Mike Bantom, the NBA’s Executive Vice President of Referee Operations, is cracking down on a very specific point of contention. The issue at hand? Verticality. Secondary defenders are permitted to challenge an oncoming offensive player so long as they stay “vertical.” However, according to a memorandum sent to all owners, general managers, coaches and officials over the weekend, there has been a noticeable increase of players bending, if not breaking, the rule. We have noticed that defenders have been turning sideways when jumping to
