What Determines The Pace Of A Sport?

Each sport has its own pace. In many cases, one or two individuals can have a huge impact on how fast or slow an event will be played, while other teammates will have little impact. At certain times, the strategy employed to pick up or slow down the pace of a game will have a direct impact on who wins and who loses.

NBA

One of the most significant moves in the history of sports was the inception of the 24-second clock by the NBA prior to the 1954-55 season. Before the rule was instituted, teams would often pass the ball six and seven times before shooting. The games were low-scoring and boring. Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone came up with the idea and used it in his team's practice games and the pace and excitement level picked up dramatically. He convinced his fellow owners to accept a 24-second clock to make professional basketball a better game.

Impact

Without the 24-second clock, teams would often get the lead and attempt to kill the clock, which often was painful for players and fans. "The game stunk," hall of fame basketball player Dolph Schayes told NBA.com. "Teams would get a lead and sit on the ball, then you’d have to foul them and they’d foul you back. The 24-second clock is the greatest rule in the history of the game. The person who got the credit for it, Dan Biasone, the owner of the Syracuse Nationals, should be considered a saint. The game would have never had the Magics, the Birds and the Jordans without the clock.

Baseball

Of the four major North American sports, baseball is the only one played without a time clock. A nine-inning game can last from two to four-plus hours. Three hours is the length of a typical game. Pitchers largely control the pace of the game. A pitcher who gets the ball back from his catcher, stands on the rubber, takes the signal and throws is appreciated by teammates and fans. However, some pitchers might take 30 seconds or more between pitches, therefore slowing the pace of the game.

Football

The pace of a football game is largely determined by which team has the lead in the second half of the game. If a team has the lead, it wants to use as much time as it can. To accomplish this, the team can employ a running game and have the running backs stay in bounds, so the clock keeps running. A team that is trailing will throw the ball more frequently to help the comeback effort. In addition to picking up big chunks of yardage with the passing game, the clock stops on an incomplete pass. That gives the team with the ball more plays and more chances to score.

Hockey

Hockey teams change their strategy when they have a lead late in the game. Hockey often is a low-scoring game and goals are hard to come by, but when a team has the lead in the final period, it does not have to score any more goals to win games. It merely has to keep the other team from scoring. That will involve gaining possession of the puck, carrying it past center ice and dumping it into the offensive zone. It does not necessarily involve chasing the puck and trying to create a scoring opportunity. This strategy changes the normal pace of the game, which can be quite frenetic when both teams are trying to score.