The Most Misunderstood NFHS Basketball Rules ...

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Camron Rust

The problem is that there is no rule that says anything about a player always being able to pick up a fumble but there is a rule that says a player only has two options once he/she jumps. This is not unlike the situation where a player throws the ball off his/her own backboard....it is treated as if it were a try for most purposes even though it actually isn't a try since the player wasn't actually trying to throw the ball into the basket. Consider also the case where a player lying on the floor sits the ball down, gets up while not holding the ball, then picks up the ball. This is considered a travel. Why? It is deemed that the player is circumventing the intended rules. The fumble on a try is essentially the same thing. Players will make it appear to be a fumble to circumvent the rules once they go airborne and find they have nowhere to go. Once they jump, they have two options by rule: pass or shoot. Anything else is considered a de facto dribble.

Thanks for your well thought out reply. Great points (as was your earlier post) and great examples. My list existed for almost fifteen years without this situation. It was a very recent addition after a video interpretation by IAABO (not the NFHS). While Camron Rust, Raymond, and others may be right, it's still not a 100% fact in my mind, so I'm leaving it off the list, which doesn't mean the IAABO interpretation (and Camron Rust and Raymond) is wrong, it just means that it's not on my list, as many rules and interpretations are not on my list (though it's quite lengthy, probably too lengthy).

If this situation appears on a written exam, I take a chance on an incorrect answer of calling picking up this fumbled try a legal play. If this situation happens in a real game in real time, and the first thing that pops into my mind is "Fumble" (not "He dropped it"), I'll pass on a whistle, and if anybody complains, I'll confidently explain "It was a fumble", and unless it was the final play of a tied game, my call will probably be forgotten.

Camron Rust: In your great, well written, rational post, why did you call it a de facto dribble? Why not just "dribble"? De facto means being in effect though not formally recognized. So, is it a formally recognized dribble, or is it not a formally recognized dribble? By choosing the phrase "de facto" are you consciously, or unconsciously admitting that this situation may be a "gap" or "blind spot" in the rules, as posted by Raymond earlier?