NBA Makes Rule Change for 2025 Summer League originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The NBA announced on Saturday some adjustments it’s made to the rules heading into the Summer League’s opening weekend in San Francisco.
The league changed the ruling on an unsuccessful end-of-period “heave,” when a player takes a shot from behind or at half court, to be considered as a team and not an individual missed field goal. The rule was also instituted in the past G League season.
Furthermore, according to an X post from the NBA public relations team, for the rule to apply, the shot needs to meet three conditions:
1. “The missed field goal attempt took place within the final three seconds of the first three periods of a game.”
2. “The missed field goal attempt was shot from beyond the outer edge of the center circle (approximately 36 feet from the basket).”
3. “The play originated in the backcourt.”
As tested during the 2024–25 NBA G League season and in effect for all 2025 NBA summer leagues, an unsuccessful end-of-period ‘heave’ will be recorded as a team—not individual—missed field goal attempt when all of the following criteria are met:
🏀 The missed field goal attempt… pic.twitter.com/D2P9fFTUxC
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) July 5, 2025
Some players are reluctant to try desperation heaves at the end of quarters because a likely miss hurts their shooting percentage. But the new rule could encourage more attempts now that it counts only as a team missed field goal.
The opening day slate of games includes the Miami Heat taking on the San Antonio Spurs, the Los Angeles Lakers against the Golden State Warriors, the Memphis Grizzlies challenging the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Philadelphia 76ers and Utah Jazz. The first game between the Heat and Spurs starts at 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+ and NBA TV.
Related: NBA Rookie Issues Apology to Warriors After Getting Drafted
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 5, 2025, where it first appeared.