The final 60 seconds of last Sunday's Game 7 between the Brooklyn Nets and Toronto Raptors took approximately 18 minutes to complete.

During the past regular season, NBA games averaged 2 hours 17 minutes. But those broadcast on national television averaged 2:29, and so far this playoff season, when all the games are nationally televised, the number has risen to 2:38, up two minutes from last year.

“The last two minutes at times drags on and drains the suspense out of the game,” said Jeff Van Gundy.

There are a number of timeouts during the final two minutes of games, while referees also have spent considerable time reviewing plays that they were unable to make a definitive call on.