IAABO Mechanics Changes ...
 

Last night, T.J. Halliday, IAABO International Director of Learning and Development, gave a Summer Zoom presentation on Enhancing Communication.

During the presentation he mentioned two IAABO mechanics changes for the 2025-26 season, minor changes, but nevertheless changes.

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For over forty years IAABO officials have been told, "Never bounce the ball across the lane".

That no longer applies, but only in some very specific cases, only in the backcourt, and only with no defensive pressure.

We've got some lazy officials who, for the sake of convenience, have done this for many years in both the backcourt and the frontcourt.

I wonder if this will give them license to do it incorrectly more often.

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Not clear in the slide, but this is to be signaled after the administering lead official bounces the ball to the free thrower and then backs out of the lane to a position out of bounds.

In the past, as the lead, as the season dragged on, in some late February middle school games, as my mind wandered after working too many games, I've absent mindedly done this, caught myself, embarrassed, and immediately dropped my signal.

Now I will be correct to do this.

I wonder how these changes compare to NFHS mechanics?

Geometry ...
 

Reminds me of Mr. Fiore's ninth grade Geometry class.

Some theorems and postulates contained limiting biconditional language of "if and only if".

I always did it and was never embarrassed about it.

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Role Model ...
 

I pretty much exclusively work only middle school games and quite often work with very young, very inexperienced partners, very often first year officials.

As a veteran official, a past member of our two local training committees (written rules and floor mechanics), and as a retired middle school science teacher, I take my job in these games as a "role model" and educator very seriously.

I hate it when I screw up in front of these "young'uns".

Even my little "mistakes" bother me, fists instead of hands on hips for a blocking foul, "full time out" instead of "sixty second time out", forgetting the stop the clock signal before signaling a held ball, etc.

I hate it when I'm forced to say. "Do as I say, not as I do", feels quite hypocritical.

Bounce The Ball Across The Lane ...
 

According to T.J. Halliday, IAABO International Director of Learning and Development and a member of the NFHS Rules Committee, the “backcourt endline no defensive pressure bounce the ball across the lane” mechanic change was approved by the NFHS.

Cool! I can't wait to see this in the next edition of the mechanics manual.

I did this for years and did not do it because it was approved or not approved. It was another sign of what was stated by the lead, so I did it. No one told me to stop doing it or that it was a problem because the NF never approved this. And my signal never looked that way, I was always more like reporting a number for foul purposes. Palms up and facing the table.

Peace