The NBA has approved a new rule change for the 2024-25 season that involved replay reviews for out-of-bounds calls on the court that are triggered by a Coach's Challenge.
On Tuesday at the NBA Board of Governors, expanded use of the Coach's Challenge was approved regarding instant replay of an out-of-bounds violation triggered by a challenge. Now, the on-court officials and Replay Center will be able to review the video to determine whether a foul proximate to the violation should have been called, per a league memo obtained by ClutchPoints. The factors that will be considered in determining whether a prior uncalled foul is proximate to the out-of-bounds violation are below:
- Whether the players involved in the uncalled foul are the same or different players than the ones involved in the out-of-bounds violation under review.
- The distance between the uncalled foul and the out-of-bounds violation under review.
- The time elapsed between the uncalled foul and the out-of-bounds violation under review.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver is expected to address the media on Tuesday to outline the new rule change further.
Essentially, this slight rule change is advantageous to teams around the league due to the constant need for replay reviews triggered by a Coach's Challenge to be expanded upon. If the ball goes out of bounds, teams are now able to make a decision on whether they want there to be a review as to why the ball went out of bounds.
What transpired in the Western Conference Finals between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks is a clear example of this new rule change. In Game 2 of this series, Mavs star Kyrie Irving appeared to foul Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels while swiping at the ball, resulting in the out-of-bounds call being made. Irving was not assessed a foul, and since the ball went out-of-bounds off of McDaniels, Dallas was able to seize possession of the basketball.
The NBA admitted to their mistake of not calling a foul on Irving the following day.
Under the new rules, the Timberwolves would be granted the ability to challenge this call, and Irving would have been assessed a foul, likely changing the outcome of what was a 109-108 victory for the Mavericks to take a 2-0 series lead. Dallas went on to win this series in five games and advance to the 2024 NBA Finals.
This new rule change was unanimously recommended to the Board of Governors by the NBA's competition committee, which consists of players, representatives from the NBPA, coaches, governors, team and league basketball executives, and referees.
Making the correct call, especially in important games like the Western or Eastern Conference Finals, is important to the league. That is why this rule change was implemented, and this is why the league will continue to review its replay rules in order to ensure fair competition.
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