First Time on the Floor

[mutantducky]

as mentioned, get warmed up, run around a bit, etc.

1. Be ready from the start. One of my early games there was a foul right after the tip. I didn't call it because you just aren't used to blowing the whistle that fast. And at the end if you are trail know if you have the shot at the buzzer. Again, first season. Luckily the shot missed because I was not ready to call it.
2. Had a new partner last season. He was involved in a play where an intentional foul should have been called and went up to me asking what should be done. If you have a play like that, learn when to make that call but there could be times when you can rightfully ask a question about what to do. If you know basketball you'll know when something is out of the ordinary like that and best to be on top of things and make the call yourself.
3. Not to get ripped here, but usually best not to call games too tight and never go into that "let them play" mode. That will vary of course but the best refs find some middle ground. Most people are fine to work. But if you don't like working with a few refs just get them off your list. Trust me it will make things easier but again something that probably should wait until at least a couple of games. A few refs are primary jerks. Meaning they get all offended if you call something in their area. Your job is to watch your areas. But you know what, sometimes calls are missed like a foul or a violation that your partner may not have seen. Again this is a balancing issue and most crews work well and learn to trust each other. they don't care if someone calls a foul in their primary because it could have been something they didn't see. Don't be afraid to step in at times. That starts becoming natural and most crews learn how to work with that and when not to make a call out of area.
Some coaches are just jerks. They will be nice to you before the games, then essentially try to tar and feather you. Bah humbug to them. That's just their Modus operandi. Talk to them, warn them, and just know when to give out the T if it is warranted. That reminds me, don't be overly concerned about 3 seconds, communicate with the players, hands off etc, but then be prepared to call fouls if it continues. There are minor fouls like that off-ball especially that can be avoided with communication but that only goes so far otherwise there can be freedom of movement restrictions. If you are trusting yourself, communicating when needed with the players, they will see that and I find things go smoother.
I always like having two whistles, extra laces and maybe a banana or something. You'll keep learning. And there will be some fun plays where you'll have no idea what to call. I remember some girls games where I was "wtf did I just see" I have no idea if that was even basketball. The good news is that well coached girls games can be the easiest ones to ref. One of my favorites game I ever did was a playoff game that went to OT, full crowd, and just a breeze to officiate. We could have reffed another game after no problem. It just varies. Try to stay on top of things, even games that are boring just work on things and stay interested/moving because assigners watch that.


I always like chatting a bit with the table. But also know that they could be parents of the players so keep that talk appropriate. Yes I may have given little Johnny jr a technical while Papa Bear was doing the books
Don't anticipate the foul. By that I mean, sometimes you'll think a foul is coming. I've seen refs blow the whistle on plays when it appeared that it was going to be a foul, but maybe at the last second the defender steps out of the way or makes a clean block. Ref calls a foul, and you know he's realized he's made a mistake. I'd rather a ref go with an inadvertent whistle but good luck with that Learn the euro step, some refs get travel happy when a player just makes a fast move or one in the post. If you like reffing, then by all means stick with it. If not, it may not be for you and move on. I've known a few really good basketball players who just couldn't ref. They stopped which I credit them because there are others out there who keep at it when they should have passed that whistle on years ago.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by ChuckS

Girls JV ...

Girls junior varsity games are always really tough to call.

Originally Posted by ChuckS

scrimmage ... Girls did not have uniform numbers ...

Scrimmages may be tougher to call than real games. Real games will have a real table crew, and players will have real uniforms.

Note: If I work a scrimmage where the players don't have numbers, I always report "Zero".

Originally Posted by ChuckS

We had 4-minute shifts ... I lost track of which team was going in which direction!

You lost track because you were off the court half of the time. When you work a real game, with the players going one direction for two periods, and then switching direction for the rest of the game, with you on the floor the entire time, it will be a lot easier to figure out who's going where. In the second half they go in the same direction as their bench. Opposite in the first half.

[grunewar]

Welcome Chuck. Thanks for your story. Happened to many of us.

My first Rec game many yrs ago, all I knew was what I thought I knew. No training. never read a Ruels Book, Case Book or Officials Manual. My P was experienced, but, let's say "well beyond his prime."

Part way through the game, he comes up to me at a time out and asks, "Why do you keep Ting up the coach?" Oh, you mean that's not the time out signal? What did I know?

Another first timer, I had many yrs later was a HS kid. I had refereed him for many yrs, and after graduation, he decided to try it. After the 1st qtr, he handed me the whistle and said it wasn't for him.

Like anything else it can be very discouraging at first. Parents, players, coaches yapping. You feel unsure, etc. Keep at it and give it a try and maybe good things will happen in time.

[Rich]

I have a great deal of respect for people starting out. I've been doing this so long now that I don't have a great number of memories about that first couple of seasons. I can only imagine how bad I was.

It's a reason there's zero chance I'll take up a new sport now -- I'm 46, I work a sport in each season (football, basketball, baseball) already, and the only temptation I have had was to learn volleyball and that passes quickly.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Rich

... and the only temptation I have had was to learn volleyball and that passes quickly.

Our basketball guys who work volleyball in the fall say it's like stealing money.

[Refhoop]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Our basketball guys who work volleyball in the fall say it's like stealing money.

Like printing money baby and I love it!
Rules will challenge your socks off though... but VB officiating is much easier to fake than hoops; only because most fans, players and coaches don't know VB rules enough to even question many of the calls. Not like the average hoop fan yelling: "travel", "3 seconds", "over the back" or "that's a foul".

Don't hate on VB!

[Lcubed48]

Originally Posted by Refhoop

Like printing money baby and I love it!

Don't hate on VB!

+1 Amen!

[Refhoop]

1. Study your rule book.
2. Practice your mechanics, by watching basketball games on youtube or television; then watch yourself on video and compare.
3. Have fun: If you can't enjoy doing officiating, then you probably shouldn't be doing it.

[goodros_nemesis]

Here's my two cents: Join the local association and ask your leadership to put you on a watch list. For the first couple of months I refereed basketball, I probably had two evaluations a week. LISTEN to what others you! Don't be so proud of your performance that you don't take feedback -- even from angry coaches. Occasionally, you'll get bad advice or a rule interpretation that you know to be wrong, but listen anyway. Take it into consideration and then double-check the book to make sure. You may have just remembered wrong. You may think that admitting to human frailties makes you a weak referee, but it can write pages in the coach's respect book to say something like, "You know coach, I may have missed that one. I'll work harder to get a better angle on it."

[Stat-Man]

Originally Posted by ChuckS

Passed the written exam easily, but I knew actually being on the floor would be much harder. . .and it was even harder than I imagined!

Girls did not have uniform numbers, so reporting fouls was different than what I had practiced.

[...]


I am very overwhelmed!

For any scrimmage, camp, etc. games where players are wearing shirts or plain practice jerseys, I report fouls on anyone without a number as #0. That way, I can still report something and work on keeping good reporting habits.

For my first game, I saw two players fighting for a loose ball ball on my sideline and came in with an emphatic held ball signal... only to have my partner tell me it was two players from the same team! To make matters worse, I called a travel instead of an inadvertent whistle . I'm surprised I didn't get yelled at by the offended coach.

I won't repeat what others have said, but I'll offer something i haven't seen mentioned. In the past, someone suggested keeping a journal of games and using it to keep track of times to work on and improve in future games. if you have the time, I suggest it and using it to record a couple of things you think you did right and a couple of things you want to improve for next game.

Although I don't use that format as much now that I'm in my fourth season, I still journal each of my game dates, especially as veteran partners give me feedback so I can process what feedback is most useful and apply it in future games.

Your first season will be rough; it comes with the territory, so to speak. That said, if you study the rules, remain open to constructive feedback, and work hard at improving each time you're on the court, you should do fine. And just maybe you'll have some fun in the process.

Good luck this season.

[Dad]

Just take all the great advice given and simplify it for yourself. Work on one aspect each game and have fun.

I'll add one thing that helped me as a player and even more as an official:

Find a random game you want to watch. Watch it in 2x speed. Do it again and again until you can break down plays and actually see what's going on. Probably will seem impossible at first, but after a while you get used to it. This isn't for everyone, but for me it makes games in slow motion.

[LRZ]

When you go to games, especially involving officials from your association, ask if you could sit in on their pre-game and half-time. If the opportunity arises so you don't interfere with their game mind-set, ask questions about why they did things you didn't follow.

[RedAndWhiteRef]

Originally Posted by LRZ

When you go to games, especially involving officials from your association, ask if you could sit in on their pre-game and half-time. If the opportunity arises so you don't interfere with their game mind-set, ask questions about why they did things you didn't follow.

My football association actively encourages rookies who wouldn't be getting varsity games to ride along with a varsity crew on Friday nights to soak it all in.

[ChuckS]

So I survived my first week of scrimmages, and all of your advice and encouragement played a big part in that! Felt a little more comfortable each time out.

Avoided any major issues. . .but obviously still a LOT of minor ones!

-My first jump ball was perfectly straight up. . . .but WAY too high!
-As trail, called an illegal dribble, had all my signals correct and in order, but stayed to administer the throw-in
-As Lead, ball-watching reduced to almost never...but I know it has to be never
-Still sometimes have trouble visualizing my PCA..."free throw line extended" means I feel I need to glance at the FT line to get my point of reference, but that can't be correct, if it takes my eyes off of where they need to be
-During free throws, I need it to become automatic if I see a violation, knowing if it was on the offense or defense
-All my foul calls were "pushes" LOL I need to expand my repertoire!!
-I always reported fouls on the division line, not taking advantage of the entire reporting area
-They told me at our last scrimmage that as Trail, close down when the shot goes up, and you can call any fouls you see outside of your PCA. I know during the entire game you can call outside your PCA, but they said when the shot is up, PCAs do not exist.

So once again, I thank all of you for taking the time to offer me so much valuable advice. My first real game is Dec 22, doubleheader, Freshman Girls, then JV.

[Rich]

My daughter played with a first time official on the floor yesterday. Fifth graders.

A dad was yelling at her. I was a bit too close, cause I turned and asked him how big a man he was for yelling at a teenaged (my guess - HS sophomore) girl doing her best.

I got an elbow from my wife and for once I told her she was out of line for shushing me.