Best position to officiate screening action
 

A1 is being intensely guarded by B1 up near the hash mark, is it better for the T to position himself to be above/on top of, or even with, or a step below these contestants? I ask bcuz all three stances have advantages and disadvantages.

I think it matters where the screen is and where the ball is. The best place is if the screen is off the ball when it is in your primary. But often screens are used by the ball handler on some level and goes into a dual area.

Peace

The best spot is on the sideline in a position to see between the defender and the ball-handler.

If the BH is too close to the sideline, then stay high behind the play and take only one step onto the court and open your shoulders to the play so you can see any approaching screens or secondary defenders while still officiating the primary matchup. Leaving one foot back near the sideline allows you to move out the way quickly should the play come back at you.

What not to do is take multiple steps onto the court and turn your back parallel to the division line so that you are facing directly towards the end line.

Optimal positioning for the Trail is sideline-oriented at the 28' line. When you establish that as your home base, subsequent position adjustments can be made more efficiently without radical movements.

Ding! Ding! Ding! No more callers, please. We have a winner.

Go where you need to go to see the play. There's no set answer for the original question. We have basic starting positions, but you always have to adjust to "see through the play". See both players and the space between them.

So if you have to take a step toward the division line to see between them, that's what you do. If you have to step toward the endline, then that's what you do. There's just no single answer.

I will just add one other thought that is tangential to your question. The "header" for your post is "Best position to officiate screening action". I was slightly confused the first time I read your post because screening action is typically not the same as guarding. So I was expecting a question about officiating screens.

That's really not a big deal, and I think everybody who reads your post will understand it; but if you're not really clear on the difference between screening and guarding, it might benefit you to look through some definitions and case plays. If you ARE clear on the difference, then I might just (very humbly and meekly) suggest that you be a little more careful with your terminology, just to avoid confusion.

One thing not to do is move yourself into a closed look if you don't need to. If the play comes at you such that you're on one side, stay there until the play moves such that it gives you a chance to move to the other side. An open look from one spot is better than moving through a closed look to get to the other side unless the play forces you to make a move. When you unnecessarily try to move to the "other side", there is some change there will be a play at the moment you're closed. Limit how much and how often you move through closed looks, preferably picking times where there is not likely to be a play, or you can do so more quickly (like when the action is moving the opposite direction that you're moving).

Really the biggest thing on screens for the dribbler is being aware that a screener is there. You can't get tunnel visioned on the dribbler and defender. You can't however sacrifice your position on see such a tight matchup for a screen. Screens are much easier to call out of position than basically anything that's going to happen either the ball handler, dribbler. If the ball handler is not being pressured then you can roll under or over as needed to cover the screener.

I think it also depends on whether you are starting as T or as C. As C, try to move to see it from the top; as T, try to stay under it, unless you read it as a drive.

In regard to the Center position, if the play is below the FTLE, either stay FTLE extended or take one step up. If the play is at the FTLE or above, stay below the play.

Thanks so much for helping me to get a good perspective on the parameters involved in officiating this type of play. Sometimes I felt that I struggled to get a good look at this action (I may have missed an oncoming screen that was actually moving) , on the other-hand I don't want be moving around constantly as if I am working a boxing match, so these responses will be used to help get best the look in these situations.

Got To Get Wider ...
 

Two, or three, times a season I get totally surprised by a screen, just didn't see it coming, and have to use my years of experience combined with what little I observed about the screen to make a call. These surprises are often caused by me paying too much attention to a competitive matchup, often involving the ball, and narrowing my focus. Got to get wider.

That's not to say that I'm 100% correct when I do see the screen coming, especially upon video review, but I'm right almost all the time.