The NBA just gave players the green light to chuck up those end-of-quarter prayer shots without worrying about their stat sheets taking the hit. Starting with the 2025-26 season, those wild, last-second heaves from half-court (and beyond) will no longer drag down a player’s shooting percentage. Instead, they’ll be recorded as a team attempt, not an individual miss. That’s right, after many board meetings in Las Vegas, Nevada, the league has officially taken pity on the poor souls who didn’t want their 0-for-1 from 50 feet showing up on the box score.
According to ESPN, the rule was finalized on Wednesday at the NBA’s board of governors meeting after months of discussion and even a test run during the Summer League. Under the new guidelines, “Any shot taken within the final three seconds of the first three quarters and is launched from at least 36 feet away on any play that starts in the backcourt will count as a team shot attempt, but not an individual one.”
If that sounds oddly specific, it’s because it is. The NBA is basically saying: go ahead, fling it up from the logo. Just don’t expect us to count it against you personally.
Why the Change?
The motivation here is simple: players have been avoiding those miracle heaves to protect their numbers. Shooting percentages matter in the modern NBA. They affect contracts, All-Star cases, and the endless Twitter debates comparing Player A’s efficiency to Player B’s. Nobody wants to see their season-long 47% shooting average dip just because they threw up a hopeless 60-footer to beat the buzzer.
The league finally realized that this obsession with stats was hurting the entertainment value. Fans want to see those Hail Marys. The competition committee backed the adjustment, and now the “heave rule” is officially a thing. However, some fans are not happy. “This is so dumb,” wrote one via X. Finally, another said. “Players only care about their field goal percentages.”
The Numbers Don’t Lie
To put this in perspective, SportRadar’s data shows that players made only about 4% of shots taken in the final three seconds of the first three quarters when launched from beyond 36 feet. Yes, four. As in basically nothing goes in.
Still, when they do? Instant highlight. Just ask Golden State’s Stephen Curry, who nailed four of these insane bombs last season. Or Denver’s Nikola Jokic, who hit three. For context, most players don’t even bother trying. And who can blame them?
Now, with no personal stat penalty, we might actually see stars giving it a go instead of dribbling out the clock or throwing up a fake pass as time expires.
The NBA’s New Heave Rule in Effect After Nevada Meetings
The league’s hope is that this tweak encourages more attempts and gives fans more of those jaw-dropping moments. Think about it: buzzer-beaters are already the most electric plays in basketball. Extending that magic to half-court shots? That’s just good business.
It’s also a rare win for common sense in a sport that sometimes gets bogged down in overly complicated rules. This is the NBA saying, “Go ahead, give the fans a show.”
So get ready: starting next season, expect a few more logo launches. More Twitter clips of impossible shots, and maybe even a new wave of buzzer-beater compilations. The heaves are back, and this time, nobody’s stat line is on the line. Because at the end of the day, who really cares about the difference between 46.9% and 47.1% when you could be hitting the shot of the year?
