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Boys basketball coaches react to addition of shot clock

06/22/2017, 8:30pm CDT
By Mark Miller

Here are some reactions -- pro and con -- from high school basketball coaches across the state to the vote Thursday by the WIAA Board of Control to add a 35-second shot clock to varsity games for the 2019-20 season.

PRO

Jim Datka, Milwaukee Lutheran and a former head coach at the NCAA Division II and III levels:


"Every level wants to be more like the next. High school wants to be like college, college wants to be like the NBA. I would like to see high school and college go to international rules. I think that would unify the game. Obviously, the international game has the shot clock. It is going to make the game hard to play for high school kids because it does speed it up. 

"I think the hardest thing about the shot clock is the last 10 seconds. What it's going to do is bring every team to using ball screens in the last 10 seconds. If you don't get a good shot and there's 10 seconds to go, you are just going to set a ball screen and get to the basket." 

Josh Steffen, Living Word Lutheran and head coach at the NCAA Division III level

"I am very excited to hear the shot clock will be added to the high school game. I think having more possessions will help the flow of the game and allow defenses to be more creative.

"Another benefit should be more exciting finishes. Where a team down eight with two minutes to play has to foul, adding the shot clock gives teams the option of playing defense for a stop. I think anything that causes fewer fouls and creates more possessions is good for our game."

CON

Steve Collins, Madison Memorial


"I am worried the shot clock will homogenize the game and every teams starts doing the same thing. I am worried that kids can play their entire career and the shot clock appears only at the varsity level. Will that result in poor shots and turnovers? I am not sure how it helps the flow of the game, especially at the state tournament where there is a timeout every four minutes.

"What problem does it solve? Not sure there are many delay teams. Will it cause the better teams to blow out the weaker teams?"

Dean Bellanti, Abbotsford

"I've always felt we were a long ways away from adding a shot clock because of the financial end of things. How will schools be able to implement the clock in their gyms? And, maybe a bigger question, who will control the shot clock? I know at Abbotsford we have the same clock operator and official scorer for every game basically because there aren't a lot of people willing or able to do it properly. That's a real concern, one school's have one year to prepare for. The shot clock will add stress to athletic departments and athletic directors.

"It's going to increase the tempo of the game and create more errors. At Abbotsford, we try to play fast and I honestly don't know how many possessions we had last year over 35 seconds. I don't think it will have a dramatic impact on half-court play."

MIXED

Ryan Brown, Medford

"My biggest concern with the addition of the shot clock is finding people who can run it well. It is hard enough for schools to find people who can run the clock and do the book for each game. I am also concerned about constant game stoppage if mistakes are made. The high school game doesn't have instant video replay to determine if the ball hit the rim or not, what the clock should be reset to, etc. 

"All of the above said, I have no problem with the actual idea of a shot clock. I think 35 seconds is plenty of time to get a shot and even slower and more methodical teams in Wisconsin probably shoot most of their shots in under 35 seconds. In our program, we are going to do what we do, shot clock or not. We want to pressure teams and push the ball up the floor on each possession. If we are unable to score quickly, I am confident 35 seconds is plenty of time to get a good shot."

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