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Bob Hurley advocates for a universal high school basketball shot clock

Lawrence Andrew Fernandezby: Lawrence Fernandez05/22/25lawandfern
Bob Hurley - High School Basketball
Bob Hurley, father of UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley (not pictured), reacts after a play against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the second half at T-Mobile Arena. (Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports)

Esteemed New Jersey high school basketball coach Bob Hurley campaigns for all states to implement a shot clock. For his reasoning, he channeled San Antonio Spurs president Gregg Popovich’s wisdom in teaching kids proper basketball.

In a video posted by Hoop Group on X (formerly Twitter), the coach with four national high school basketball championships shared, “Gregg Popovich, he thinks that we should start the shot clock with kids as young as nine years old. And then you want them to get the basketball to move so that kids learn the way the game is being played at the higher levels right now. We give them a certain amount of time to be able to get a shot up.”

The National Federation of State High School Associations recommended the use of a shot clock in 2021. Before that year, Washington, Arkansas, and Georgia were already using it before the recommendation.

As of the 2023-24 high school basketball season, 24 states are using a shot clock in their competitions. Of that number, three states (Kansas, Alabama, South Carolina) had shot clocks in a trial run. Meanwhile, the Illinois High School Association approved the use of a shot clock starting in the 2026-27 season.

Hurley added, “If it started with kids at a certain age, it was a 40-second clock or a 35-second clock, everybody should play with it. Just because we never had it, we would take advantage of the fact that there is no shot clock. Three minutes left in the game, we’re up ten, it’s over.”

Bob Hurley won 26 New Jersey high school basketball state championships with the now-closed St. Anthony. He retired from coaching in 2017 after 39 seasons and three USA Today National Coach of the Year awards. He is the father of Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley and Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley.