NBA commissioner says officiating has changed during back half of season

Silver told reporters that fouls had dropped by four per game in the back half of the season after a number of scoring explosions early. 

There were eight games when teams scored 150 or more points before the All-Star break and only one afterward. Eleven of the 12 highest-scoring games happened before the end of January.

Part of the diminished scoring came from referees trying to crack down on cheap fouls. Beyond the raw scoring numbers, the NBA didn't like the aesthetics of the game, which seemed full of offensive players hunting fouls rather than trying to score.

"I think there was a sense earlier in the season that there was too much of an advantage for the offensive players," Silver said. "I think Steve Kerr said offensive players were using themselves as projectiles or hunting for fouls, however you want to call it. So that was a point of emphasis on behalf of the league."

The biggest change is that referees aren't calling as many fouls when the offensive player initiates contact. They also seem to be allowing more incidental contact from defenders.

That seems to be hurting certain players, Phoenix's Kevin Durant in particular. Before the All-Star break, Durant was averaging 6.3 free throws per game. Since then, he's down to 4.6. 

Durant's scoring dropped from 28.2 points to 25.4, and his field goal percentage went from 53.8% before the break to 49.6% after.

It's not a dramatic difference, but the common-sense refereeing seems to have re-balanced a game that had been tilted toward NBA offenses. Now, defenses have a fighting chance, and foul hunters are in trouble.