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Basketball Weekly: Last week's column on basketball officiating draws plenty of feedback
"My column last week on the shortage of officials and the recommendation of switching back to a two-person crew was met with much criticism.
I was called everything from an “arm-chair official” to an “officiating novice” and charged with not knowing anything about PCA or POEs. I was also called sexist for using the term “three-man crew” and not a “three-person crew.”
It was also suggested that I help solve the situation by picking up a whistle and joining the officiating ranks.
Harsh words, but it all tells me how passionate many folks are about the subject.
Let me first address the arm-chair and officiating novice complaints. While attending the University of Wisconsin and upon my graduation from college (1987), I officiated basketball in this area and the Dallas/Forth Worth metroplex for more than 10 years.
Many of those I worked with are still blowing the whistle today. I never worked a three-person crew, but I did do well over 100 games as part of a two-person crew.
Does that make me an expert? No. But it does give me some background on the subject and how games are officiated.
Unfortunately, covering games for The Gazette makes it impossible to officiate the game, as well.
As far as Primary Coverage Area (PCA) and Points of Emphasis (POE), I’ve seen enough games officiated by three-person crews to know which officials know what they’re doing and which ones were thrown into the mix simply to fill a contract that calls for three officials.
I think too many readers missed my point. I’m well aware that there are many great officials still available in our area. I see it on a nightly basis. They’re professional, well-versed on the game and are there to do a job. They don’t draw attention to themselves and simply do their job to the best of their ability. That means hustling at all times, knowing the rule book and putting the players’ safety first.
My concern is in regards to the vastly rising number of officials who, to put it bluntly, have no business working varsity games.
They’re timid in their calls, not in physical shape to run up and down the court on a consistent basis and don’t seem to have a grasp on PCA, POE and the rules of the game.
And the reason they’re put into that position is because there aren’t enough officials available to work varsity games where the conference has set the three-person crew as the standard. In the past, officials got their feet wet reffing junior varsity-level games, preparing themselves for varsity contests as part of a two-person crew. The overall shortage of officials, combined with the need for three officials for each contest, can sometimes force administrators to fill crews with the best available option from an ever-shallowing pool of options.
That’s why I suggested the possibility of reverting back to a two-person crew during the regular season.
I know the three-person crew is here to stay and that many officials would quit if conferences went back to a two-person crew. Forty-nine of fifty states are now using the three-person crew at the varsity level.
My biggest concern is that as more and more of the older officials retire, who will be there to take their place?
For many reasons, including verbal abuse from the stands, pay and full-time jobs, young adults are not signing up to fill the void. A shortage of high school officials in all sports is gripping the state, a topic we covered in The Gazette extensively in the past year.
All I was trying to do was make a suggestion on how to alleviate a problem in basketball.
As for the three-man crew compared to the three-person crew, I’m well aware that the area has many qualified female officials. It’s great to see and great for the game. I certainly meant no disrespect by calling it a three-man crew. Three-woman, three-man, three-person, doesn’t matter to me as long as they’re qualified and fit to be doing games at the varsity level."
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