The Pros and Cons of the Elam Ending
The Elam Scoring Format has been used for the past three All-Star games. Some fans want to see it more. Are they right? Or are they wrong?
Another exciting finish to the All-Star game brought up an important debate. The Elam scoring format has brought newfound life to the NBA. The idea of the game ending in a target score is perfect for the NBA in many ways.
The All-Star game was dead just a few years ago, even with the new drafting format. A target score was a way to make things more exhilarating. The game always ends in a buzzer-beater. There was real pressure on the floor. It felt like free, pickup-style basketball.
The players weren’t beholden to time or the referees. It was basketball in its purest form. That feeling is why there’s been a recent push to implement this into more than just All-Star Weekend.
Why can’t regular-season games have a target score? What about the playoffs, too? The NBA has dabbled in adding in-season tournaments for years now. The Elam target score ending could be another way for the NBA to diversify.
But, there’s more than meets the eye simply basketball in its purest form. In my opinion, we should all pump the brakes on this idea, for now. Not to say that it’s a bad idea per se, but there’s a lot we still don’t know about this format.
The pros and cons of the Elam scoring format are long. Here’s my best attempt to list them out and make a definitive answer to the question, ‘Should we switch to this new format?’
What Is The Elam Ending?
The beginnings of the Elam Ending are humble. Nick Elam, a college student at Dayton in 2004, was watching college basketball. A game between Duke and Xavier in March Madness deteriorated at the end. The team in the lead stalled while the trailing team frantically tried to come back. It was anti-climatic. So, Elam tried to find a solution.
Fast-forward to today, and many more are familiar with this concept. It’s gone from a dorm room idea to the future of basketball.
The Basketball Tournament is a yearly event that takes place each summer. The single-elimination tournament adopted the Elam Ending to its games. In the final four minutes of a game, eight points would be added to the leading team’s score. A tournament with a multi-million dollar prize pool became even more pressure-filled.
The NBA has since adopted a similar strategy in the All-Star game, with a Kobe Bryant-inspired twist. The idea has reached hundreds of summer, amateur, and rec leagues all over the nation. Instead of watching teams stall late in games, it breeds competition.
Like all great dorm room ideas, the Elam Ending has a chance to shape basketball as we know it.
The Pros of The Elam Ending
When I think of the Elam Ending, I immediately think of a few things. From the viewership experience to the competition benefits, there are a lot of pros with this method. Here are a few of the most important ones.
The Viewership Experience Greatly Improves
The Elam ending breeds close games and competition. The reason this format exists is because of the viewership experience. Instead of seeing a bevy of fouls, free throws, and stalling, we have actual basketball.
March Madness is where we want to see chaos, not stalling. I went back and watched the game that inspired Nick to make this format. Duke vs Xavier in 2004. In the final 3:54 minutes of a tied game, with a trip to the Elite 8 on the line, this is what happened;
(Note: The NCAA had a 35-second shot clock at the time, for some reason. George Mikan would have thrived in this era).
- Duke miss
- Xavier turnover
- JJ Redick three-pointer / Duke up three / 2:55 left
- Xavier miss
- Luol Deng tip-in (after Duke stalled for a while) / Duke up five / 1:55 left
- Xavier scores / Duke up three / 1:28 left
- JJ Redick 2/2 free throws (after Duke stalled for a while) / Duke up five / 1:11 left
- Romain Sato 1/2 free throws / Duke up four / 55.5 seconds left
- Chris Duhon makes 2/2 free throws after Duke stalled for 29 seconds / Duke leads by six / 24.6 seconds left
- Justin Cage putback layup / Duke up four / 7.7 seconds left
- Duke gets fouled immediately on the inbounds play. Luol Deng makes 1/2 free throws / Duke up five
- Xavier scores, Duke runs out the clock / Duke WINS 66-6
There were a lot of fouls and a lot of dribbling over the final minutes of this game. It leaves a bad taste in your mouth for the game to end like that. It’s like investing 2+ hours of your time in a movie just for the ending to suck (ex War of the Worlds.)
Playing Basketball, Not Foul Simulator
I suppose this is a continuation of the last point, but I still think it’s worth mentioning. Nowadays, whenever a team is up by three points late in a game, you never see a tying 3-pointer. Teams hold each other hostage with the precious seconds remaining. And that sucks.
Instead of thirty seconds of game time, it’s ten minutes of free throws and timeouts. The game drags on. We wouldn’t have that with the Elam Ending. No game clock means that you can’t hold another team hostage. Giving your opponent a free two points would be ill-advised when every point is so crucial.
This ties into the overall viewership experience. Nobody wants to see teams trade fouls back and forth and back and forth. At that point, you’re not watching basketball. Instead, it’s a cowardly decoy, impersonating as basketball.
When James Naismith put up two peach baskets in Kansas, he didn’t intend for this to happen. He, like the rest of us, wanted to watch basketball. This new format would allow that to happen again.
The Cons of Elam Ending
As a die-hard fan of a sport with an orange ball, I want the best viewing experience. Who doesn’t? But, there are some flaws with this format. In an All-Star game, I could care less about the scoring format. They could be playing duck-duck-goose for all I cared.
Switching to an entirely Elam ending doesn’t seem wise at this point in time.
How Will This Look Without The Ten Best Players In The NBA?
I’ve already laid out how this format would improve the viewership quality, but it’s by no means perfect. For one, we’ve only seen this format in the NBA in one form. On a weekend where the stakes are driven by money, not winning.
On top of that, this format has been used by the best players in the NBA. Instead of seeing the Orlando Magic use the Elam ending, it’s been All-NBA caliber players. Are we sure that things would be as fun if we saw a crappy team in this format?
With no game clock means that some games could last forever. I am willing to bet that at least one regular-season game would last hours. That wouldn’t be the case in the All-Star game. But, the regular season isn’t the same as the All-Star game. Duh.
I find it hard to believe that this format would be as invigorating as it has been during the biggest weekend of the NBA calendar.
Messing Up History/Counting Stats
Since the 4th quarter would be untimed, would minutes per game be capped at 36 minutes? Even if the NBA didn’t do the Elam ending for the entire 4th quarter and instead did it like The Basketball Tournament, where the ending only occurred with like four minutes left, that would still change the minutes per game stat.
Would we add a whole new section of stats for the ending? I mean, it’s an untimed quarter of basketball. We have the pre-shot-clock era and the 3-PT era. So, would we have to make a new era? The Elam era? Would that make things easier or harder for us nerds?
Stats won’t hold the NBA back from making this move. But, trying to figure out a way to make the numbers make sense is a headache. One that I won’t even try to solve. That’s on you, NBA.
What The Hell Happens In The Playoffs?
Perhaps the most weighty thing from the Elam ending is the playoffs. What are we going to do?
Would the playoffs even include the Elam ending? If so, what would that look like? Would the home team decide how the game will end? What if odd games were standard and even games were Elam?
Akin to the stats thing, I can’t wrap my head around this one. I think that in some cases, the Elam ending would be perfect for the playoffs. On the other hand, implementing such fun would be hard. Where does that leave us? I don’t know.
My Conclusion
The Elam ending has a lot of pros. I think that overall, the NBA would be more fun. There’s no denying that. If the final five minutes of every close NBA game had a target score? Sign me up.
(Elam endings in a blowout would be horrendous)
The fun factor is clearly there. On the topic of more serious and important things, things get fuzzy. I can’t see the NBA leaning into this format long-term. We could see it in the preseason or the G-League, but not during the season.
Not only is it weird, but there are also so many unsolved mysteries about it. Even if we implemented the new format, would the NBA fundamentally change? Fewer fouls, timeouts, and reviews seems like an oasis. An oasis that can’t be reached with a dorm room idea.
Maybe the Elam ending wasn’t made for the NBA. It’s a good idea in your local rec league, but not at the pinnacle of the sport. For a sport that has hardly seen major changes, a change like this seems too drastic.
It might be fun, but I don’t think the Elam ending belongs in the NBA.
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