News Post

Sports Daily: Obscure Rules Edition

02:57 PM - February 6, 2014 by RaychelSnr

The end of last night's Lakers-Cavs game was a weird one. Many of us were never aware of what would happen if a team, when down to five players, has one of them foul out. Do they play on with four?

Well, apparently the answer is 'yes.' LA's Robert Sacre picked up his 6th foul, but instead of heading for the bench and a power-play hockey-like situation, Sacre was able to stay in the game. The Lakers eventually held on for the final three minutes and change to beat Cleveland, but it was a learning experience for many NBA and sports fans.

Had Sacre or any other member of the team continued to commit fouls beyond a sixth, rules state that each foul is treated as a technical -- essentially giving free throws to the opposing team while allowing them to maintain possession.

Sound Off: What are some of your favorite obscure sports rules?

Sports Headlines for February 6, 2014

For San Fran fans, showing up at the Seahawks victory parade is -- creepy? [Image]
If you thought Ross posterizing Faried was incredible, wait until you see this hand-drawn animated gif of the dunk. [Animated gif]
Oakland Raiders cheerleaders are moving on from suing the team to now filing a class-action lawsuit against the NFL.
Current ESPN baseball analyst and former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling has announced he has cancer.
Early signs indicate that everyone has chosen to stay home for the Sochi Olympics.

Game: NBAReader Score: 9/10 - Vote Now
Platform: SportsVotes for game: 2 - View All

Member Comments

# 1 The 24th Letter @ 02/06/14 03:29 PM

You can play with as few as 8 men on offense in the NFL. You can also kick after you score a touchdown if you choose.

I believe if your hat fall's off during tennis, you have to replay the point.

# 2 sparkdawg777 @ 02/06/14 09:50 PM

This is a really freak incident that may never happen again, but I don't like the rule. What if say Kobe wasn't hurt and got his 6th foul. Could the Lakers just fake injuries enough to get him back in the game?

# 3 VDusen04 @ 02/06/14 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sparkdawg777


	This is a really freak incident that may never happen again, but I don't like the rule. What if say Kobe wasn't hurt and got his 6th foul. Could the Lakers just fake injuries enough to get him back in the game?

If the Lakers were to somehow fake injuries to the point of a fouled out Kobe Bryant being the only thing standing between their team fielding four players and not, I think the fact that technical fouls being assessed for each subsequent personal may not be a great deal for a team in that situation.

# 4 jmaj315 @ 02/07/14 12:24 AM

umm i think the castle move in chess is a weird rule.. i never learned that until high school

also the basic, foul pole being in fair territory... that actually makes sense tho

The double switch is a weird rule... i've wiki'd it many times and still dont quite understand it... but i know player comes out pitcher comes in in a new batting position and then pitcher goes out for a new hitter... something like that :/
*opens wikipedia back up*

# 5 jmaj315 @ 02/07/14 12:25 AM

Oh! and the free kick rule in the NFL... I think ive only seen/heard about that happening twice in my 15 years of actively following football

# 6 jmik58 @ 02/07/14 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmaj315


	umm i think the castle move in chess is a weird rule.. i never learned that until high school also the basic, foul pole being in fair territory... that actually makes sense tho The double switch is a weird rule... i've wiki'd it many times and still dont quite understand it... but i know player comes out pitcher comes in in a new batting position and then pitcher goes out for a new hitter... something like that :/ opens wikipedia back up

Just remember that baseball substitutions don't have to be position specific. Even players already in the game can change defensive positions throughout the game.

# 7 jmik58 @ 02/07/14 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmaj315


	Oh! and the free kick rule in the NFL... I think ive only seen/heard about that happening twice in my 15 years of actively following football

When I was coaching high school football I remember seeing the fair catch / free kick rule come into play during a Thursday night college football game. We joked about it at practice and then it actually happened during the game the following night. Luckily they missed, but it was pretty cool to see a team even aware of the rule (in high school) and to experience having to try and explain it to everyone.

# 8 ojandpizza @ 02/07/14 02:14 PM

I think it's slightly odd that there are no 1-and-1 free throws in the NBA.

More Links

Sports Daily: Obscure Rules Edition