Report: NBA To Limit Players From Leaning Backwards and Sideways To Draw Fouls

Players in today's NBA are accustomed to manipulating their bodies — as well as their opponents — in order to draw fouls. In fact, it's rare that you see a player shoot after duping their defender with a pump fake; instead, they are taught to fly into the opposing player by using their momentum. This all might be coming to an end, however, as the NBA's competition committee met on Monday to explore rule changes to unnatural shooting motions, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Although the league views this circumvention of the rules as a universal issue, Wojnarowski notes that Trae Young, James Harden and Luka Doncic are at the forefront. The plan is for the Board of Governors to implement a vote for rule changes for the 2021-2022 season this summer. Then, the General Managers will be involved in discussing which unnatural shooting motions to repudiate. 

The plan's to bring recommendations to the Board of Governors for a vote this summer and implement rule changes for 2021-2022, per sources. Next step will be to talk with league’s GM’s about the specific unnatural motions that’ll be formally recommended to owners for elimination. https://t.co/wDbZ75PUJe

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 14, 2021

Young and Harden are both still alive in these playoffs, but the ability of many other players -- like Luka Doncic -- to create this kind of contact within the framework of the current rules has been at the center of league discussions for a long period of time.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 14, 2021

All three of the aforementioned players have been chastised by people around the NBA for their foul hunting. Most recently, in a game in December of this season, Nets head coach Steve Nash condemned Young for leaning backwards and drawing a foul. The two-time MVP exclaimed to the referee that Young's movement was "not basketball."

"That's not basketball" - Steve Nash

Trae Young was drawing cheap fouls and Steve Nash was tired of seeing it, not being able to do anything about it. Coach Nash had to have a word with this ref. Talk heavy coach. #WeGoHard - @Keith_McPherson pic.twitter.com/tMEbkSD6Ga

— Talkin’ Nets (@TalkinNets) December 31, 2020

Photo Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports