The PBA has finally returned and Meralco Bolts' Chris Banchero formally introduced the 4-point shot to the public.
And I know, most PBA fans hate the innovation, but I don't really mind it.
Except for one thing.
It's too close.
LINE | DISTANCE |
FIBA 3-PT LINE | 22.15 FEET |
PBA 3-PT LINE | 23 FEET |
NCAA 3-PT LINE | 23.75 FEET |
PBA 4-PT LINE | 27 FEET |
The truth behind the innovation is to make the games exciting. Unlike other league changes that were either to prepare the players for the international games, this revolved around shooting the basket from the deep end of what's allowable. The NBA had the likes of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and James Harden hitting shots from the parking lot, but Adam Silver never had the balls to sign off on the additional point.
That said, when Banchero shot the ball, the crowd went mild.
That's the problem.
When the MBA introduced their innovations to the fans, I admit that most were laugh trips. That said, we remember them up to this day because as zany as they were, teams were discouraged from slacking on defense in the first four seconds of possession because of the eight-second shot clock and the Blitz 3 fast break. Also, the free three was there as a possible make-or-break scenario.
Yes, the four-point play checks out all the possible clutch scenarios. However, it will be spammed by the PBA teams until the attraction's novelty has run its course. It's not exciting. It's not even a novelty move. It's going to be a legit part of the game because the range is acceptable as a not-so-threatening shot. And because of what this is now, I bet the NBA or the other FIBA-affiliated leagues would reconsider adopting this.
I thought the line would give us Steph Curry triple-bombs.
It's just a normal three-point shot.
Anyway, here are the stats of the Meralco versus Magnolia game. I got the jpeg from the Tiebreaker Times' X page. The Bolts went 40 percent from that part of the field with Jolo Mendoza becoming the second player to hit the shot and with Banchero, Chris Newsome, and rookie CJ Cansino failing to connect on their attempts. While the Banchero shot drew respectable cheers from the surprisingly loud Meralco crowd (I guess winning championships is IMPORTANT in building a fanbase,) Mendoza's shot got the oohs because he is a role player who got lucky in his bank shot.
In fact, Meralco relied on his shooting brilliance because he never missed a shot after four attempts from the long-distance lines. For Magnolia, Paul Lee became the third player to register a quadruple and ended the game taking two attempts, with Jerrick Ahanmisi missing on his attempt and Glenn Robinson III failing to become the league's first import to make the shot in two tries.
Meralco won over Magnolia, 99 to 94. Other than Glenn Robinson's two desperation tries, it was difficult for the Hotshots to rely on the four-point shot despite falling as far as eight points with 90 seconds left in the game.
Aside from the stress of catching up, and the shooting touch that separates a three-pointer from a four-pointer, players will defend the shot because NO ONE wants to lose from a four-point shot.
The ONLY WAY for a team to LOSE to a four-point shot is if they do a Bal David.
BECAUSE A CLUTCH FOUR-POINT SET SHOT IS AS INSANE AS A FADEAWAY THREE-POINTER!
Maybe I need to see more games to properly assess this innovation. At the moment, I think I am okay with this, but if they are trying to make this move to excite people, then I doubt if that's going to be the case in the long run.