The NBA will be lowering quarter lengths down to 10 minutes for the opening exhibition, the Associated Press is reporting. The decision has been made to ease players back into the playing groove after there four-month break.
As for how teams will adjust to the change, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra says he'll still try to play everyone he can: "You have to fast-track so much before you get to that eight-game regular season. ... We'll approach it that way and play probably everybody available, but definitely work on some things and do a little bit of evaluating as well."
“I believe that it’s done just trying to get safety first for the players,” Orlando coach Steve Clifford said of the shorter first exhibition. “I think most teams are like us, where everybody is just feeling their way and guys aren’t in the type of condition they would normally be in in a training camp situation.”
When asked for his opinion, Chris Paul said players had not yet been informed of the change: “I don’t know about that yet,” said the Oklahoma City guard and president of the National Basketball Players Association. “So, I’ll find out.”
Exhibition play will begin Wednesday, July 22 and run until the resumption of the regular season July 30.
[Via]