NBA fans have long complained about take fouls, which are a very annoying way that teams will prevent their opponents to pickup up an easy basket by committing a foul in the open court. While they are not clear path fouls, they functionally act the same way, and there have been calls for the league to figure out ways to police these so that they rarely (if ever) happen.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, that day may be on the horizon. Charania reports that the NBA Competition Committee had a conversation about the fouls on Tuesday, and in the aftermath, it relayed to the league that it supports figuring out some kind of rule change that would lead to them happening far less frequently.
Sources: The NBA Competition Committee today discussed the uptick in transition “take” fouls this season and encouraged the league office to develop a rule change that would eliminate incentive to utilize the tactic in future.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 2, 2021
This wasn’t the only thing on the agenda, as the committee apparently also discussed the non-basketball move rule change that has made it harder to draw shooting fouls by flailing around and seeking contact, along with the new ball that was adopted this year.
NBA informed teams today that the Competition Committee is unanimously supportive of the league’s new rules officiating non-basketball moves. The new Wilson game ball was also discussed, with the league and players working directly with Wilson to adjust as appropriate. https://t.co/ftgu8fbrbr
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 2, 2021
Still, take fouls are one of the surest ways to draw ire from fans, both because they prevent the always-exciting fast breaks and they usually slow the game down considerably. The most natural comparison for how this could be penalized, clear path fouls, leads to a team getting two free throws and the ball. There is no timetable regarding when the league could try to install these new rules, should they come to fruition.
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/nba-encouraged-competition-committee-rules-prevent-take-foul/