In addition to introducing a new ball, the NBA has made some rule changes this year. They plan to crackdown on players complaining about fouls, limit teams to one full timeout in the last two minutes of games, and actually plan to enforce palming and traveling violations. The Rhino checks in with his thoughts. Visit the Vinny & The Hornless Rhino weblog at http://www.vinnyandthehornlessrhino.blogspot.com/

The NBA is reportedly advising teams of a number of rule changes that are going to go into effect this season. The league's new anti-whining crusade is probably the rule change that's getting the most attention, but there are several others that may turn out to be important.

Notable changes include crackdowns on traveling, palming (when was the last time you saw that called in the NBA?) and hand and forearm checking. The league is also trying to address my biggest complaint about how basketball is played by limiting teams to one full timeout during the last two minutes of the game.

As should be expected in a league run by a Wall Street lawyer, there are also a number of rule changes that will appeal only to guys who think "casual" means wearing a blazer without a tie. These include requiring players to tuck their shirts in before they approach the scorers table, prohibiting wearing sweatbands anywhere but on the wrist, and banning rubber bands. These changes will undoubtedly prove as popular with the players as the new ball.

Of course, none of these changes addresses the biggest problem with the NBA rules -- the guys who enforce them on the court are the worst officials in all of pro sports. Even after last year's Super Bowl fiasco, I've still got to give the nod to the NBA refs for overall incompetence. I don't think this is a close call -- I mean, when Ralph Nader and Mark Cuban see eye-to-eye on something, then I think we can all agree that it's not a controversial point.