A couple of 3-whistle questions

[ChuckElias]

Ok, I'll throw in two cents worth. . .

Originally posted by rainmaker
1) How far across the floor should trail be standing normally? It seems to be different in different leagues, and I'm not sure if there's a "prescribed" spot on the floor.

I think you've got good advice on this so far. Generally, my starting point is the top of the 3-point arc (roughly the 28-ft line) and a couple steps onto the court. I agree with Mark that the Trail should use that "follow the arc" mentality.

I've also seen Trail officials go almost halfway across the court to continue a 5-second count when the dribbler has moved into the C's primary. I happen to like that, although I don't know if it's widely accepted.

I think you will start to see in the women's NCAA mechanics that the will have the Trail start out farther out onto the floor. In my last couple camps with (wait for it) SEC affiliation, they have talked about the the Trail in transition being more in the center of the court. So when the Trail gets into the frontcourt, he/she is probably 10-15 feet onto the floor. What I was told is that in transition as Trail, I should be coming up the court on the "volleyball" line, if you can picture what I mean. On a lot of basketball courts, there are also volleyball markings. Well, it was suggested to me that the Trail follow the volleyball line up the floor. Obviously, when you get to the frontcourt, this puts you much more than one or two steps onto the floor.

The reason I say you will see it in the women's game is that the camps I mentioned generally stress pro mechanics/philosophy, which is what the women's mechanics generally follow.

2) Can anyone tell me definitely whether men's officials tend to rotate less than women's? Is this a real tendency? Or just my imagination?

It's not your imagination. It definitely happens. As somebody else pointed out, it's b/c women move to where the ball is, even if it hasn't settled. Why? B/c they follow the pro mechanics. And if you watch the NBA officials, they don't wait for the ball to settle. Their goal is to complete their rotation before the ball is passed into the opposite post. So they don't wait for the ball to settle. If the ball moves across the lane, so do they.

3) Why can't I find a men's official in the city of Portland that knows where his mechanics manual is?!?

In case you haven't figured it out by now, Juulie. . . men are idiots. 'Nuff said.

4) Is it true in 3-whistle that the ultimate sin is calling across the paint?

It's pretty close to the ultimate sin. As others have said, there are worse things, but those things are just as bad in a 2-whistle game. Sometimes, tho, you have to do it. Last season, I was Lead, table-side. Ball swung quickly opposite. A1 drove down the opposite lane line and took a lay-up. B1 just keeps moving under A1, bumping him below the waist and basically taking his feet away. A1 came down hard on his hip and hit his head. No whistle from my C. Come on, blow the whistle!!!! Nothing. So I blew mine. My partner at C is a respected, long-time, good official. But it's the first time I've worked with him and it was obviously out of my area. So I'm a little nervous about making the call. After I reported it to the table, my partner at T said, "Thank God we had something on that." So I instantly felt completely relieved.

Anyway, you don't want to do it unless you're sure you have to have it. This post is way longer than it should be. Sorry.