NBA competition committee's decision to review rules invites basketball fans' scrutiny: "Free throw merchants are up in arms"

There has been a trend of jaw-dropping, high-scoring games in the NBA this season. Part of why players can put up big scoring performances is because the rules promote a certain style of play.

The league appears to have recognized this and is now reviewing whether the rules are too advantageous for offenses.

According to an article by Tim Bontemps and Kevin Pelton on ESPN, former Detroit Pistons star and NBA executive vice president Joe Dumars said the competition committee is reviewing whether offenses are favored by the rules.

Fans who saw this took to X (formerly Twitter) to share a variety of reactions, with several tweets aimed at the exorbitant number of free throws and the referees that fans perceived to be making bad calls.

"Free throw merchants are up in arms at this news," one fan tweeted.

A few fans reacted by suggesting what rules could be changed or removed to make the NBA more competitive again.

"Get rid of the defensive 3 seconds lol," one fan suggested and they weren't alone in this opinion.

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Six players scored 60 or more points in a NBA game this season

This season, four players have set a career-high in points that are over 60. Those four players are Luka Doncic, Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Karl Anthony-Towns.

Giannis scored 64 points on Dec. 13, 2023, to lead the Milwaukee Bucks rout against the Indiana Pacers 140-126. He also had 14 rebounds and four steals.

On Jan. 22, two career highs were set. Joel Embiid had 70 points against DPOY candidate Victor Wembanyama's San Antonio Spurs, and Karl-Anthony Towns hung 62 points over the Charlotte Hornets' defense.

The most recent career-high set this season belongs to Luka Doncic, who dropped 73 points on Jan. 26 to help the Dallas Mavericks escape with a 148-143 victory against the Atlanta Hawks.

Aside from these career games from these four players, there have been two more games where a player dropped 60 or more points.

One belongs to Steph Curry, who dropped 60 against the Atlanta Hawks on Feb. 3. However, his fantastic performance was not enough to lead his team to victory as the Golden State Warriors fell 141-134.

Another belongs to Devin Booker, who scored 62 points on Jan. 26 against the Indiana Pacers. Much like Curry's performance, though, Booker's 60-point game came in a loss as the Pacers escaped with a 133-131 victory.