There Will Be Heaves

Plus, some tips for making the most of Vegas Summer League

One of the least satisfying plays in basketball occurs at the end of a period when a player decides not to attempt a difficult shot so that they can preserve their field goal percentage, thereby forgoing an opportunity to help their team win.

It’s so pervasive in today’s NBA that the league has finally decided to do something about it. Starting this week at Summer League, shot attempts in the last three seconds of a period from behind the center circle extended will no longer count toward a player’s shot attempt total unless it goes in. Instead, unsuccessful end-of-quarter heaves will be recorded as “team misses” to help protect players’ field goal percentages and encourage them to just chuck it. Assuming all goes well in Summer League, we could see this change rolled out at the NBA level as soon as next season.

To better understand the impact of the rule change it’s instructive to look at the G-League where the end of period heave rule was introduced for the first time last season. The chart below shows the location of every eligible heave attempt in the G-League in the past three seasons.

Last season, the first season under the heave rule, G-League players attempted 575 eligible heaves, up from 373 the year before and 344 the year before that. In other words, the rule change corresponded with a greater than 50 percent increase in end of period heave attempts.

The difference in volume is striking, but so is the difference in location of the heaves themselves. After the rule change, players in the G-League were more willing to attempt deeper heaves, which you see more clearly in the chart below.

Notice how the distribution of attempts in 2025 has a fatter right tail compared to 2024. That indicates how much more likely G-League players were to chuck it from impossibly deep distances once it became cost-free. That’s perhaps why, despite 50 percent more attempts, there were only 12 made heaves this past season in the G-League — up from ten in each of the two seasons before.

Meanwhile, in the NBA, there were 595 eligible heaves in the 2024-25 season, or about 0.48 per game. That’s similar to the G-League levels before the heave rule was implemented. Nikola Jokic himself accounted for 25 of those heaves. No other player attempted more than 13.

I think it’s fair to expect the NBA to experience a similar bump in heaves if they implemented a similar rule. So if the goal is to get more players to let it fly, then the rule change can’t come soon enough.

But let it be known that any player who is worried about a couple of extra misses ruining their field goal percentage is a baby. There might have been a case to worry about this fifteen years ago when half the league was taking less than 100 threes in a season. Back then, a few extra misses could substantively drag down a player’s overall three-point percentage. For instance, Andre Miller shot 26.6 percent on threes in 2001. But if you exlcude the 18 missed heaves he took, his three-point percentage jumps up to 37.0 percent. But that’s only because Andre Miller didn’t take many threes to begin with. So an extra 18 misses materially meant something.

In today’s NBA, anyone attempting a heave likely shoots so many threes that adding a few extra shots to the denominator is not going to dramatically change their top-line percentages. And in the rare cases that it does (hello Nikola Jokic), any team worth their salt already removes end of period heaves from their internal calculations of a player’s shooting percentages. So it’s not like a player would miss out on a bonus because they were too trigger happy with their heaves. In other words, missed heaves never counted in any meaningful way in the first place.

It’s lame it took a new rule to encourage players to put team goals above individual ones, but I’m excited for the change nonetheless. We’re going to see more players attempting ridiculous shots. One-handed heaves from the opposite free throw line. Running sky hook shots from midcourt. Someone might toss up a no-look backwards-granny shot knowing it won’t matter if they miss. Ultimately, it’ll give fans more chances to see NBA players demonstrate their supernatural ability to put a small round object inside a slightly larger target from outrageous distances.

Some players will game the system by settling for a shot inside the eligible heave zone instead of dribbling across halfcourt (and out of the heave zone) for a more makeable shot. But that’s a small price to pay for an increase in overall fan satisfaction. After all, the NBA is in the entertainment business and everyone loves a long shot.

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Vegas Baby

Over the next few days the NBA universe will descend on Las Vegas, Nevada for Summer League. I will not be attending this year, but when I worked for the Knicks it was one of my favorite weeks on the NBA calendar.

For NBA staffers, it’s a chance to catch up with friends that work for other teams and make new friends with people you’ve previously only interacted with online. Truthfully, some of the best friendships I’ve made in basketball started at Summer League.

If it’s your first Summer League, you should know that it can be a little overwhelming the first time you step foot in the Thomas & Mack Center. All of a sudden you’re on the concourse walking past NBA executives, retired players, head coaches, and popular media members. Anyone that’s anyone is likely going to be in close proximity. In some cases, so close they can read your text messages.

The NBA is a business built on relationships and meeting the right person at the right time can jump start a career in sports if that’s your goal. But with so many people looking to do the exact same thing at the exact same time in the exact same place it can be hard to know how to network without it feeling transactional.

So, to help those that are attending Summer League for the first time with hopes of working in sports, I’ve solicited a few pieces of advice from veterans of the Summer League scene. Take it from them.

Steph Noh of The Sporting News:

The best networking advice I would give is to shoot your shot. If you're like me, you build up reasons in your head why you shouldn't reach out. Most people are pretty nice though. It helps to try to set something low stakes up in advance. A simple, "could I sit with you for five minutes between games and say hello at the arena" is an easy yes for most people.

Layne Vashro of the Denver Nuggets:

You will have 10X more luck trying to arrange a quick chat at the arena on Monday or Tuesday than you will Friday or Saturday.

Nick Restifo of the Atlanta Hawks:

The hallways at the arena can be a great place to talk to people as they move between games, grab a bite or drink, or go to the bathroom. Team employees are often more relaxed at this time of the year, as the busiest part of the NBA calendar has just ended, and the most relaxed part is just beginning.

Most teams stay at the Wynn, which is prohibitively expensive for many people paying their own way. But most after-hours industry activity will be centered around the top of the strip, and the Wynn casino floor can be a good place to go to try to network at night.

Eastern Conference Front Office Employee:

Email/LinkedIn message people ahead of time. Cold intros are tough to find the right time. Also read the room if you try one and it’s not going well, it’s okay to eject.

Loitering around outside the NBA personnel section on the concourse works pretty well, but we don’t need a million people doing that either.

Canzhi Ye, friend of The F5:

Cox Pavilion > Thomas & Mack. You get to actually hear what’s going on on the court.

In my experience, most people are more than willing to meet up and spend a few minutes to talk shop. So if there’s someone you want to meet, just send a DM. I do think it’s a good idea to have a couple of questions prepared ahead of time that go beyond basic things like, “how did you get your start in the NBA.” For example, if you’re trying to break into sports analytics, you could ask someone that works in a front office what tool or product should exist in the public space but doesn’t currently. Chances are they’ll have something in mind and won’t mind sharing. Plus, it might give you inspiration to work on something when you get back from Vegas so that you can do the job before you have the job.

Overall, Summer League is meant to be fun. So even if you’re attending with the expressed purpose of breaking into sports, try to enjoy yourself as well. The best times I’ve had at Summer League came in the moments when the arena is mostly empty and you get to talk shit with the person sitting next to you about the third-year NBA player that’s still grinding it out on Summer League circuit.

Here’s a few other bits and bobs for those attending their first Summer League:

• If you have a general admission ticket you can practically sit wherever you want aside from some designated areas for NBA personnel and media. However, Summer League is a little like a music festival in that if you want to be up close for a marquee act (ie, Cooper Flagg) then you need to secure your spot a game in advance (at least).

• The food in the arena sucks mondo ass and the lines are dumb long. Eat a big meal before you arrive for the day and bring a snack to avoid shelling out for overpriced and overheated french fries and chicken tenders.

• It’s going to be 110 degrees outside the arena and 55 degrees inside the arena. Plan accordingly.

• It’s possible to walk to Lotus of Siam for dinner from the arena. Just make sure you wait for the sun to go down, walk slowly, and immediately order an ice cold bottle of Singha when you arrive.