[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Lets go back to the basics as we look at this play. A1 beats B1 on a drive to the basket and scores on a layup. B1 is miffed that he got beat by A1 and as A1's field goal attemp is clearing the bottom of the net, B1 slaps the ball in anger instead of grabbing the ball so as to start the throw-in procedure.

If B1 had grabbed the ball and had done any of the following:

1) Stepped directly out-of-bounds (behind the endline) with the ball.

2) Handed or passed the ball to a B2, who was already out-of-bounds (behind the endline).

The ball would have been at the disposal of Team B for a throw-in at the time B1 or B2 had possession of the ball out-of-bounds, and the throw-in would started at that time.

B1 did a stupid thing. His action of slapping the ball indicated to the Trail official that he was starting the throw-in at the moment he slapped the ball. The rules and casebook plays support the starting of the five second count at the time that B1 slapped the ball. In fact this is the only correct procedure. I am not going to quote rules and casebook plays here because I have already done that in one other thread and others have already done that in this thread. But most importantly, this is not a delay of game warning situation for interfering with the ball after a made field goal or free throw. The history behind the inception of this rule has always been that it is a infraction of the rules by the team that had just scored and not by the team who was going to make the throw-in. Any attempt to charge the team making the throwin with an infraction of this rule is wrong.