For years, NBA players have hesitated to launch desperate full-court shots at the buzzer, fearing a missed heave would harm their field goal percentage.
That could now be a thing of the past, as the NBA has announced a subtle yet impactful rule change that reflects the vision Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has long advocated.
The league confirmed that beginning with the 2024 Summer League, missed heaves launched from the backcourt in the final three seconds of a quarter will no longer be credited as individual misses.
Instead, they’ll count only as team missed field goals. The adjustment, previously tested in the G League, is designed to encourage players to take more buzzer-beaters without worrying about their personal stats.
To qualify as a “heave” under the new rule, three conditions must be met:
- The attempt must occur in the final three seconds of the first three quarters.
- The shot must be launched from beyond 36 feet, defined as the outer edge of the center circle.
- The play must originate in the backcourt.
LeBron’s push to modernize the game finally lands
The concept isn’t new. LeBron James has previously suggested using the G League and Summer League as experimental grounds for potential rule changes, including tweaks inspired by international formats.
On his podcast Mind the Game, co-hosted with JJ Redick, LeBron proposed trialing rule innovations like goaltending changes and 40-minute game lengths.
“There’s some things that we could possibly just tinker with… in the G League and the Summer League and see how it looks,” LeBron said, encouraging the NBA to adopt a more fluid and progressive approach to evolving the game.
Though the game duration remains untouched for now, this new statistical shift is the kind of change LeBron had in mind. The decision has been praised by players, analysts, and fans alike.
Lakers Nation’s Trevor Lane tweeted, “Love this rule. No more taking an extra dribble so the clock expires before shooting.”
Social media lit up with approval, with many believing this simple change could increase end-of-quarter excitement. Fans have long lamented seeing players intentionally hold the ball instead of firing a shot that had little chance of success but could have electrified the crowd.
For LeBron, this is a quiet but significant victory. His influence on the game has often extended beyond the hardwood, and the league’s decision to adopt one of his suggested reforms further cements his legacy as a player with vision and voice.
While the tweak currently applies only to Summer League games, there’s already speculation that the NBA may eventually extend it to regular season play. The logic is straightforward: encourage high-effort plays without punishing individual statistics.
It also addresses a long-standing contradiction in the analytics era, where players weigh risk to their efficiency metrics even in split-second moments that could swing momentum.
More shots, less stat-padding
The sight of stars like Nikola Jokic or Stephen Curry launching deep shots at the buzzer – while rare – has always thrilled fans. Now, with this new rule, players may finally feel free to follow their example without hesitation.
It might even redefine how coaches approach the final moments of a quarter, knowing that their players no longer need to protect their shooting percentages at the cost of a potential game-altering shot.
The rule change comes just in time for Summer League games in San Francisco, where teams including the Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies, and Oklahoma City Thunder will take the court under the updated scoring rules.
In the bigger picture, this move might be small in the stat sheet, but it’s big in spirit. It’s about encouraging effort, risk-taking, and spectacle-all without penalizing the players who try.
And for LeBron James, who advocated for these exact testing grounds, it’s a clear sign that even as he nears the twilight of his career, his voice still helps shape the direction of the league.
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