If a player dribbles for the 2nd time without the ball returning to his hands and you don't call it double dribble, you won't hear a word from an assigner and you can always say your judgement was it was not a dribble.

But mess it up the other way and call a double dribble and be wrong you will most definitely hear about it.

Again, to me this is simple and it is being made complicated. I'm never going to call a double dribble if the 2nd dribble doesn't return to the hands, ever!

I read in another thread someone said we shouldn't think about intent while applying the rules. How are we to know with 100% certainty that a 2nd dribble attempt is not a pass, or a drop of the ball or whatever.

I disagree with that advice. Many times we are required to judge intent.

For example...a shot is or is not shot based not on whether the ball goes in or hits the rim but based on whether the official believes the player was trying to shoot the ball. We must absolutely judge intent in several situations.

A player should not get out of an illegal dribble after starting it because they realize they shouldn't have dribbled. Once they push it towards the floor, we have to judge if it was a pass or a dribble. Even if it goes to another player, it can still be a dribble (by rule)...that just means the other player intercepted the ball during the dribble.

By your argument, you could never be wrong...just say you judged it to be a dribble.

Waiting to see what happens next to see of you can somehow avoid blowing the whistle is not refereeing.

If what he does looks like a pass ...it is one unless he is the first person to touch it. If he simply drops the ball...it is a drop unless he is the first to touch it. If what he does is dribble then it's a violation without another touch.

Something like walks like duck, quacks like duck, it's a duck.....

I actually agree with you. Just stating something I saw previously where someone used that as an explanation

Many years ago, we had quite the looooong and spirited discussion on this. As was often the case, opinions ran quite strong. I was in quite the small minority at the time.



https://forum.officiating.com/basket...s-self-17.html

https://forum.officiating.com/basket...pretation.html