4 Guys on the floor....

[bob jenkins]

Originally Posted by Nevadaref

Since there is no advantage to a team playing with only four, why don't we let teams do it whenever they wish, including at the beginning of a game?
Simply because of rules which state that they can't. That's why.

There's a difference, imo, between a team knowingly playing (or trying to play) with 4 (not allowed) and mistakenly playing with 4 (allowed, and a T if the 5th player just runs on the court).