Not dircted directly at any one person in particular, but...
This debate seems to get rehashed very frequently here and there seems to be two camps of thought: the "if its ok with the guy who assigns you then its ok to do it even if thats not what the "official" requirements are" camp, verse the "not going by the book for dress code IS unprofessional because a rule is a rule regardless of what is done, required, allowed by others" camp.
I am guessing that most of us fall into a third group that knows in reality the truth is somewhere in the middle. To get games, you may have to do what an assignor wants even if it wanders over the lines of strict adherence to rules or guidelines BUT for the most part we try do it by the book.
What I find interesting is that in one string there will be multiple comments about how a ref looks is connected to his making a bad call and then in another string to suggest a standard look is more professional brings a wrath upon you, often from the same people. It seems we go from talking about "how a guy is out of shape or wearing white socks or has stripes that are different from the crew" to "how dare you suggest that any of those have any thing to do with how professional someone is". From what I have read here I believe that most of us believe that; 1) how you look does not affect your ability, 2) how you look is a part of how you are judged professionally, and, 3) some sensible flexibilty is necessary.
Billymac is correct to do what he is doing because in Conn. that's what THEY do and JRut is correct that in the rest of the basketball world (where things are done the right way
) it is unprofessional, makes you stand out, and should be avoided. I fall more in line with JRut but will also stand behind Billymac and his "when in Rome" flexibility because he might stand out unprofessionally if he didn't and because I work games in different leagues & conferences that have different rules, requirements, and cultures so I occassionally have to adapt how I personally do things.
(before some of you jump on that last statement with silly responses asking if I am also willing to kick a rule just to get games, the answer is NO)
In my chapter we are required to wear all black shoes, grey shirts, and beltless pants for all games, with a jacket added during pregame for varsity. There are some who don't always follow this - usually bottom of the barrell guys who get very few games a season or rookies who are quickly corrected by the vets - and it not only affects how you are viewed by others but also your chapter rankings, the number/level of games you get, playoff assignments, etc. In my first year I worked a set of 9th grade & JV games with a very veteran ref. At his insistance, we wore blk/wht the first game and the required grey for the JV because he wanted the JV to feel more special. After the first game, we were met in the locker room by the three guys assigned to varsity and got an ear full about (hemore than I since I was a rooke). He was one of the best refs I worked with and I learned a lot from him that day, including that how you look is important since that guy started getting less games and is no longer with the chapter.