In May 2007, the NCAA men's basketball committee passed a rule to extend the 3-point line distance for the 2008-'09 season, a change that has pushed the 3-point arc a step back from 19'9\ to 20'9"". The new line is still three feet shorter than the NBA arc, which rests a distance of 23'9"" from the hoop.
For good shooters, this change should not make that much of a difference; however, it will be interesting to see which players can keep their 3-point averages high during the course of the basketball season.
Wisconsin senior guard/forward Joe Krabbenhoft said he did not notice much of a difference between the new 3-point line and the old one when he shot from beyond the arc in Saturday evening's game against Augustana. He hit the one 3-ball he put up. Senior forward Marcus Landry also shot well, going 3-for-3 from the 3-point line. Additionally, UW sophomore forward Jon Leuer made 1-of-3, and junior guard Jason Bohannon went 2-for-3.
These statistics are interesting because Bohannon is the one who is expected to find himself most at home behind the arc compared to Landry, Krabbenhoft and Leuer. Spectators may also be wondering why other guards didn't find the heat from 3-point land. Although this was only an exhibition game, it is still worth noting that starting point guard Trévon Hughes and three other guards off the bench were not able to connect on their 3-point attempts.
Although the line change is an issue for all players, regardless of their position, maybe the guards who spent so much time clearing the line are finding it more difficult to adjust to the new rule. Players that bank on scoring from within the paint may not be affected as severely by the change because shooting behind the 3-point line is not something they worry too much about. Instead, shooting from deep is all the same to them.
""[Hughes] is the point guard, so he would probably know a little bit more [about the line change] than I do about that,"" Krabbenhoft said. ""But, for me, I just don't really think about it. You just set your feet and you let it go.""
This situation could be compared to something like drinking soda. For instance, if you are not a soda drinker and you have a couple sips of Pepsi (the old 3-point line) you probably wouldn't be able to tell it apart from Coke (the new 3-point line). However, if you consume a heck of a lot of Pepsi, drinking Coke would be a definite surprise when it hits your taste buds.
Although the men had to spend the summer trying to get used to popping the trey from a step back, the women didn't, because their line has not been moved. Therefore, on courts shared by both men's and women's collegiate basketball clubs, there will most likely be two lines painted. This could cause some confusion for players.
In the heat of a game, players may not have their mind set on which line they are clearing, especially in the men's league. The women only have to worry about getting beyond one of the lines, whereas the men have to concentrate more on the exact location of their feet in relation to their 3-point arc. They cannot be confused by the women's 3-point line, which used to be theirs.
""You don't want to shoot an old 3-pointer now, you know, because that's not the best shot you can shoot because you are a foot away from getting three points instead of two,"" Krabbenhoft said.
Players have had several months to prepare themselves for the change, but breaking old habits may cause problems for some athletes who are used to toeing the line. Shooters that don't worry too much about where they are on the court may not be fazed, but those types of players usually are not the ones the coaches want on the floor. Knowing where you are in relationship to the court is important, especially at the college level. Needless to say, this curveball should spice things up a little bit for college basketball players across the nation.
E-mail your thoughts about the new 3-point line to Crystal at crowns@wisc.edu. She is curious about what other people think about this NCAA rule change.
