Rndballref
20 Years Experience
Chicago, IL
Male, 60
For twenty years I officiated high school, AAU and park district basketball games, retiring recently. For a few officiating is the focus of their occupation, while for most working as an umpire or basketball referee is an avocation. I started ref'ing to earn beer money during college, but it became a great way to stay connected to the best sports game in the universe. As a spinoff, I wrote a sports-thriller novel loosely based on my referee experiences titled, Advantage Disadvantage
If you shoot a jump shot and someone touches your waist, it normally disrupts the flow of your shot, and therefore should generally be called. BUT, this calls for your judgement - if you think the touching causes the shooter to alter the rhythm of his shot then call a handcheck. Other than in a shooting situation, I suggest these guidelines for calling a handcheck: foul if 1) the handcheck dislodges the dribbler or postplayer, or 2) the handpressure is constant on a moving opponent.
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A referee should not favor any team, but officials are only human. I think perceptions are the issue here. For example, urban Chicago teams tend to play high paced running and pressing games, while suburban teams tend to play more patterned offenses (stereotypical, I know, but generally true). So when an urban teams plays in the suburbs they might encounter referees who are used to calling a slower paced game with tighter calls, while Chicago refs might allow more contact. So, do the suburban officials favor suburban teams, or are they just used to that style of play? In theory, a foul is a foul, but all of us have degrees of what we don't call (see advantage disadvantage theory of officiating). However, if you find a referee who clearly favors a team (not style), he or she must be sanctioned
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The officials NEVER remain at the scorers table. Directly from the NFHS rulebook: The official scorebook shall remain at the scorers table througout the game, including all intermissions. Note, it says the official scorebook, not the official.
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Depends where you are. If you live in a small town you will probably be the best in your class. Around Chicago and its suburbs, there are more important measurements: speed, height, jump shot form, fundamentals, basketball IQ, etc.. The basketball landscape is littered with players who dominated in 8th grade but didn't grow in height, skills or athleticism. There is a great book about one such player, Play Their Hearts Out, which chronicles the true story of Dimetrius Walker. Once, he was a sure fire next LeBron, but in high school he stopped growing and now is a bench guard in college. Be humble, and forget the scoring stats - my best advice is work on your fundamentals.
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1) it is ok for a player to do a layup with a bent knee UNTIL the knee contacts a defensive player who has obtained legal guarding position. 2) It is ok for a player to bend over into a space UNLESS the offensive player contacts an opponent who has legally obtained legal guarding position. 3) There is no such rule as over the back (this is a pet peeve of mine). It is perfectly legal for an opponent to leap high enough to reach over the top of a player as long as no illegal contact is made. When the game announcer tells the fans that an "over the back" foul was called he really should be saying "there was a pushing foul, or illegal use of hands", but you will not find in the rule book over the back or reaching in.
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see answer above.
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I played in men's leagues until about 10 years ago. Being a ref gives you a unique perspective and helps your game. But like all good things they come to an end. I am recently retired from officiaiting (and quit ballin about 10 years ago).
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