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For me, the first order of business is the type of game and specific rules we are playing by. In the Washington, D.C. Metro Area, there are 3 athletic governing bodies (DCSAA (including the PCSAA for charter schools, the private school teams in the District of Columbia, and the DCIAA (DC public school teams)), MPSSAA, and VHSL) and several private school leagues (WCAC, IAC, MAC, ISL, PVAC, Capital Beltway League), all of which play by their own rules, so it is important which specific set of rules will we be enforcing today. The rules that tend to vary the most in my area are shot clock, closely guarded count, 10-second count (visible, not, absent [MPSSAA/DCIAA Girls]), the mercy rule [the private school leagues usually have none], and the coaching box [most private school leagues follow NCAA rules]. Another important point is primary coverage areas (I make calls in my areas, my partners make calls in theirs, unless there is a play that my partners (or I) fail to see. In that case, the non-primary official will come in with a late cadence whistle. This also applies to double whistles.). We also discuss help plays (such as out-of-bounds), switches, last second shot coverage (Trail if 2-person, OTO if 3-person) and related signals (one finger in the air for 1 minute, responsible official taps chest inside the last 15 seconds of a period), unusual situations (technical fouls, fights, etc.). In the beginning of the season, we will also discuss rule changes and points of emphasis. Finally, we talk about unusual/interesting plays we have had during the season, and team tendencies/characteristics, if any one of us had the two teams of today's game before.
That is basically my pregame in a nutshell.
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