NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is ‘dead wrong’ about hacking rule change

Adam Silver seems a progressive sort. He certainly is when it comes to sports gambling, an NBA commissioner whose ability to see the big picture about such things dwarfs those obstinate views of others who run professional leagues.

(Hello, Roger).

But as another NBA Finals heads toward conclusion and another summer of potential change approaches, a guy who is immensely popular continues to promote moves that are anything but good for the game.

One definitely isn’t for those officials his league employs.

Another is apparently bad for television.

Which, sadly, is all that really matters.

As for the latter, Silver isn’t backing down when trying to eliminate intentional fouling of awful free-throw shooters, wanting to rid the game of the Hack-A-Shaq strategy like most believe he should, well, the 76ers.

On the matter of fouls, #ImwithMark.

Mark Cuban as owner of the Dallas Mavericks would ultimately cast a vote for any reform Silver might bring to the owners about Hack-a-Shaq, and while it’s unlikely Cuban owns the same power and juice with peers as another sports owner from the Lone Star State (see Jones, Jerry), his thoughts on the matter are both direct and accurate.

“If Adam wants to get rid of Hack-A-Shaq, he’s wrong,” Cuban told reporters in April. “Dead wrong. Absolutely 100 percent wrong.”

Silver insists the strategy delays the game at an unwanted level, which is another way of saying it makes for horrible television. The league’s network partners want change, and when those who pay billions of dollars annually to show your product offer an opinion on something, having an open mind sort of comes with the territory.

But there are other ways to speed up games without rewarding incompetence just because it’s not fun to watch. Look. It’s ugly. It’s a terrible eyesore as teams foul late to stop the clock and increase their own number of offensive possessions while hopefully limiting the opposition’s points per possession.

Any rules change must pass by a two-thirds majority vote of owners, which means if enough are in favor of Silver’s desires, major reform would occur primarily because of three players: Dwight Howard, DeAndre Jordan and Andre Drummond.

They can’t shoot free-throws.

Is it fair to change a rule that would benefit a few star players who happen to be dreadful at a specific skill? Cuban doesn’t think so. San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich doesn’t think so. Silver is convinced a majority of fans do, despising Hack-A-Shaq and wanting reform, but it’s also true the NBA this year saw a jump in regular-season television ratings for the first time in four seasons.

Someone must be watching.

Or maybe they’re all just watching the Warriors.

If you want research, consider the part that suggests Hack-A-Shaq rarely works in terms of benefiting those fouling. It’s just not an effective strategy over the course or a season or playoff series. The numbers prove it.

So instead of pushing for change and seeking an end to Hack-A-Shaq — one reported option is to make an intentional foul penalty one shot plus the ball, as it is currently in the final two minutes of games — why not force multi-millionaires to work more diligently on their game and trust that coaches will ultimately realize benefits of such strategy aren’t what most assume?

I also don’t understand Silver’s wish to continue publishing his league’s Last Two-Minute Reports when it comes to evaluating officials. Transparency is more often than not a positive guideline from which to run an organization that relies on the public’s financial support. It’s also true that officials get calls right nearly 90 percent of the time over those final few minutes.

I’m all for daily reviews and education and training and, ultimately, discipline for those officials who continually miss calls. But why must such reports, which detail accurate and inaccurate calls and non-calls in all games within five points in the final two minutes of regulation and during overtime, be shown to the world?

Silver has said he would prefer to offer reports on all 48 minutes of each game, and should resources ever allow for such detailed accounts, such would be a better option. After all, aren’t all the calls made before the final two minutes that might switch momentum or cost a team points as important in a game that might finish within a basket or two?

I just want to be assured any officiating crew is doing its absolute best to get calls right. Fans hate officials enough as it is. So now the league is going to continue a practice that encourages even more anger and hostility towards officials?

Silver is a progressive sort and, for good reason, an extremely popular commissioner. But that doesn’t mean all his decisions are best for the game.

Or his officials.

Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be a heard on “Seat and Ed” on Fox Sports 1340 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. On Twitter: @edgraney