Commissioner David Stern said last night that instant replay will likely be coming to the NBA next season. But in a limited way, reports Peter May of the Boston Globe.

Stern said that the leagues? competition committee will vote on a proposal which will allow the officials to use instant replay to rule over ?end-of-quarter? situations. Basically, it would only be used to determine whether a ?buzzer-beater? shot should be allowed or not.  

Thus far in the playoffs, there have been several bad calls made on last second shots. These calls may have been reversed if the officials had instant replay to aid them. A 3-point shot by Charlotte's Baron Davis in the Hornets-Magic series was disallowed when it should have counted. Both Indiana's Reggie Miller(against the Nets) and the Lakers' Samaki Walker(against the Kings) made period-ending, desperation 3-pointers which, replays showed, would not have counted.

Veteran referee Joe Crawford recently told the Globe most officials favor some form of instant replay.

Stern added that if the replay also revealed some other infraction, it, too, would be dealt with. The league's owners have the final say, but usually adopt the competition committee's recommendation.