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Silver: NFL-style coach's challenge not yet workable in NBA

Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The NBA christened an experiment in the D-League at the beginning of last season that allowed coaches to throw a fourth-quarter challenge flag, similar to what exists in the NFL. Commissioner Adam Silver said Sunday that the results show the NBA isn't ready for the particular innovation.

"We've looked at it," Silver told ESPN's Michelle Beadle and Ramona Shelburne. "We've experimented in the D-League with the coach's challenge and so far we haven't come up with anything that's workable."

Related: Silver says 'Best you can hope for is the fans believing in integrity of officials'

One issue, Silver said, is coaches using the flag as a momentum-slower, or as a way to stop the clock. The commissioner has made picking up the pace of games a priority, one of the main reasons he's been vocal about "Hack-a-Shaq " techniques. He also added that the existing replay system may already be pushing the boundaries.

"We have roughly 15 replay triggers right now, and I think this is the first season I recall where we've got to a place where even our teams are saying, 'enough,'" Silver said. "That balance of how much replay do you want to look at versus a stoppage in action, it's a game of flow."

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