The above, which I've highlighted in red, may explain a lot about who ilyzhito comes across on this board and may severely impact his ability to succeed as an official.

Form https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-au...rger-syndrome:

When you first came on this board, you had several posts about how you always looked at the clock on every change of possession and everytime the ball crossed a line, etc.

If you are doing that, you don't need the 1-minute signal to tell you how much time is left in the period.

I might not need that personally, but it is the approved mechanic at the HS level. Plus, my partners need to know what I am doing, so it's helpful to give a little signal like that to them as a heads-up.

I spoke to a guy in my area who calls HS and NCAA ball, and he said that NCAA men's officials don't signal until the last possession where the shot clock is on (around 30 seconds). NCAA officials don't tap their chests because they know that OTO calls the last-second shot. He also added that J.D. Collins and coordinators have been cracking down on non-approved mechanics at the NCAA level, so I would not be as likely to work with officials who go off-script there as much as I might at the high school level. He also told me that HS officials who work shot clock games tend to follow the same practices as NCAA men's officials re: last second shots.

Literal And Direct ...
 

Which is why I've tried to be as literal and direct as I can, including reiterating important points, while still trying to show patience and offering advice to help him succeed.

Back when I was teaching middle school science, special education students were mainstreamed by Planning and Placement Teams into my classes, rather than into other teacher's classes, for a reason. Parents of special education students often asked for their child to be placed in my classes. I'm certainly not a special education expert, but I've been around the block a few times.

One Step At A Time ...
 

Again, please concentrate on becoming a good, and then a great, high school official first and then move on to do the same at the college level. Goal setting is great, but take it one step at a time.

https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.P...=0&w=308&h=174

Please Give Me The Finger ...
 

If you're my partner, feel free to give me the finger. Better then me having another heart attack.

https://forum.officiating.com/basket...ml#post1023814

https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.C...=0&w=228&h=172

I am moderately afflicted and I attribute part of my success in officiating to my Asperger's traits. The biggest setbacks with Asperger's are awkward social interactions (my son) and improperly reading social cues (me--but can be learned through experience).

He can succeed.

Maybe BillyMac has it also :D

Most definitely the best approach.

Your partners will be fine. Quit obsessing about what your partners do and know. Quit making it the basis for all your actions. If you want to be a by-the-book official, there is nothing wrong with that. Just be ready to adjust when needed.

I've worked college games where people signal at 1:00 and the OTO somehow indicates he has the last-second shot. I've worked high school games where no one does it or they do it differently. It really is not a big deal, and if you can't adjust to that then it's going to be a tough ride. It is one thing if you work a game where your partners are not switching correctly after fouls. This is something that is so minute in comparison. The reality is that there are few absolutes in officiating. Auxiliary/unapproved signals are one thing that varies greatly.

No one on this forum will tell you not to use approved mechanics. But if you are, for instance, giving a prelim on a hand check foul as the NFHS manual says, you are going to look pretty silly on the floor, especially at a camp. But if that is what the powers-that-be in your area want you to do, then by all means comply when you are working those games.

FWIW, this is happening on the women's side as well. Five camps this summer and I can't remember a time when more emphasis has been placed on NOT deviating from approved signals.

Apologies if this has already been mentioned in this thread (I jumped to the end), but on the women's side the 1-minute signal serves as a reminder to the crew that when granting a TO with 59.9 seconds or less on the clock, under certain conditions, the ball may be advanced to the 28-foot mark in the front court. This is why the 1-minute signal is only given in the 4Q (or OT) and not at the end of every quarter.

We noticed him saying that some time ago. But with that being said, no one is going to ultimately care if you do not accept the things people are telling you. That alone might be a hindrance, but how he processes information to others and how he deals with others will be another process. I know other officials with similar diagnosed situations and they struggle in this thing. And in many cases, people do not know that is an issue of those people.

I wish the kid the best and hope he can do what he needs to do to take the right positions to advance, but if he is always complaining about why partners do not do certain things or always telling people that they should follow some procedure that an experienced official has deliberately decided does not work as stated, that can be an issue regardless if your diagnosis.

Peace

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ...
 

Not Asperger Syndrome, but a more subtle, far less serious problem, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Actually led to a medical leave of absence and my premature retirement from teaching. I couldn't sleep at night. My psychiatrist (no couch sessions, just medication checks) now keeps me on the straight and narrow with a steady diet of Xanax and Luvox.

Back about fifteen years ago, before I started seeing a doctor, being properly diagnosed, and figuring out the proper regime of medications, my biggest problem in officiating basketball was not being able to get past mistakes I made during a game.

If I screwed up a call early in the game, I would continually go over the situation in my head for the rest of the game. Why did I screw up? Did I really screw up? What could I have done to prevent the screwup? Obviously, this distracted me for the rest of game, effecting my play calling due to a lack of concentrating on the present, while I was concentrating on the past, certainly not a good recipe for success in officiating basketball.

Now, with my medications, I'm able to move on from my mistakes. It's improved my self confidence. Yes, I self criticize, it's the only way to improve, but not during the game, only afterward, and then I don't beat myself up, unless I really deserve it.

And, no, I don't keep washing my hands all the time.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...eda38e0861.jpg

I think we all have issues on some level. I am a perfectionist when it comes to things I am passionate about. ;)

Peace