Legends help reshape the NBL Championship

National Basketball League (NBL) legends Andrew and Lindsay Gaze, Adrian Hurley and Steve Carfino are joining forces to help improve the Philips Championship for fans and teams alike.

The trio have joined NBL Referee Manager Pat Tilden, NBL General Manger Chuck Harmison and Basketball Australia’s General Manager of Community Basketball Michael Haynes on the recently formed NBL Games Committee, whose focus is finding ways to make the Philips Championship an even better spectacle and more consistent in terms of its officiating.

Since being formed, the Games Committee has produced a new series of ‘Points of Emphasis’ for referees to follow during the 2006/07 Phillips Championship season which were trialled recently in Coffs Harbour during the Virgin Blue NBL Pre-Season Blitz tournament.

Harmison said the overall reaction from teams to the changes had been positive.

“It’s really a great thing for the league to bring these important people together and involve them in helping make our game even better,” said Harmison. “They’ve all done wonderful things for the game, and with the formation of this committee, they can continue play an important role in the constant improvement of the NBL.”

“We met with all the teams and officials prior to play in the Blitz and went through the new Points of Emphasis and they have been embraced by the teams. There will always be a period of adjustment from players, coaches and referees alike but that’s why the new Points of Emphasis were introduced during the pre-season.”

Under the new Points of Emphasis for season 2006/07, advantage/disadvantage principles have been reaffirmed for contact occurring on rebounds, post play, screens, and cuts, and have been newly applied to incidental contact in the backcourt.

“By applying advantage/disadvantage, there will be less stoppage of play,” Harmsion added. “As such, the players will have more freedom to showcase their talents to the fans who come to see them.”

Additionally, specific criteria have been laid out for assessing Technical and Unsportsmanlike Fouls. Respectful conduct towards the referees and their coaching staff has also been emphasised.

“With these specific guidelines, players and coaches know exactly what is and is not acceptable behaviour, and the referees know explicitly how to deal with that which is unacceptable. This way the focus will be on the basketball, as it should be. We saw a fairly high number of technical fouls called at the Blitz due to our renewed focus on respect towards the officials but we believe this should become much less of an issue as players and coaches adjust to the new, more stringent boundaries.”

“These adjustments are most definitely not about trying to stop players or coaches displaying their individuality or emotions and there is still plenty of latitude under our rules for that to happen. Rather, we are trying to ensure that all players and coaches display a duly respectful attitude towards the officials in line with the principles of good sportsmanship.”

Harmison said the most important thing the Games Committee focused on was to make the game better for the fans.

“These new points could lead to a dramatically more exciting game. Less referee intervention on incidental contact will give the game a much better flow. Also, the concerns raised by teams over inconsistency should be eliminated. The result will be a much more fan-friendly game.”

The new Points of Emphasis are outlined in full here.