Quote:
Originally Posted by johnny d
Even if the defender is there 3-4 steps before the offense, he is still a secondary defender. Also, if the defender is able to get there that long before the offensive player, than he shouldn't have any problem getting outside of the RA.
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The question remains. What does it take to become a primary defender. What if they get position outside, back up a step or two and get one foot in the RA? Does the fact that they back up a step or two during the drive make them a primary defender. What if they back up 10 steps after getting in front of the driver? 20? When does a defender shift from being secondary to primary?
Quote:
Originally Posted by johnny d
Therefore this part of your argument isnt really valid. Most of the time if contact is occuring in the RA it is because the defender is getting there late. I have to agree with the other posters who have said that most coaches, fans, and officials would argue a player isnt playing defense by trying to establish position so close to the basket. Are the trying to defend the ball as it comes through the bottom of the net?
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The goal of defense is to prevent the other team from shooting the ball. Obtaining any position between the ball and the basket is, by definition, good defense. It is preventing the offensive player from having access to a desirable path to the basket. It may not be as exciting as a dunk or a blocked shot, but it is still good defense to take away the avenue desired by the opponent.
People can thump their chests all day long about it not being "good" defense, but those claims just don't make sense. They may be common but it doesn't make them add up when you consider what the purpose of defense is.
You can also use hyperbole about defending the ball coming through the net but in 99% of the cases, the contact occurs before the ball is released.
The REAL reason for the RA is to encourage scoring. Nothing more. The safety claim is just a canard. They had to use that to justify the change as they didn't want to appear to be manipulating the basics of the game for something like scoring. The saftey issue was easily resolved with the old rules if the plays were called as the rules were written.