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I'm not a ref but I like to think I'm a fairly astute observer; I've gone to many 100s of games over the years, at all levels, in the capacity of coach, parent of players, friend of refs, school rep., photographer, etc. I know I'm stating the obvious, but sometimes I can't help but throw in my 2 cents: I've seen plenty of young refs that are fortunate to have a mix of common sense, proper philosophy, rules knowledge and toughness. They're not born that way, but for some reason the learning curve is not so steep for them. I've seen several of them move up rapidly, and deservedly so. For others, the curve seems much steeper,their rise to better assignments is proportioanlly slower, but many also "get there". Others are stuck, regardless of age and for a variety of reasons, right where they are. Admittedly, there are politics and favoritism in every job on this planet, but I'm telling you that I've been pretty successful at predicting the advancement, or lack of advancement, of many officials based solely of my observation of their on-court performance...I don't know jack about their "connections" (and don't care to). Bottom line (pardon the lame metaphor): cream rises to the top.
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