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5 ways to make the NBA more interesting, challenging, exciting and fun

PORTLAND, OR - JANUARY 27: Evan Turner #1 and C.J. McCollum #3 of the Portland Trail Blazers tie their shoes before the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on January 27, 2017 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - JANUARY 27: Evan Turner #1 and C.J. McCollum #3 of the Portland Trail Blazers tie their shoes before the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on January 27, 2017 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
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NBA
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 17, 2018: A close up shot of the Championship medal won by the Portland Trail Blazers during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Ten-Minute Quarters

The NBA Summer League offers fans a chance to watch some of the league’s up-and-coming stars. But it also gives those same fans a chance to see a few tweaks to the rules that speed up the game.

One of those rules that the league should implement full-time: 10-minute quarters.

We discussed this idea not too long ago amongst ourselves here at the RCP. I think it’s a swell idea, although I doubt the NBA would be willing to lose eight minutes of broadcasting and advertising every game.

Let’s do some quick arithmetic. There are 30 teams in the Association, and each plays 82 regular-season games. That means there are 1,230 games in an NBA regular season. Playing 10-minute quarters chops eight minutes out of every game — or 9,840 minutes (164 hours) of broadcast-slash-advertising time out of every season.

Shorter games and fewer commercials? Sounds good to me.

Probably not to the league, though.

OK then. What about … ?