2 or 3 point field goal?

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by just another ref

Here is my assessment of the situation, in a nutshell.

4.41.4 SITUATION B: A1’s three-point try is short and below ring level when it
hits the shoulder of: (a) A2; or (b) B1 and rebounds to the backboard and through
the basket. RULING: The three-point try ended when it was obviously short and
below the ring. However, since a live ball went through the basket, two points are
scored in both (a) and (b). (5-1)

These three words are the key. If the ball is below the rim and clearly will stay below without the deflection, no way can it be a 3.

Agree.

No mention (below) regarding above, or below, the ring. Also, there is no mention regarding whether the official judges this throw to be a try, or to not be a try. So why does this one count three points? If it's simply a three point try that gets tipped by a defender below the arc (a common occurrence) then I get the three points, but what if this was a pass, that deflected off a defender's hand?

5.2.1 SITUATION C: A1 throws the ball from behind the three-point line. The ball is legally touched by: B1 who is in the two-point area; The ball continues in flight and goes through A's basket. RULING: Three points are scored since the legal touching was by the defense and the ball was thrown from behind the three-point line.

5-2 2 Scoring: Art. 1 A successful try, tap or thrown ball from the field by a player who
is located behind the team's own 19-foot, 9-inch arc counts three points. A ball
that touches the floor, a teammate inside the arc, an official, or any other goal
from the field counts two points for the team into whose basket the ball is thrown.
See 4-5-4.