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
Sounds like a bad call. The center for Team A does not establish team possession by tipping the ball, but by knocking the ball out Team B gets the ball. Because neither team had possession and B got the first ball the arrow is set for Team A's possession on the next one.
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yes.
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Sounds like an over-sensitive ref who bullies when he is wrong. Look, all of us boot calls. As long as the ref is trying and not vindictive I can excuse blowing any call during a game. I have done my share, especially early on.
However, the ref's advancement into higher levels is dependent on NOT blowing key calls. The way a ref avoids blowing a call is to be prepared and understand the rule book better than anyone else in the gym, having played or watched enough games to morph experience into good judgement, and to understand the mechanics of officiating so that you position yourself correctly to have the best possible angle to see the action.
Having said all of that I would caution you (or any parent) from becoming the overindulgent father or mother who takes on evaluating officials when you have no training or understanding what is involved. You should let your school's coaches take on the responsibility of giving feedback to the officials and the assignment chairperson who evaluates referees and books officials. If you don't, and I have seen this a hundred times, you will alienate yourself from the other parents, and you will lose credibility with your daughter's coach ahead of when you really have an issue. If you are too vocal, it may hurt the way your coach views your daughter. As a coach once told me, "you pick the player, you pick the parent."
Just to punctuate the point, I also umpired baseball games in Illinois - high school, house and traveling leagues. I can honestly say that it took me three years to settle in on a consistent correct strike zone. It just takes experience. So in my first year, my strike zone was inconsistent. During that time I was not put on Varsity games. So in middle school and even freshman games expect spotty officiating.
Unfortunately, the best officials referee Varsity games, and in some ways the best ref's are needed at the lower levels. You may be seeing young inexperienced ref's or lazy guys just picking up checks. If your daughter advances you will see better officiating.
Free advice is sometimes worth what you paid for it … so here it is. Cool down during her games or don't attend if you cannot help yourself. You are going to ruin the experience for your daughter.
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The rules states that a player cannot be in the paint for 3 or more seconds, so technically when you get to three it is a violation. HOWEVER, as I have stated before I rarely called 3 seconds. 1) I tried to talk players out, and 2) it is the perfect advantage disadvantage call. That is I only called it when it made a difference tp the play - for example a player getting an offensive rebound after camping out.
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Aircraft Mechanic
Did you ever catch something critical right before a plane was about to take off?
Sr. Software Engineer
Are those $12,000 "learn to program" bootcamps a rip-off?
Lifeguard
Are most public pools just gross lakes of bodily fluids?
seems reasonable...
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The rulebook provisions of the 3 second rule is that a player cannot be in the lane for 3 seconds or more while his teamates have established team possession in their frontcourt.
If a player has either foot on the edge or line which defines yhe lane, he is in the lane.
There is an interesting exception to a 3 count. A player can legally be in the lane for as much as 6 seconds as follows: he is in the lane for a count if 2 and receives the ball, the holds the ball for 2 counts and dribbles - he gets another 2 count. Then he must shoot .
But to your point, most experienced officials rarely call 3 seconds. You see newer referees at freshman games call it way too often. Most officials are taught that 3 seconds should only be called if and only if it results in an undue advantage. Thr principal is called Advantage Disadvantage. This means that when it is called it is ususlly a late call.. for example a player is camped out and normally when the shot goes up the 3 seconds restrictions are lifted, but if that player gets the rebound because he was there for more than 3 seconds the official should call it then.
A good preventative officiating move is for the official to shoo players out of the paint verbally to avoid having to call 3 secs too often.
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from the NFHS rulebook, " A player is in control of the ball when he/she is holding or dribbling a live ball inbounds". There are a few exceptions such as a jumper on a jump ball obtaining the ball before it touches the floor or a non-jumper.
Notice it does not exclude jumping in the air nor does it require 2 hands on the ball.
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