😂. Why people can't accept that the Pace, Spacing, Passing, and Offensive schemes of today's league is just better than the heavy iso slow pace era of the late 90 and 2000s

[@paquinraino8180]

Also the scoring was higher in the 80s zo I don't think the 3sec rules is a direct reason why, especially with zone defense and more defensive schemes allowed and used nowadays than just 1v1 defense and/ or double team

[@JustLikeHeaven77]

Also, traveling is not called as much. The stepback jumpshot is a travel in any other era. Unless they dribble on the hop, like Hakeem Olajuwon used to do. They are taking shots quicker as well. No half court control. Not as much full court or half court pressing. The effort to chase balls going out of bounds is less. The effort to get rebounds or dive after loose balls is less. All leading to more turnovers and more offence in less time. I also believe they're getting paid way too much. Why go all out on a play when you could lose a $200million contract extention by tearing an ankle? That's the new mentality. Players used to make more money off endorsements and how they got those endorsements was through competitive play. Now it's TV money for pretty play. "You would rather look good and lose, than look bad and win!" -Billy Hoyle, Woody Harrelson.

[@JustLikeHeaven77]

​@paquinraino8180 There is a big difference between 90s and 00s basketball. In the 00s, Shaq and Duncan were really the only true big men. LeBron played small forward like a point gaurd. Kobe was really the only dominant player. I think the point he made was that the change you saw in 10s basketball started with rule changes in the 00s. We are in the 20s now, so the Curry/Harden style of ball will be over soon.

[@bridgetekcommunications332]

Let’s not forget the ridiculous “gather step” that is basically a free ticket to travel or more like take a vacation to the basket.

[@JonathanParsons.]

Great video! Explains a lot about the state of the game and helps us appreciate how good its gotten!

[@TheMe9595]

About 10 years ago there was a lot of discussion about goalies in the nhl. They were too good they were too big players can’t score on them, we need to increase scoring. There haven’t been many major rule changes in that time but scoring is way up now. Teams figured out how to take advantage of the deficiencies in the game that the players had. Leagues like this go through cycles, and I wouldn’t be surprised if in 10 years, people might be wondering why scoring isn’t as high and wishing for the days of higher scores.

[@mrblend]

except with NBA there were rules changes to push it forward.

[@nekhtaryne9285]

They did change the regulations on goalie equipment though...

[@WorldConflictsTV]

​@@mrblend Not to this level. Scoring has outpaced the rule changes in this 10 year window.

[@elementsofphysicalreality]

It would have been cool to see the defensive stats compared by generation. Is it just good offense or is the defense actually getting worse?

[@krystalissoojung5114]

I think the defense that so called worse is a byproduct of rules change that favour offense... like the 3s defense rule, back in the day the defense could stay forever in paint to defense but nowadays they can't because it could be foul

[@othisdede8027]

Yea, its really hard to do that because defensive stats are much more deceptive and hard to gauge. Offense can be examined to a better degree with context of pure number crunching but defensive stats dont work that way. Also if offense is improving at a rapid rate and defense is rather stagnant then you will see defense as regressing in analytical perspective. From my personal observation, defenses are pretty much where they are but maybe a bit more skewed towards lateral movement that could handle new players rapid directional change. With result of that you dont see teams throwing big bodies but more elastic, longer skilled centers on display. We dont have eddy currys, micheal olowakandis or marcin gortats anymore in prevalent roles. Its more like derrick lively or chet or wemby. Traditional centers were more in mold of steven adams. That being said rules certainly favor offensive players much more. They need to allow handcheck back imo.

[@jordancapa8389]

Offense is getting much better. Even in the grassroots. I just played an alumni game at my old high school. Kids were pulling from EVERYWHERE and only lost by 20. Usually we’d beat em by 50 but now its less and less.

[@whocares3201]

And how would you tell that by stats? Even if the defensive numbers are lower, it is just due to the fact that it is infinitly harder to defend in space, having to chase people off ball around screens, defending more advanced actions, instead of standing in the paint, watching a guy postup and shoot a contested midrange shot. Defense is reactive and has to be judged as such.

[@romnesia7729]

Impossible to play defense after the rules changed in 2009. Euro step plus gather step made terrible players like James Harden good.

[@Kap_NYC]

Saw a video a couple of weeks ago asking if we solved basketball and I think we have solved the offensive aspect of basketball 3 - 4 years ago to be honest. We got 7 footers like Chet and Wemby taking pull-up three pointers and sub 6’3 guys like Trae and Dame pulling up from 30+ feet and draining those shots.

[@ND-OPS]

The simple answer to this video is NO. Players will look talented as hell if the league office wants it to be more offensive and they also eliminated a lot of defensive rules like hand checking and def 3 seconds that means players today won’t be focusing on defense coz the league don’t want them to. I mean just imagine how much MJ, kobe, AI, shaq etc will average in todays rules. Reggie miller will probably average 30 in this era fo sho.

[@eugenejamesbon5791]

Yeah

[@Kap_NYC]

@@ND-OPSFirst off, *yes,* NBA offenses nowadays have figured out the offensive aspect of offense. Does the removal of the defensive rules you included have made offense easier? Yes. Would it have prevented someone like Steph or Kyrie from becoming the players they are now? *No.* Have Kyrie or Steph adapt to the dribbling and hand checking rules of the ‘80s - ‘97 (Pre AI carry) and I PROMISE you they’ll STILL average *at least* 25 if not then 23 points a game.

[@ryanhutcheson1911]

In the end of the day defense will always be harder than offense, because in offense you are the one in control and defense is the reaction to it. So better NBA players become at Basketball the more the offense will increase.

[@Kap_NYC]

@@ryanhutcheson1911 Exactly.

[@thechoosenone9213]

Damn Jimmy we needed this video fam

[@angehlobecerra6401]

Another great video keep it up!

[@vihaankapoor4737]

He included the only clip of an MPJ assist this season. Mad respect

[@chuckskills101]

I ain’t angry, but I do miss the dead-ball, grit and grid era of basketball. I miss teams like the Spurs all about the fundamentals and passing the ball. I’m certainly not taking this era of basketball for granted. Generational talents like Embiid, Giannis and Jokic and players who could honestly play until the day they die like KD, Bron and Steph. Don’t be mad, just adapt to change in the league

[@Silver-lo6db]

You miss the 2014 spurs ? If you do then it’s weird cause nearly every team plays like them nowadays. And honestly the dead ball era was just cool for highlights. Seeing 50 times the same iso with little to no change each time is not what I call the prime of entertainment. When you really look at it, today’s defensive schemes are just a lot more subtle and less on ball than before (and probably way weaker compared to today’s offense schemes).

[@holymsophy]

Iso gang! 😂😂😂 What was fun about dead-ball? Ball just went to 1 player and everyone just watched. So it was either twerking on another player or an insane amount of dribbles for a pull up.

[@king-ghost1027]

​@@holymsophy yes

[@paquinraino8180]

​@@Silver-lo6db That's what O was about to say, he said he missed the passing and ball povelent, but this is exactly what the GSW and Spurs revolution in 2014-2016 brought to NBA basket ball and why the scoring is more prolific alongside the Fast 80's pace like

[@wattwatkins3574]

nowadays defense isn't even close to defense of past years.. You can talk about schemes all you want but if you never actually use schemes and just run the same man on man defense every era has ran but now you can't touch anyone and think that is better means you didn't watch other eras and lack knowledge of the game..@@Silver-lo6db

[@justinreed4218]

I'm intrigued and enjoyed the in-depth analysis on the scoring efficiency over the years. A fair comparison to old school players to new school players (adjusted to today's stats to make it fair). While it is fair the way that the offensive game has advanced dramatically over the years since 2013-2014, there is a missing piece (possibly more) to consider. Is it possible to see the statistics of defensive efficiency (steals, blocked shots, forced turnovers) over the years? A hypothesis of offense is dramatically improving, while defense has been stagnant or in a decline over time. Of course in today's game, you still have players that go for steals, block shots, and some defense. But it would go overshadowed by the amount of times that players playing defense would let their opponent go and get an easy shot.

[@kidrissa]

Gotta say, I GREATLY appreciate all the data analysis (time-series and otherwise) you do in your videos, instead of just giving "hot takes" 👍🏾👍🏾 Also: pour one out AND some Fs in the chat for The Free Chalupa! 😭

[@KDRuetas]

"When everyone is super, no one will be." I think this video clearly sums up what's happening in the league right now. Better players make the past seem so bad, but the reality is, the league has just become better on average.

[@JK-xl8lj]

The League isn't better. If it was people would watch. But ratings are down big time compared to the so-called dead ball Jordan era. NBA players were better in the 90s and 2000s. Today's players are not as good regardless of whatever these fake stats say.

[@krystalissoojung5114]

I think that too, when I see 10 years ago it was only LeBron and KD and nowadays they have 16 of them, which half of the team have one

[@lucklou2]

@@JK-xl8ljif you think basketball is the only sport where athletes have gotten worse at then all I can say is you need some help bro

[@MovieGuy666]

nope... the NBA just got rid of defense because modern fans have no attention spans.

[@chasebeecham12]

​@@JK-xl8ljstop the talent has gone way up NBA players ain't playing janitors I mean look at some of the older players lol & athleticism is just on another level ja & Zion being that big jumping that high is just crazy stop hating old timer

[@mraBJJ33]

I think everyones ability to shoot jumpers has had the effect of opening up the games scoring. Seems like the late 90's-early 00's teams had two, maybe 3 good shooters on the floor at a time. Nowadays its common to have all 5 positions with the ability to at least knock down mid rangers at a decent clip

[@stephaneh1934]

Jump shots is harder to get a block on than lay ups

[@aidanwatson910]

I think something that doesn’t get talked about is how NBA defenses haven’t really evolved. What NBA team plays mainly zone defense? Players are so offensively skilled now that even being a good man to man defender continues to become more difficult year after year. That and help defense seems to only exist on fast breaks and in the playoffs. It’s a combination of things besides the offensive skill level getting better.

[@DavidDavis-nl6jl]

A few things to consider: 1) impact of man-to-man coverage vs. zone defense 2) eliimination of hand checking 3) travel calls are non-existent It is a different game now. If it was as open and free-wheeling in the 80's and 90's as it is now, you would see a lot more players of the "deadball era" putting up these numbers. Yes, the average player is better, but the scores are higher for many reasons.

[@Kai-gr6sg]

You can make several points about these changes, but the skillset is what severed the old offense and the new offense. You saw it in the video about Jimmy adjusting TMac's averages to today's pace and rules. There are like 15 TMacs today. Thank God there's basketball outside US, so some excess talents won't go to waste.

[@FrokuBabayy]

​@@Kai-gr6sgyou get 🤡 like Jxmy when you put fat too much emphasis on offensively inflated statistics as opposed to actual basketball skill😂 No one give a f*ck about the adjustment of statistics according to play because it creates a disingenous picture of that players skill cuz the fact of the matter is TMAC DIDNT PLAY IN 2023 Stats w/o context mean nothing... players aren't getting better... defenses are getter more & more weaker (3 sec. violation ❌ handchecking ❌ lack of spacing ❌ interior presence❌)... officiating is getting more and more lenient w/ regards to carrying/traveling, foul calls etc.

[@louiecomedian]

@@Kai-gr6sg Two things can be true at one time: 1) The players truly are better at basketball today and 2) A major reason this happened is because nobody is hand-checking them anymore. I'm not suggesting "Lebron couldn't have played in the '80s!" because that's lazy and wrong. What I'm saying is that, like any ecosystem, skillsets evolve to take advantage of circumstances. Taking away the hand check was a HUGE boost to offense, and it allowed slower shooters the ability to create space now when, in the past, they simply wouldn't be open. Add to that a lot of players have just gotten FASTER also? And that explains a lot.

[@Kai-gr6sg]

​@@FrokuBabayy That's worse. You're literally the one who's using stats without context. Jimmy explained it clearly. The 10th player in the rotation could be a starter in any era before the 2010's. You expect basketball players to get worse after finding out what their predecessors lacked and improved it? There's always innovation in the passing time, and offense has evolved immensely. You remember MJ dribbling behind his back and being called a Wizard? Well, there's about 200 NBA players from Guards to Centers who can do that now. Dribbling and weaving through the defense is a huge factor that shakes off the defense, plus shot making has become better because most players actually knows how to shoot.

[@Kai-gr6sg]

@@louiecomedianYes, that's a great point. The rules have catered to the offense also. And a big check to the skillset. There's a huge pool of skilled ballers that can shoot and dribble. The offensive awareness has improved vastly.

[@guillermogutierrez47]

You need to make a video on lebron and steph regarding their durability and longevity,the fact that 2013 was 10 years ago and they are still at the top having mvp caliber statlines is just timeless,the two greatest players out of akron that revolutionized the sport

[@OverEast34]

Steph is from charlotte, he was just born in Akron.

[@jerrymiemarcus]

Potato, potahto.@@OverEast34

[@BranJ89]

He already did it’s just split into two videos. Plus only one of those guys actually changed the game. The other didn’t change anything because it’s physically impossible for anyone to copy him. 1 of 1.

[@lakeshowbron4747]

​@@BranJ89i see where you're headed but explain

[@luigidabest4743]

@@BranJ89ehhh lebron kinda contributed to the big guard type players. although it originated from magic i feel like lebron made it more prevalent.

[@Life_of_Matthew]

When it comes to watching basketball and sports in general, defense is probably my favorite part of it. My Rockets just recently drafted an elite defender in Amen Thompson. Defense is coming back 💪

[@stormfri]

Your videos are so good!

[@TURBOTRISTO]

NBA players don’t even do the basics like - back court -double dribble -travel to the point of it’s just a joke. -run out of bounds - some people foul and it’s fine , other players do the same thing and get fouled out

[@ricardojuanlopeznaranjo6651]

Exactly on point

[@Freelancer2311]

I see lots of air balls like never before and nobody boxing out

[@ricardojuanlopeznaranjo6651]

@@Freelancer2311 boxing out is not for NBA players LOL

[@leptonparticle238]

The offenses have gotten better and overall more efficient that's true, but the defense has gotten harder to play. Nowadays a slight contact triggers the whistle. Playing physical and tough defense isn't an option anymore, which makes the life of the offense a lot easier.

[@Htxreckless]

Youre a really good sports content creator ngl. Your data is something not even TV sports networks talk about

[@willgardner8142]

Just saying that it’s super cool that you put chill-synth music in the outro! Drift is such a vibe!

[@DeepestQuotesAnd]

Steph Curry gave me the best show I ever seen in 30 years watching the NBA. He also broke the NBA. The same way the first man to run the 100m dash under 10 seconds opened that mental window in other runners' minds, and now everyone runs under 10sec, Steph made everyone realize how good you could become at basketball. (Shooting, handling, shot creation, playmaking etc.)

[@Hes_tuff_fr]

Tru

[@TLR1988]

I guess.

[@G37.]

Damn lol i never realized this you’re so right. He legit changed the game fr

[@PrinceSamurai45]

I agree, we have Steph and GSW offense as a whole have really been what drove the change. Getting KD didn’t slow it down any either.

[@RandomCitizen014]

I think the rule change where if you get an offensive possession back the shot clock resets to 14 instead of 24 really sped things up. It forced offensive schemes to be faster and therefore the players to get into their things quicker which creates more possessions.

[@kawaiiafangirl]

ngl, I hated that rule. The pace and scoring was already increasing by that point. idk why Adam Silver implemented that. Most of the time, they usually make these types of rule changes (5 second backdown violation, various hand-checking rules, and decreasing the time the ball has to reach the half-court from 10 to 8 seconds) when the scoring was down.

[@thomascoleman2180]

@@kawaiiafangirlhonestly it’s to give the defense a benefit fie swatting the ball out even if they didn’t get a steal

[@paquinraino8180]

@@kawaiiafangirl I mean technically It helps the defense if the offense has less time to recreate a good shot, so basically they help the defense. Also the 5 second backdown violation is because Barkley was exaggerating with how long he would backdown a player.

[@mercilessyoda2694]

Defensive 3 secs to open the paint, restricted area to open the paint, 3-4 steps to create space, no handchecking to create space, allowed to carry dribble to create space, landing space foul for more space, soft touch fouls(defenders can't even reach for the ball) obviously offense/rebounding is going to be easier and hence increase(inflated).

[@tbate0244]

This video and the video explaining that defense hasn’t gotten worse it’s just getting better at a much slower pace than the offense are some of my favorites to show my old head nba family members

[@AnikethBandi]

I think the problem with too much offense is that its grown so fast that our perception of how the game should be hasn't caught up. I grew up on late 2000s and 2010s ball, and now the league is so drastically different then back then. I kinda look at it like this. Look at the game before the cavs warriors rivalry and how it changed after. Its been only a few years and thats not enough time for the average person to just accept that what was once 80-80 or 90-90 scores are now 130-130. I think the other thing that has also changed is how monotonous offenses are. Everyone goes for the run and gun 3 point playstyle. There are a few exceptions like the Lakers who actually prioritize their defense over offense, but most teams look and walk the same. I think back in the day there were more tactics as to how you ran offensive sets. You never hear about coach's who have unique styles anymore, it might just be a media thing but like the last coach who I head had a specific unique offense was Di'Antoni, and his offense is basically what most teams run now minus the lack of defense.

[@Hazz1405]

The league makes it harder to play defence every year whilst simultaneously making easier to Score/more possessions. So the gap is just getting bigger and bigger. You don't even have to go far back into the 90s or early 2000s. Look at haliburton right now. He's averaging more points on better efficiency and more 3 point attempts a game than 2015 Steph. Jalen Brunson stats are almost identical to a 2016 LeBron. Alot of it is due to foul calls aswell. Ive never seen this many FTs giving out for flopping. The offensive player has the advantage every time. Also the pace of the game is increasing because of the 3 point shot. The league should bring back handchecking. SIX OF THE 7 BEST OFFENSIVE RATINGS IN NBA HISTORY COME FROM THIS SEASON. that just doesn't make sense. The 2017 Warriors offensive rating would rank bottom 3 in today's league. That's how bad it is getting!

[@PrinceSamurai45]

It isn’t that surprising though. All these current teams are implementing what the Golden State offense was doing as much as they could. Other teams realized if GSW was the only team doing that, they would dominate the league and win every year.

[@candancejohnston]

@@PrinceSamurai45this is such a brain dead comment, you think the rest of the league can replicate the offensive firepower of the KD warriors? Or maybe just maybe the rule changes is allowing offences too explode like never before?

[@PrinceSamurai45]

@@candancejohnston if it was due to rule changes it would have happened a lot sooner than. It isn’t just the 3 point shooting either. The high volume use of DHO’s, the amount of off ball movement, manufacturing 3 on 2 scenarios in the short roll. These actions are almost ubiquitous now and this wasn’t the case even 5 years ago. It has steadily happened as GSW won more rings. Other teams tried to copy what they could.

[@gonzalogaymer3784]

Best ending to a video ever! 💪🏼💪🏼

[@Cevius_]

ending just amazing. Thank you for the laugh.

[@mtho5889]

I’m a casual fan, and while it’s cool that players score the way they do, there was something special about those low scoring early 2000s games where guys like Kobe had to work so hard for a bucket

[@thicybriky]

The reason guys like Kobe and Tmac had to work so hard for a bucket is because of the lack of spacing. Teams would have 3 guys on the court who would never think about shooting a 3. That’s just bad lmao

[@JAswoosh]

A couple things here that I believe summarizes the offensive explosion in recent NBA history, not trying to take away from players talent today, but here's a couple things to consider: 1. The hand check rule. 2. The ball handling, specifically a carry is basically not a carry anymore (you made a video about this in the past). 3. Analytics: In terms of shot value per player and frequency of shots taken, These specific shooting statistics are the most valuable shots in todays game: Last 4 Seasons: (Points Per shot): Cutting Dunk Shot_2PT Field Goal ==================== 1.85 Running Dunk Shot_2PT Field Goal =================== 1.88 Cutting Layup Shot_2PT Field Goal =================== 1.39 Putback Layup Shot_2PT Field Goal=================== 1.34 Dunk Shot_2PT Field Goal ========================== 1.73 Alley Oop Dunk Shot_2PT Field Goal ================== 1.79 Running Layup Shot_2PT Field Goal ================== 1.24 Driving Finger Roll Layup Shot_2PT Field Goal ========== 1.26 Driving Dunk Shot_2PT Field Goal ==================== 1.61 Jump Shot_3PT Field Goal ========================== 1.07 Last 4 Seasons: (Shot Type Frequency): Jump Shot_3PT Field Goal ========================== 236, 834 Driving Layup Shot_2PT Field Goal ====================73,748 Pullup Jump shot_2PT Field Goal ===================== 56, 059

[@entium1]

yeah part of the hand checking a small push just before a player starts his shooting motion, that makes a huge difference on the difficulty of the shot.

[@Cavaliers71]

Handcheck fouls have been called on MJ era. Stop the handcheck false narrative

[@khsballa3]

basically everyone just jacking threes thats why its inflated

[@pablosnackbar6417]

It's funny, people make the claim that players are more talented than ever, yet viewership is at historic lows. In recent years, the NBA encouraged spacing, discouraged defence and allowed travelling and carrying/double dribbling like never before. Plus hand checking etc. list goes on. It's a glorified pick up game now where you have the most talented players in the world, but nobody is allowed to play defence. It makes for really entertaining highlights, but I prefer the old days if I want to watch a full game. 2000s were much more competitive and enjoyable to watch. It appeals to casuals more now.

[@bobbuilder918]

Handcheck is irrelevant in this discussion because the offensive explosion is very recent. Deadball era and early 10s were not this explosive and they all had the no handchecking rule

[@philantrophist1890]

In case you didnt notice the shotclock doesnt reset at 24 sec anymore, it resets to just 14 sec if the same team rebounded the ball after the shot, that what makes the game fast pace and high scotring.

[@grahamstrouse1165]

It has an impact, yes, but that change was made a LONG time ago.

[@gatesgates7788]

If anything that would make scoring harder

[@LawrenceAugust_]

In case you didn’t notice, that’s literally mentioned in the video.

[@wavyaceg]

Great video as always 💯💯 evolution happens with everything and in every sport, look at the players in the league in other eras they’d be goats🤷🏽‍♂️

[@12packersfan]

There’s simply more potential for strategy on the offensive end than the defensive end. A revolutionary offense seems to appear every decade while defense has consistently stayed “play hard and don’t foul”

[@berryesseen]

The problem about defense is that your defense is as good as its weakest point. You can be defending a specific scheme very well but it doesn't mean anything if you face other offenses. Offense on the other hand works very differently. You can have one talent, one trick, or whatever that the league hasn't figured out yet (Curry's relocation shot, Jokic's post up, Shai's drive...) And you simply exploit it every game and it works almost every time. The worst part is that these players don't have a single trick. If you are good at post up defense, Jokic will be fine without trying it in the whole game. And you will still lose to other offenses. It's unfair.

[@brown9671]

defense has gotten crazy nowadays, it used to be man-to-man all the time, or zone all the time, now teams are running these strange hybrids. honestly its really fun to watch, as a defense fan. the best defensive teams are doing crazy things nowadays thats sometimes hard to wrap my brain around because it moves so fast.

[@xavierb9061]

Special d saved for playoffs

[@12packersfan]

@@berryesseen I love this point especially after watching my Bucks play today and seeing Brunson hunt Lillard all game

[@tau_628]

This is a certified 2:56 AM banger

[@Kese_]

1:56 AM over here

[@mflynn2795]

Yet another Jxmy banger

[@anjr9915]

Usage rates are also much higher with certain superstar and all star caliber players which is a big reason why stats are what they are reflecting now compared to other eras

[@YunisRajab]

This really undersells how defense has been torn apart by rules. We really overdid the correction to increase scoring. We're all sick of seeing dozens of free throws, endless flopping, and defense just steering clear to avoid getting called for fouls. Aggression on defense is simply gone but offense can run you over and get a 3 point play. Game scores should be like IQ and average 100 across the league. Soon we'll just be watching the globetrotters

[@therichest96]

We’ve been watching the Globetrotters since like ‘16-17

[@thicybriky]

While I do agree this is not the main problem. Offensives are 10x smarter now than they were back then with spacing, the players on the court, and how it’s actually ran. No shit teams can’t consistently score above 100 points every game if their star player is being forced to take contested mid ranges 70% of the shots he takes while having 3 guys on the court who wouldn’t even think about attempting a 3 point shot.

[@javybeaz3236]

Today is a NO DEFENSE LEAGUE, lots of 3 pointers, Wide open shots, Traveling and other stuff not called. NO DEFENSE. THATS WHY

[@thicybriky]

@@javybeaz3236 your the definition of a bot lmao

[@emilfrederiksen.1622]

Offense are also smarter than they were back in the 90s. And the 3 point shot is also a massive reason why its harder to play defense. Because almost no player back in the 90s and early to mid 2000s shot 3s at a high volume and hit them at a consistent rate. Apart from Ray Allen.

[@tommymorrison3798]

13:16 he tried to sneak Sabonis in there 😂😂😂😂

[@twogluon]

I love the NBA as it is, but if it wants to reduce scoring it has to bring the 3 point line closer to the hoop. It sounds counter intuitive but that’s the way to hurt spacing

[@dellianmancuzo]

Excellent video.

[@AstroSully]

It's as simple as players have become better at shooting the 3. The 3 is such a valuable shot. Making 40% of a 3 point make is equivalent to 60% of a 2 point make. It's a no brainer. That's why the efficiency today is just crazy. The spacing has never been better.

[@vernonLV]

Nope not true

[@AstroSully]

how so? There's no shot more efficient than the 3 when shot efficiently. The league is quite evidently becoming more and more based on the 3 point shot. It's no surprise that efficiency has gone up as players get better and better rat that skill and points has also increased.@@vernonLV

[@raymondqiu8202]

@@AstroSully me personally, I wouldn't respond to ppl that just say "no nah" without any reason or point to back up their denial. Just a useless comment with no substance

[@deadlifefr]

⁠@@raymondqiu8202 people who are stupid tend to do that.

[@JK-xl8lj]

And yet the game is unwatchable now. Just because teams have figured out how to exploit something doesn't mean it's actually a good thing. I used to watch NBA basketball religiously from 1997 to 2018. Since 2019 the game has become unwatchable because of all the 3 point shooting and no diversity in playing styles.

[@josephsurivong3192]

Great vid, but surprised there wasn't a mention of the defensive 3 second rule as well. Considering a fair few players Jimmy mentioned who are putting up historic numbers were on the FIBA US team yet they got 4th place is an interesting thing to explore. Love the content! Free chulpas once more :)

[@Silver-lo6db]

The 3s rule is not the reason they lost. Lack of chemistry, defensive regularity, application to rebound and knowledge of the fiba game are however. FIBA is different than nba on way more aspects than 3s in the paint.

[@xxmiltxx9037]

Basketball got better world wide, blowing teams out by 50 is going to be a thing of the last soon. The dream team played guys who didn't play basketball year round, it is what it is.

[@kembryembry3394]

It’s called rule changes lol It really Isn't profoundly difficult to grasp. You make the game easier, you remove physicality, you get all time scoring. If you move the outfield inwards 20 yards in you will see home run records crushed lol

[@Silver-lo6db]

@@kembryembry3394 your favorite player may have been a professional wrestler, it does not make him inherently a better basketball player. The game is less dangerous not less physical. Today’s players are physical monsters compared to before.

[@yerik6034]

They got 4th because they didn’t care, just wait for the Olympics I guess

[@lauriprojects8546]

great video!!

[@JoeMillion]

you crazy for this one Jxm

[@Artemis77700]

I stopped paying attention to the NBA from 2017-18 to 2023, and the stats the teams and players have now are just unbelievable. I struggle to recontextualize what players are capable of doing now, and I was only gone for 5 years.

[@jerrymiemarcus]

Welcome back to the golden era of international basketball :)

[@Kai-gr6sg]

Yes, fans of the old era have difficulties adjusting today. The NBA is getting audience from young fans who'll grow up seeing this kind of offense and not liking the dead-ball era. I became a fan in mid-2000s and used to seeing Kobe scoring 40 every night, so I kind of like today's offensive explosion. Fans will keep coming in and liking this new offense.

[@PattysCards]

They arent better now. Just rigged stats

[@HT-sm9dm]

This is the worst era of basketball dude. Skill wise especially. If players were so skilled the league wouldn’t need to take away traveling and carrying violations. Instead they’d actually enforce them even harder. Unreal how dumb and self absorbed this generation is.

[@Kai-gr6sg]

@@HT-sm9dm Again, basketball today is not for most old fans. You had your time adoring the basketball you saw growing up. Today's generation will grow up admiring today's basketball. Both generations will have different takes. I grew up in between and vividly saw the transition, so I'm loving it. And some old fans have loved today's basketball.

[@corneliusblackwood9014]

I just wanted to say good for you bud, you’ve put in the hard work, you produce amazing videos, you deserve all the success you’re experiencing. We appreciate all of it, keep on going, we’ll see you at 4 million and have a fantastic and productive new year!

[@THEcrazyEDITOR600]

I'm a football/soccer fan , but man i love ur videos❤ . I only the surface of basketball 😅.

[@lazyruntzzz]

problem with changing how offenses are, is if adam silver reintroduce hand checking scoring will fall heavily again, but viewership will as well. even if these crazy 70 point performances are talked about for a couple days, people would rather watch somebody go crazy than two teams not being able to break 100 points.

[@WorldConflictsTV]

Overestimating the power of hand checking. The playstyles impact scoring more than the player to player rules.

[@devrim4928]

We only ever hear about point inflation, but I'm curious if there's also been a change in the way the league records an assist or a rebound and if that has an effect on players overall stats

[@Caleb6000]

Another thing is continuations. A lot of and-1s nowadays stretch the definition.

[@Peanutdenver]

@@Caleb6000Also look at the advanced stat PACE in 2023 vs the year 2001. It was 91 in that year and 99 in 2023. That's what PACE Factor is all about. This advanced metric gives you how many combined possessions a team averages per 48 minutes (per game). It's obviously gone up over the last 20 + years.

[@whocares3201]

​@@Caleb6000not really, it did change alot but the new rule makes way more sense since it is all about the gather. Back in the day it was touch and feel, many and 1s that stood back then would be called off nowdays and vice versa.

[@user-vi8rn4qe1y]

Look at the Twolves, they are the first team to figure out how to defend modern offense (frequently holding good teams to less than 100). Just like the Warriors did with offense the rest of the league will soon follow the twolves after our amazing year so far.

[@austinburris9937]

The knowledge the coaches have and trainers the diets the work out equipment it’s better than ever

[@PTrey]

Would be interesting to also look at the offensive rating trends in other high level play such as Euroleague and FIBA/Olympics. Less offensively biased rules but also with players and teams becoming more skilled over time.

[@izzythedude]

As someone who grew up in the PNW and went to Blazer games as a kid the free chalupas after 100 points was so much fun lol. Thanks for bringing back that memory for me! Merry Christmas Jimmy (go Blazers!)

[@simplyawsume]

Honestly if the NBA just adopted a couple of the the FIBA rules, like getting rid of the defensive 3 second violation and being able to tip the ball when its on the rim just to name a few would make a big difference. Luka is such a good example he only averaged 16 points in Euroleauge but still won the MVP.

[@rogelioatempa1115]

He was also not in hjis prime, the FIBA game is only 40 min and a host of other factors that contributed to Luka only averaging 16ppg.

[@jackofarcades]

Luka averaged 27 in the World Cup, which is FIBA rules.

[@chrisakokoh9118]

Naw i think thats cheating being able to goaltend

[@borRIING]

@@chrisakokoh9118 It's only after the ball hits the rim. And both teams can do it.. so it's not cheating

[@fallout560]

he was also 17 and the nba is much more talented

[@chipbaghead_24]

Jxmys closing monologues are absolute perfection.

[@federicomarchesi2078]

I feel like there are solutions to this: 1) remove the 3 seconds difensive violation and give zone defence a chance 2) start calling every travel 3) reduce the number of games so that players can contantly display effort on both offense and defence and coaching staffs get more time to organise and actually coach specific defences for specific opponents And so on Players are undeniably getting better, that's how every sport works. In the end it just depends on what we wanna prioritize, prioritizing defences is gonna make everything more complex and the general public might not enjoy it as much

[@cpfcfin4715]

A jxmy upload always brightens my day and offers great insight into the landscape on the NBA today. Good valid arguments. Merry Christmas everyone ❤

[@ND-OPS]

I think for me the NBA just let players loose a little bit in offense like often foul calls, uncalled travels and eliminating a lot of defensive rules. I understand the NBA tho coz they want more views and money so they make the league more offensive focus. So for me it’s a disrespect to say players today are more talented because it’s easy to look offensively talented in todays NBA.

[@zion9247]

So do the refs help them make 3s?

[@kappakuppa7255]

its also just way harder for defense, if you look at the defense getting broken down every possesion its more complex than ever its just to hard to guard people

[@ND-OPS]

@@zion9247thats the evolution of threes but that doesn’t mean they got more talented.

[@sulwhale3171]

@@kappakuppa7255that’s why defenders today are better in the past imo

[@oberdot]

So back to the dead ball era 😂

[@davidjosh5640]

11:14 love that timing with the Appalachian Adder

[@quitegud3743]

The hand check rule really made a massive difference also. Bring it back and efficiency I’d assume will take a dip

[@thirdlegstalliano]

Facts

[@Atty-Puncher]

facts. just watch the last years playoffs between boston vs brooklyn, Durant and Kyrie cant do shit.

[@dododump3144]

Hand checking does nothing. You know before they took it away they still called hand checking fouls right? And players are able to just swipe the hand away

[@Atty-Puncher]

@@dododump3144 nah, you cant do that fancy dribbling or crossover since the defense is controlling were you to go. looks like you play pussy basketball only

[@rwalker0130]

@@dododump3144 bruh everyone agrees this is a thing, the only argument is how much it affects. how you gonna play effective defense if you can't even touch a dude?

[@user-vh3ot5sm6y]

I feel like we need stats like WRC+ like we do in baseball so it makes it easier to compare players based on league environments and averages etc. Like Kobe averaging 35 when the average points in a game was like 90 isn't the same compared to someone averaging 30 in the current environment.

[@beetledew]

The game is officiated differently which makes scoring easier kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHqziYanhM2socksi=HUnfzpqcBagc1HA1

[@benrinehart7776]

There’s a handful of other factors, too. Like Kerr is quoted in that article, the officiating has severely limited defenses, which dramatically inflates the number of free throws that offensive players get to take. And in the era of the three-point revolution, everyone’s three-point percentages are better, which also means their free-throw percentages are better. On top of that, you made another video about how the league is more international than it’s ever been. We are pulling from a wider and deeper pool of players from around the globe. So the average skill level is going to increase. Offense is also play some much higher premium on efficient shot selection. Which you did allude to. Long twos are basically nonexistent now. And that’s a good thing. Most of the things contributing to this offense, are good thing, it should mostly stay. The only change I want to see, is officiating allowing defenders to be more physical. No more flinging your arms into a defender for free throws.

[@jammer9941]

Some individual players might get for free throws but free throws themselves are not contributing to the rise in scoring. The league averages 23 ft attempts per game which is the 6th fewest for an nba season. The average fouls called per game this year is the 5th fewest in nba history. Now because the percent made is higher the made FTs goes up to the 14th fewest made per game but statistically fouls and free throws are even less a part of the game.

[@benrinehart7776]

@@jammer9941that’s fascinating!! I genuinely thought FTAs were inflated. But I guess they aren’t as much anymore

[@jamesw5713]

Its basically score under the bucket, or shoot the 3 these days, mid-range jumpers are a rarity.

[@ND-OPS]

Late 90s and early 2000s is the most defensive minded era in NBA history. Comparing that in today’s NBA isn’t fair at all, NBA eliminated a lot of rules to make the league more offensive focus.

[@sulwhale3171]

Point per game is the same has the 80

[@kabob21]

A lot, huh. What rules besides shortening the shot clock by 10s after offensive rebounds and adding the 3-second rule in the paint?

[@FTsingos]

@@kabob21 umm.....those two instances are big reasons by themselves. You now have 42% less time to put up a shot after an offensive rebound and you create more open lanes with the 3 second rule.

[@moogerchee2287]

stop finding excuses, mj was not even good. His team won 55 games without him and the defence was shit that time, all sorts of open looks. the league successfully created a perfect basketball player (mj) to enhance their views. mj is overrated

[@samraizshoaib585]

​@@kabob21elimination of handchecking, far less focus on calling travels (that's infact at an all time high probably), making defense less favorable by not calling charges and ignoring clear attempts by players to draw fouls because of the lax language of rules. The NBA tried to tone down the onscene foul calls and focus on eliminating travelling at the beginning of a season. The statlines for all stars turned out to be pretty terrible. Guess why? And this is after elimination of defense favoring rules.

[@DotAtRandom]

I won’t lie I would like to see the players of today playing a 2000’s-2010’s style of basketball too tho

[@reivang7196]

They would just be a losing team.

[@thicybriky]

It would really just be the same thing. Put Luka in a 2000s offense and he’s averaging the same numbers the guys back then did. The top players didn’t get better, offenses just got more smart. Lebron is the perfect example of this.

[@dannybush3393]

Hope jimmy makes a vid about some of the worst teams of all time after this Detroit streak is over. I have a feeling he will. Would be interesting to see the worst teams of al time compared to each other. Great vid bro!!

[@mattbreivogel]

It's fun to watch. When teams do get good defensive stops it is that much more impressive and exciting.

[@ashimhajra3671]

great video! id like to see a breakdown of how the definition for defensive fouls have evolved since the early 90s, and have a discussion on how that may be playing a role. I think offensive talent, spacing, better conditioning/sports science, and changes in the definition of defensive fouls have all contributed to this scoring explosion. The ability of bigs and wings to defend in space seems to be much higher now than when i started watching in the early 90s. But the slightest contact is now a foul, and harden taught everyone how to exploit that. Defenses adapted, so we may not see more free throws this season compared to other eras, but that doesnt mean that the fouls are not contributing. It just means much easier drives to the hoop especially w the improved spacing. Thank u steph and the dubs for changing the game. I think this season has been one of my favorite seasons in 30 years of being an NBA fan