Speak these words in Colorado high school basketball coaching circles. Then prepare for a debate.
Shot clock.
“It’s the equalizer and itap good for the game,” said Joe Ortiz, head coach of defending Class 5A boys champion ThunderRidge.
“I’m not for the shot clock,” said Bart O’Dwyer, head coach of defending 2A girls champion Limon.
“I’m really excited about the opportunity,” said Jessika Caldwell, head coach of defending 5A girls champion Valor Christian.
“We would not be in favor of a shot clock,” said Matt Lucero, head coach of the undefeated 1A Sierra Grande boys.
The conversation might soon reach a tipping point as the National Federation of High Schools is no longer prohibiting a shot clock for high school basketball. Instead, the NFHS will permit the use of a 35-second clock beginning with the 2022-23 season — allowing .
There are currently nine states (California, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Washington) that already use a shot clock for high school basketball. Will Colorado consider it?
That’s one of many questions facing new CHSAA commissioner Michael Krueger.
“What I’m most interested in is to hear from our CHSAA staff and leadership to look at the impact that it could have across the board,” Krueger said. “Itap a great example of getting some different voices to the table. What are the pros and cons? Where do we go from here? … We’ll get to the right outcome that way.”
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Kent Dertinger, the longtime boys basketball coach at Cherry Creek, is unafraid to admit what some coaches around the state might deny. The Bruins will stall if necessary and there’s no shot clock.
“Absolutely. You play within the rules,” Dertinger said. “There is definitely an advantage if you have a five- or six-point lead with a minute left — you’re going to try and run a lengthy possession and force them to foul you. If a coach tells you they haven’t used it, I think they’d probably be lying.”
Yet Dertinger joins a chorus of statewide big-school coaches in almost unanimous agreement that Colorado needs a high school shot clock. The three main pillars of their argument: 1. Modern offenses do not require more than 35 seconds in a possession. 2. College hopefuls are not adequately prepared to play with a shot clock 3. A shot clock would improve the natural game flow with more possessions and more scoring.
“We played with (a shot clock) a bunch of times out of state. The times it factored in have been on possessions where the ball goes out of bounds and you forget that there’s a clock. Itap kind of rare,” said Ortiz, whose ThunderRidge team advanced to the Class 5A semifinals. “They can’t hold the ball on us. We can then dictate what defense we want to play and not based on what they’re doing. … We’re all for it.”
Valor Christian junior guard Macey Huard transferred into the program last season after playing her freshman year in Washington with timed possessions. Huard said: “I think it will be nice to have it back.” However, some larger Colorado schools with strong athletic resources still have reservations about making the change.
“From a pure basketball standpoint, I would love to see a shot clock. I think it would be great for the kids as they transition into the college game,” said Frank Cawley, head coach of defending 4A girls champion Mullen. “My apprehension to that? We sometimes can’t find people to just run the clock itself. Finding people that actually know when to reset a (shot clock), I just see nothing but a disaster with the logistics.
“But the concept itself would be terrific.”
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Briggsdale High School is located on the eastern plains with an enrollment of about 60 students. Its girls basketball team is undefeated in pursuit of a 1A state championship. But head coach Colin Nicklaus is already thinking toward a future with a shot clock, and, more specifically, the price tag for installation.
“From what I’ve seen, itap going to cost between upwards of 10 or maybe even 15,000 dollars per gym,” Nicklaus said. “But I think we will end up getting there.”
Thatap just one example of why CHSAA might face pushback from smaller schools in the shot clock debate. Limited athletic budgets and staff would initially create logistical challenges. Lucero, the Sierra Grande 1A boys coach, said his team’s playing style would have no issues adapting to a shot clock. Thatap not his concern.
“You would have to get an additional person to run the clock,” Lucero said. “In small schools, everybody is so stretched thin doing their main job, and two or three jobs after. Finding people to staff the position would be difficult. You obviously want to give that person some type of stipend, which is another burden on small schools where there’s not a lot of funding.”
But those hurdles still don’t make a shot clock impossible for Colorado high school basketball.
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A timeline for when the state might adopt a shot clock is fluid. One thing is for certain: It won’t happen next season.
First, the CHSAA basketball committee must propose the rule change for approval by the organization’s board of directors. That process has not been initiated, according to CHSAA, but the topic will continue to be discussed and re-examined. Other states might help provide a blueprint.
In New York, a high school shot clock for boys basketball dates back to the late 1980s while girls have played with timed possessions for 20-plus years. But New York has a more tradition-rich basketball culture with 1,378 total high school basketball teams in the state, according to NYPHSAA director of communications Chris Watson.
“It would be a major change for them if they were to play the game without a shot clock,” said Watson, a lifelong New York resident. “They’re so used to it and accustomed to it that itap just the natural way to play the game. Certainly, the level of play is raised when you have a shot clock in play.”
In Washington, girls have played with a shot clock going back to the 1970s. It wasn’t until 2009 that the state’s boys were given the same rules.
“Since the girls were already using it, schools didn’t have to come up with funds to get the equipment and then find the people to run it,” said Andy Barnes, WIAA assistant executive director. “The transition was fairly easy. There were coaches in our association that didn’t want it added because their offensive style was the stall out if they didn’t have the players to compete. But we don’t really hear any questions about it now.”
The CHSAA state basketball tournament runs through Saturday at the Denver Coliseum. Don’t be surprised if coaches drain the clock on long possessions. Itap all within the rules.
“As a fan of the game and a traditionalist, itap time to take a look and just see what the impact that could have,” said Krueger, the new CHSAA commissioner. “The way the game is coached and played has changed. I think itap going to be an interesting and enjoyable conversation.”
