[OHBBREF]

Wow - so the whole advantage/disadvantage thing is not true?
Someone forgot to pass that one around.

First off we are talking post play here which has a whole different set of parameters for contact, we do allow a lot of contact here, the arm bar is legal, as is some leaning as long as there is still freedom of movement, we do not call the foul.

There is a lot we do not know here such as size of the big guy. If this guy is 6’10” 325 lbs playing against 5’ 11” 120 lbs players in the post there are going to be problems and the decision on what constitutes a foul are not going to seem equal.
What are the fouls offensive, defensive, holds, blocks, there are a lot of variables not mentioned. Is this kid swatting at trys for goal and getting called for arm contact? Is he not getting straight up in the air, a lot of big men have trouble lifting their arms above their heads.

Somebody saying things are unequal isn’t enough to jump on board the band wagon.

Rule citations that spell this out
Rule 4
SECTION 19 FOUL
A foul is an infraction of the rules which is charged and is penalized.
ART. 1 . . . A personal foul is a player foul which involves illegal contact with an opponent while the ball is live, which hinders an opponent from performing normal defensive and offensive movements. A personal foul also includes contact by or on an airborne shooter when the ball is dead.

SECTION 27 INCIDENTAL CONTACT
Incidental contact is contact with an opponent which is permitted and which does not constitute a foul.
ART. 2 . . . Contact which occurs unintentionally in an effort by an opponent to reach a loose ball, or contact which may result when opponents are in equally favorable positions to perform normal defensive or offensive movements, should not be considered illegal, even though the contact may be severe.
ART. 3 . . . Similarly, contact which does not hinder the opponent from participating in normal defensive or offensive movements should be considered incidental.


If there is a large disparity in size in most cases the bigger player is going to be able to “play through” some of the contact and will be expected to do so. While his contact on the little guy is going to have more of an effect on the little guy so it is going to get called a foul more often.
Some coaches will also tell his smaller players to exaggerate the results of that contact which might influence an official’s call, wrongly so, but it does happen.

But no way can you say that the contact of a 5” 5” 120 lb guy leaning on a 6’ 10” 320 lb guy is the same if you reverse the situation, therefore the calls can be different. That is the rule interpretation.

Having said that if the big guy is working hard and the defense is double and triple teaming him, illegally preventing him from getting to his spots, I am going to call those fouls. If tre is freedom of movemnt as long as he isn't forcing his way through people or displacing people I am not going to call that contact a foul.

So the coach needs to work with his big man to get him to play better defense with less contact and he will be better off, when he is a lot larger than the kids defending him, it will make him a better player now, and will help chances of being able to move on in the game.