[theboys]

Hey, BigDt (VT).

Don't let JRut scare you off. I, too, am a fan/coach. I've learned a ton about rules and rules enforement in the last couple of years - a lot of it from this site. Some of these guys can be rough on you, but its just their way of getting back at fans that give them crap during games. ;-)

Four things to keep in mind, that help me a lot:

1) Watch the defense. Lots of times, if you're focused in on the ball, or the player with the ball, you won't see the bigger picture.

2) Refs take into account what's called advantage/disadvantage when deciding whether to make a call. Sometime, a marginal foul may occur, but if the contact doesn't interrupt the flow of a game, they'll let it go, to keep the flow going.

3) Basketball officiating is very difficult, because so much requires instantaneous judgment. And, not every official interprets the same situation the same way. Stick around this site for a couple of days, and you'll see what I mean.

4) Of the hundreds, maybe thousands, of basketball games I played, watched or coached, maybe once did I ever encounter an official who showed any bias. And, that was because he had had enough of our b*tching the whole game. One of the most interesting things I discovered since coming to this site is that officials truly don't care who wins. I mean, they really don't care. They're more concerned about calling a good game than who wins.