Basketball Referee

Basketball Referee

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

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Last Answer on September 20, 2019

Best Rated

If a player stops his or her dribble and is off balance and ready to fall on the floor which would traveling and puts his or hers hand on the floor to prevent from flooring on the floor is that traveling

Asked by ernie liggett, sr about 9 years ago

It is not traveling if a hand touches the floor as long as your feet have not violated the traveling rules. Any other part of your body (beside hands and feet) touching the floor while in control of the ball constitutes traveling.

What happens when a player shooting a free throw dribbles the ball off their foot and it rolls under the basket? In my daughters game they called it a turn over.

Asked by Don about 9 years ago

You cannot travel or double dribble on a free throw. Likewise, a player is allowed to dribble in the paint will standing behind the free throw line. Unless the count was closing in on 10 seconds, I would return the ball to the free throw shooter and start a new 10 second count.

When a player gets fouled but the coach sends another player to shoot the free throw?

Asked by Dave about 9 years ago

Yes, the referees are in charge of designating who is entitled to shoot bonus or shooting fouls. Coaches designate who will shoot technicals.

As a best practice, when the foul calling official calls the foul, the nearest other official should come in and point to the shooter and verbalize, "I got the shooter". This is better than the other official saying, " the shooter is number XX" because to reporting official can get tangled up with the shooter and fouler's numbers.

1 pt game, ref gives ball to inbound with 7.6-7.9 secs left and running clock. team does not get ball in until less than 1.5 seconds, so clearly five seconds, but no call. Coach shows ref 6 seconds ran, but no call. What would you do?

Asked by Michael about 10 years ago

According to NFHS rules, a referee can alter the scoreboard if, and only if he has direct knowledge of the error and correction. So, in this case you start with 7.6 minutes. The throw-in team has 5 seconds to avoid a violation. So theoretically the violation should have been called with 2.6 seconds. You might think that this is the end of it. However, it takes longer to administer a throw in than 2.6 seconds, allowing both teams to set up. So unfortunately I think the game ended. This is why I dislike running clocks in close games.

Can an offensive player while dribbling the ball initiate contact on a defensive player (who is running even with the offensive player) by running into the defensive player with his shoulder

Asked by Dean444444 about 10 years ago

If it is "incidental", that is if the offensive player does not gain an advantageous benefit from the contact, then I would pass on the foul. BUT, if the defender is knocked back, or his legal forward momentum is disrupted to the detriment of his defensive positioning, then it is a player control foul (formerly called "a charge."

Hi Rndballref, A1 has ball out of bounds 5 ft past half court inside front court. A1 bounce passes ball to A2 who is in backcourt meaning that he ball bounces in front court before A2 catches it while standing in back court. Legal or turnover? Thx

Asked by Peter Johnston about 9 years ago

Legal. There is mo team possession on a throw in. So team A does not have possession until they hold the ball in the backcourt. The fact that the ball bounced in A's front court is immaterial because Team A did not have possession then.

Player gets called for a foul which results in a spot throw in. Two technical fouls are then called when the ball is dead one on each team. Would the ball be then put in play at POI or do you go to the possession arrow?

Asked by DW24 almost 9 years ago

The technical fouls offset and we go to the possession arrow for a throw in at half court.