Basketball On The Internet.

SECOND best league in the world? That's how the NBL consistently (erroneously) positions itself. Anyone who knows world basketball, knows that bold claim has zero substance but it's even more strongly reinforced when the league foreshadows "rule" changes that would turn games into a mockery. Tassie coach Scott Roth said as much.

The word he used was "farce" and what genuine lover of the sport could disagree about the NBL's proposed experimental rules at the Blitz in Bendigo this week?

Four point baskets, three-point dunks ... has someone at league headquarters been on an intravenous Harlem Globetrotters drip?

Hey, how about if someone can kick the ball in from beyond halfway, we award a six-point goal for that? How very uniquely Australian ...

Seriously now, these sorts of alleged "innovations" need to be called out for what they are - BS on an exceedingly grand scale.

We said it weeks ago when the WNBL started flirting with similar gimmickry masquerading as innovation. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

And contrary to the WNBL viewpoint, rule changes shouldn't be there to placate or excite fans. They should ONLY be there to enhance the sport. Fans will go along with that for sure.

And, yet again, the NBL has missed the most obvious call virtually all real basketball followers and fans want to see - the return of the jumpball.

And why don't the "innovators" consider that? Because essentially they are PR heads and administrators, not basketballers.

Basketball is a game of skill and strategy. Adding these so-called innovations diminishes the sport's integrity and we've seen enough of that already, with blind eyes turned to five-step travels (especially on dunks), carrying the ball and flopping generally.

When the good doc James Naismith devised the sport in 1891, he posted 13 rules. That's 13. Why he didn't think of a three-point dunk remains a mystery to this very day.

Or not.

The sport has evolved naturally, as it should.

Maybe it's time attention here turned to the standard of officiating, eliminating the flop and allowing us to continue enjoying some of the best elite basketball in the world.

Our hybrid game of US-style skill and athleticism, mixed with European ball movement and toughness, has made the NBL genuinely more watchable than a lot of what is broadcast from international destinations.

No, ours isn't by any stretch the second-best league in the world, but it may actually be #1 for watchability. So let's not experiment with stupid shite. And, here's a random thought.

Maybe consult with the coaches before announcing ridiculous or proposed new rules that make zero sense to anyone other than those suggesting them.