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Fast Break Goals: Lacrosse Shot Clock Poll

Today we are going to discuss new shot clock rules. End to end action definitely ranks up there in the world of exciting lacrosse plays, and everyone loves seeing a “shot, save, outlet pass, fast break clear, pass, pass, pass, GOAL!” sequence. It happens starting with youth players, and goes all the way up to the pros, and personally, I’d love to see even MORE of these quick strike goals.

But I’m curious… will the newly proposed shot clock rules for NCAA lacrosse have any impact here at all?

In the MLL, the shot clock starts as soon as your team gets possession of the ball. This provides all the incentive in the world to push the rock down the field, and to create transition opportunities. If you have to get a shot off quickly, why not push it and try to create a numbers advantage? It makes perfect sense.

Now, in the college game, the shot clock would only come on after a stall warning, and we all know that the stall is only called in six on six situations, so in the college game, the stall will not directly impact more or less transition play… at least it won’t at first glance! After a second glance, I started to realize that the shot clock starting after the stall COULD impact transition in a major way, and that most of that impact will all depend on the refs.

If referees are slow to institute the stall warning again in 2013, there will be little to no additional incentive to create transition opportunities. Teams will still be able to bring the ball down, set up their offenses, take time off the clock, and then run a 30 second play to get a good shot off. There may be more turnovers and less goals for teams that are leading, but it should not impact the transition game in a major way. It is just another thing that coaches will prepare their offensive units to deal with.

HOWEVER, should the referees decide (or are told) to start calling the stall much quicker, then we could see a major change, where transition becomes King. Allow me to explain… If Team A brings the ball down the field and has numbers (say a 5 on 4) and decides to pull it out to sub and start their possession, and the refs called Team A for stalling, well you can BET that Team A will start to push the ball more. No one wants to start their possession off 6 on 6 with a 30 second shot clock if they can avoid it. That 5 on 4 led by a d-middie is starting to look a lot more attractive now, isn’t it?

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Push the rock for success? Perhaps.

Until we hear more from the Rules Oversight Committee, it’s hard to speak definitively about any of these proposed changes. It certainly seems like the Men’s Lacrosse Rules Committee wants to speed up the game, and put a premium on skill, but until we see all the rules in place, it’s almost impossible to truly forecast the results.

And that means it’s time for YOU to tell US what you think. First up, we have a poll where you can simply address the shot clock issue. But if you have a lot more to say, we want to hear from you in the comments! Think the rules will have impacts we don’t? Want to see things stay the way they were? LET US KNOW… and be compelling!

What kind of shot clock would work best?

Do the poll results surprise you so far? Tell us WHY you think what you think, and if anyone really impressed us, we’ll hook you up some gold medal merchandise.