Rule Question
 

My apologies if there is another thread I can put this under but I didnt see anything. Anyway, I pawed through the rule book and could not find anything on this scenario. Is it illegal for a player to yell at another player while he is shooting? I am talking about live action, not during a free throw. It wasnt even loud enough for either me or my partner to hear but I had a coach the other night telling me its illegal and I told him I was not aware of anything in the rulebook indicating it was illegal.

For some reason, the coach made this a very contentious conversation which resulted in a Technical foul later in the game because he couldnt let it go. I am really just looking for peace of mind.

It's an unsporting act. Does the rulebook allow you to punish unsporting acts?

The rule book has a section (cant remember which rule, I just remember reading it the other night after I got home) about if a player has his hand in his opponents face and keeps it there, then it is an unsporting act and can be called as a Technical foul. I did not see anything about yelling while a player is shooting.

Do you expect that every example of an unsporting act be listed in the book?

Rule Question
 

I would use discretion and common sense here, if what comes out of that players mouth is vulgar or talking down to the player, maybe it warrants an unsportsmanlike technical. If it’s simply the player yelling a sound like “BLAHHHH,” play on. I would explain this to a coach using something like the following “ coach, he’s allowed to make noises and talk during live ball action as long as what is being said is not vulgar or malicious.”

Think about what would happen if you T a player for talking during a field goal attempt, you better have a damn good explanation for the coach of the offending team or else he’s going to ride you all game.

Situations like these, where the rules don’t tell you black and white, I think it’s best to just think for a second what’s good for the game and what’s good for the crew.


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Rich, considering it is probably one of the most common unsporting acts, Yes I would expect that to be in the book. No I dont expect everything to be in there. My statement to the coach that I wasnt aware of that specific thing being in the book is what I am trying to find out. I know that during a FT it is considered to be disconcerting the shooter but to me that is different than during live action.

rwodar, That is what I was thinking. Based on the fact that I never heard anything and I asked my partner if he heard and he hadnt either. I have nothing to go on. The unfortunate part is this coach was a Danny Hurley type and just screamed at me, preventing a conversation from taking place. He wouldnt tell me what was being yelled or by who.

99.99% of the time, this is legal. We're not playing golf.

KCRef - See my tag line. This happens all the time in every game and is rarely called unless some sort of threat or vulgarity is involved.

BTW - A FT is live action also. It just seems different because the gym/players are much quieter and disrupting the shooter is specifically mentioned in the rule/case books.

My point is this -- if it's loud and putting crap into your game, you can ALWAYS do something. You're supported by the rules, because you get to decide what's unsportsmanlike and penalize accordingly.

I also agree with Bob. 99.9% of the time, it's a big fat nothing.

If someone screamed in the face of a shooter a couple of times, however, where everyone could see/hear it, I'm probably not shrugging my shoulders and saying, "it's not in the rules book."

Disconcerted/Distracted ...
 

Correct. Free throw shooters, by rule, get to shoot "unhindered". Field goal shooters are allowed to be disconcerted/distracted, which probably includes oral distractions.

Depends on what was said. "Miss" isn't technical foul worthy.

I hate it when, especially in a girls game, a defender yells, "Ball, ball, ball", or, "Dead, dead, dead", but there's little I can do about it.

Yep -- there's a really big range between "ignore" and "T"

NEVER let a coach scream or yell at you, NEVER.

As soon as he/she raises their voice you shut them down immediately. Give them an opportunity to re-address you in a respectful and professional manner. If they fail to do so either T them up or walk away, whichever is more appropriate.

If you need some lines to shut them down:

- Coach, you need to stop yelling at me, immediately.
- Coach, we're not having a conversation until you stop yelling
- Coach, I will not tolerate you raising your voice

Make the statement directly and sternly with no wiggle room for debate. It matters not what level or how accomplished the coach.