Before March Madness takes the over the country in a few weeks, the sports world needs to recognize and appreciate the best-managed organization in all of the sports — the NBA.

Elevate your mind, please, from the wiry, immature big men not old enough to order a Whiskey Sour (Los Angeles' Darius Miles) and excessively tattooed, dogmatic swingmen (New York's Marcus Camby) from which the NBA is currently garnering so much flack from.

Never before has the NBA been so vilified to readjust its game, which has suffered so much since the departure of No. 23. The game has gotten slow, foul-ridden, and scoring is down yet again. Heck, it's difficult to find a two guard that shoots over 45 percent from the field anymore. Fifteen years ago a guy would be dropped like an 8 a.m. physics class for shooting so putridly.

And now, amidst widespread chatter that he must do something — anything at all — commissioner David Stern will begin his politicking of rules changes and small tweaks to the game of basketball.

No more yawning, 10-second isolation plays that end up at the foul line instead of a poster-shot under the basket. No more 10-second rule to get the ball across half court; it might be changed to eight seconds. And, no more zone defense. The shot clock might shrink too, from 24 seconds to a mere 20.

Dr. Naismith is probably getting hip pointers from rolling over in his grave so much, but I agree with Stern and other NBA officials that something needs to be done. It's bad enough that the game's original Dream Team icons like Jordan, Bird, and Magic aren't knocking down jumpshots anymore, but the game has gotten boring to watch.

So that's why it's time for a few tweaks.

To start things off, I'm all for the addition of zone defense. The game's purists, like Philadelphia's head honcho Larry Brown, support the idea of allowing teams to select whatever defensive scheme they choose. Some say it will slow down the game even further, but adding another dimension of strategy is just what the NBA needs. Imagine the idea of teams using a box-and-one on Philadelphia and Allen Iverson. It would work, and it's only fair to let teams play whomever they feel is dangerous.

Even more radical than zone defense, I think the NBA should widen the lane a tad. I'm not saying it should reach the trapezoidal Olympic standard, but it should fall somewhere in-between the current lane and that one. It would open up the lane, allowing mercurial guards like Iverson and New Jersey's Stephon Marbury to roam free and avoid being hacked upon every drive.

Vicious collisions in the lane that rob the NBA of it's stars every year would substantially decrease, and if you need proof of that, think about Patrick Ewing a few years ago. The Knick-turned-Sonic's jumper has never been the same.

Enough about on-court rules, let's tackle the age dilemma Stern is so fervently defending to critics like CNN's Wolf Blitzer and his comrades.

To be currently eligible for the NBA, players must be at least 18 years old. Not a day of collegiate experience is required, and rightfully so. But since dreadfully un-NBA-ready players like Leon Smith and Korleone Young made the jump from high school to high stakes, everyone might lose.

Thanks to those who saw green and ran for the hills without a game to pack in their bags, the NBA is considering raising the age of eligibility to 20 — maybe higher. I couldn't disagree more.

Stern should look at the youngsters who were ready to make the jump, like Minnesota's Kevin Garnett and Los Angeles' Kobe Bryant. Stodgy conservatives tried to stop those two from making the college skip, and look what they've become. Realize that it's unfair to discriminate against an athlete due to his age. If he can play, let him play.

My proposed rule changes and Stern's ultimate decisions won't come until after the season, if at all, but it's time to recognize that something needs to be done.

And as for the shot clock, leave it at 24 seconds. I couldn't stomach seeing even more last-second heaves and masonry-type bricks.

It'll be like having 29 dens of Vancouver Grizzlies.