Quote:
Originally posted by regas14
And still confusion persists.
If everyone in the gym knows they are going to purposely (notice the use of the word purposely instead of intentionally) foul then the only differentiation between an intential foul and a non-intentional foul is a token swipe at the ball?
I don't know how many different times I'll need to say this, but I'm getting ready for my first year of officiating so obviously my views come without a wealth of experience.
I think we would all recognize a foul made with the primary intent to hurt/punish the opposing player as an intentional foul. We all would also recognize a run-of-the-mill foul as being just a standard foul. In between is a lot of gray area for me. I can't imagine it being as black and white as some have painted it and my initial reaction is that a number of factors come into play:
Severity/violence of the foul
Emotions within the game (is this likely to spark an altercation?)
Intimidation factor (was the foul made in such a way as to intimidate or bully the offensive player?)
Safety of the players (was the offensive player in a defenseless position or braced for the foul?)
Excessiveness of the contact (did the defender make the minimum or maximum contact to draw the foul?)
Until the strategy of committing fouls to prolong the game is regulated, this will remain a very gray area for officials. Does anyone have thoughts on my criteria?
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So much depends on the level of the players. In varsity play, most fouls on the back of the ball handler are intentional, especially near the end of the game. Many grabs of the jersey are intentional, especially in the back, especially near the end of the game. Emotions and intimidation lead more to the "excessive contact" end of the "intentional" call, and can even get to the T or the flagrant. If there's any chance the the defender was trying to get the ball, or influence the movement of the ball, I don't call an intentional.
When the team that is trying to foul (note that in the books this past season this is called a "strategic" foul) is just slow and unskilled, and the team with the ball is successfully dodging the contact, you've got to skate the line very carefully. If the team with the ball (and presumably the lead) wants to run time off the clock, they aren't going to welcome the call on the first little contact that happens. But on the other hand, they don't want the defense to get rough in order to get the call. Call it when it's legitimate, but don't be too quick with the whistle.
You've got to draw your own lines, and be sure your lines are reasonably close to the lines drawn by other s in your area. Then you've got to be awayre of the game sitaution, and pay attention to what's happening. DOn't zone out at the end! Watch lots of other games, and figure out what others are going to do in situations so you can fit into your association.