The NBA is reportedly thinking about another tweak to their foul rules after tightening their stance on fouls resulting from “non-basketball moves” ahead of the 2021-22 season. According to The Athletic‘s Shams Charania, the league is now tackling the fouls that occur during fast breaks aka “take fouls.”
Under the current rules, the referees would call a common foul if a player stops the opponent in transition from charging down the field. Now, the NBA is considering awarding the fouled player one free throw and allowing his team to retain possession.
The league’s Board of Governors is expected to vote on the “transition take foul” rule change in July. Reportedly, the change has widespread support, and it would be a surprise if it didn’t get voted.
It isn’t surprising that NBA wants to put an end to “take fouls,” as they have become quite common in recent seasons. The fouling team has an incentive to do it on almost every fast break since the foul essentially stops the momentum of an opponent and prevents them from scoring an easy basket. However, this also results in less attractive moves and dunks for the fans, which might be another reason why the league wants to put an end to this.
The proposed “transition take foul” rule was already tested in NBA G League and met with positive reactions.
