The main changes see unsportsmanlike fouls replaced by disruptive and flagrant fouls, while technical fouls will be divided into two categories. The ACB has already begun explaining the new rules to clubs through referees, who are outlining the main differences to teams so that no one is caught off guard by the changes.
UNSPORTSMANLIKE FOULS BECOME DISRUPTIVE AND FLAGRANT FOULS
Unsportsmanlike fouls are being eliminated and divided into two new categories: disruptive fouls and flagrant fouls. Although both carry the same penalty—two free throws and possession for the opposing team—the change is intended to separate serious contact from tactical interruptions of play when there is no unsportsmanlike conduct. The aim is to ensure that the punishment is proportionate to what happened, so that these fouls do not count toward a player's disqualification.
DISRUPTIVE FOULS
This new category is intended for plays in which a defender attempts to stop an opponent's transition without the option of playing the ball, without the action becoming aggressive or violent. They do not count toward a player's disqualification in the event of accumulation.
On a fast break, this applies when the defender makes no genuine attempt to play the ball or, even if they do, is the last defender and the attacker was heading alone toward the basket. It also applies in the final seconds of a quarter or overtime when the foul is clearly committed to stop the clock, with no option to play the ball.
FLAGRANT FOULS
This category covers fouls that go beyond logical and normal basketball contact. They are violent fouls or fouls that may pose a risk of injury to an opponent, whether or not the opponent has the ball. They do count toward a player's disqualification in the event of accumulation, either through two flagrant fouls or one flagrant foul and one Category 1 technical foul.
TWO CATEGORIES OF TECHNICAL FOULS
Technical fouls are also changing, being divided into two categories so that conduct-related offenses are not penalized in the same way as those that are purely administrative. The signal on the court remains the same as before: the hands form a "T."
CATEGORY 1 TECHNICAL FOULS
These are conduct-related technical fouls that can be called on players and coaches. They may be called when someone treats any participant in a game disrespectfully—players, coaches, fans, referees, table officials and others—including through mockery, provocation, offensive language or a defiant attitude.
The new element is that if there is a confrontation between players involving contact, a Category 1 technical foul may be called if that contact does not reach the level of a flagrant or disqualifying foul. They do count toward a player's disqualification in the event of accumulation, either through two Category 1 technical fouls or in combination with a flagrant foul.
CATEGORY 2 TECHNICAL FOULS
These are purely administrative and can only be called on players. Category 2 technical fouls include actions such as delaying play on an inbound, hanging from the rim without reason, joining the court late to begin a period or, on the final free throw, touching the ball before it reaches the rim (defensive goaltending). They do not count toward a player's disqualification in the event of accumulation.
CHANGES TO FOULS DURING THE ACT OF SHOOTING
The rules now define more precisely when a player is considered to be in the act of shooting and when free throws should be awarded instead of an inbound, both on drives to the basket and on shots.
DRIVES TO THE BASKET
During a continuous movement, normally made between the 6.75-meter line and the basket, a foul by an opponent counts as occurring during the act of shooting when the ball is controlled and resting in one or both hands.
SHOTS
Whether the shot is taken from a stationary position or while moving, the act of shooting begins when the player starts the upward movement of both the ball and the shoulders toward the opponent's basket. There is one important change: for the play to count as an act of shooting, the player must have crossed half court with both feet and the ball in front of them. If the player has only stepped into the frontcourt with one foot, it is not considered an act of shooting.
The exception is shots taken at the end of a possession, quarter or overtime period. In that case, unlike other shots, the act of shooting may be considered anywhere on the court—frontcourt or backcourt—and it will be assessed whether the ball was resting in one or both hands before the contact occurred.
