A new year, at the start of a new decade, makes this a natural time for N.B.A. teams to search for innovative ways to combat the offensive flourish of the previous decade.

Yet as disconsonant as it sounds, especially for a league reputed to be as progressive as the N.B.A., its coaches are increasingly dipping into the past for a defensive alignment that tends to be branded as antiquated or, worse, collegiate.

“There’s definitely more use of zone this season,” said Dallas Mavericks Coach Rick Carlisle. “Offenses are getting so good that if you can come up with some kind of defense that can upset rhythm a little bit, it’s viewed as a positive thing.”

Overall usage of zone defenses — schemes that call for defenders to guard a specific area of space rather than an opposing player — is up 50 percent from last season, according to Synergy Sports data. The increase per possession is 10.8 percent, according to data provided to N.B.A. teams by Second Spectrum.