Sports

Rodman’s visit brings to light North Korea’s oddball scoring system

North Korean basketball scoring rules more resemble MTV’s Rock n Jock more than the NBA – all that’s missing is the 50-point basket.

NBA Hall-of-Famer Dennis Rodman’s visit to the country has sparked renewed talk in the odd basketball rules that teams in the country abide by. Rules that are almost as ridiculous as Rodman considering himself as a potential peace-maker between North Korea and the United States.

The different rules include dunks being worth three points, losing a point for missing a free throw, swished three-pointers counting as four points and most incredibly – and potentially exciting – is that baskets within the last three minutes are worth eight points.

Reportedly, former leader Kim Jong Il was a huge basketball fan and his passed that along to his sons, including current leader Kim Jong Un, who met with Rodman last week. Rodman declared Kim a “friend for life” and plans to return to the country to broker a peace agreement between them and the United States. Rodman’s visit was immediately followed by harsher sanctions against North Korea for their latest nuclear test.

Perhaps the whacky rules should not come as a surprise since Kim Jong Il, who passed away in 2011, once recorded 11 hole in ones and shot an amazing 38-under par in his first round of golf in 1994.

There’s little doubt he was also the master of the eight-point shot.