Advice for rookie officials

[SMEngmann]

I think Rut makes some really good points about the development of brand new officials in that there can be dumbing down involved by focusing too much on baby steps and not enough on concepts (for instance: always stop clock, open hand for violations, fist for fouls should really only be said once) such as advantage/disadvantage and some philosophies. I think the more officials who are ambitious are exposed to philosophies, the better they will be and the more they will think about the things needed to move to a higher level. The baby-steps are easy, and far too much time is being spent on them, not to say exactly how to report a foul, or a silent count on free throws isn't important, but they shouldn't be hard for any competent official to grasp. From what I've seen at camps/clinics as well, a similar approach is being used to teach the 3 person system to vets who aren't accustomed to it. The result is officials who officiate games more concerned about what their positioning is than reffing the game. A more philosophical approach has helped me tremendously, and I think would be beneficial to others.

[JRutledge]

I went to a college camp this past summer and the assignor for a D1 conference said "I believe some officials just have the gift." I tend to agree with that point of view. Some officials whether we like it or not are always going to be freshman, JV and JH officials. Some officials are going to be a sponge and soak up everything they are told. Sharing a concept is not going not to hurt anyone. Just because you tell someone something does not mean at all that they will master that concept. At least they will know that is something they might have to learn at some point.

Peace

[buckrog64]

I still recall the look on my partner's face when I told him, "Yeah, it really is my first game (Girls JV) ever." I was just a warm body, and I knew it. But I got through it, and have stuck with it nearly 15 years. Newbys, find someone to work with who will build you up and not bring you down. They're out there, and they'll be good help to you.

[SeanFitzRef]

Good points, SME, but unfortunately a lot of assignors and decision makers worry about the proper mechanics and floor positioning over the decision making. I have been in camp stiuations and heard observers marvel at a camper's positioning or 'proper mechanical form', but the person has flubbed three calls in their primary or the reach out of their primary to get something. Part of the problem with that thinking is that the philosophies are discussed just once, and the mechanics are focused on. Might just be in my area, but my two cents.

[cdaref]

Here are a few ideas:

1. Read the rule book. I dont mean "become a rule book official," but a working knowledge of the rules will give you confidence and confidence will help your game. See below for more about the rules.

2. Devour the official's manual. I mean that. Read it more than the rule book. Learn the procedures. It, too, will give you confidence. For the most part, the stuff in the official's manual is the stuff you need to truly "learn." 95% of all the basketball stuff you will see will be stuff you already know--you know what a foul is, you know what stepping out of bounds is, you know there are 4 quarters, you know all that stuff. The "funny rules" like false double fouls and whether or not a technical is directly or indirectly charged to the head coach is great if you know, but as a rookie, you will have a senior partner there to help you with that stuff. But the stuff in the official's manual is ALL NEW. Unless you have reffed before, you dont know where to be at time outs or how to administer a DQ or where to stand for the jump or which place to be. That, probably, is why clinics spend so much time on mechanics. Because that stuff is new and it is teachable. Judgement, while also deserving of instruction, is to some degree a matter of whistle time.

3. Do your homework. If you want to be good, dont just rely on the book you are give. Go do extra research. Go get Referee Magazine's excellent book Basketball Official's Guidebook Crew of Two Officials. Here is the link.

http://www.referee.com/books/books/bbbog205.htm

That book is awesome for a new official and a good resource as you go along.

4. Work on your calls. Get a buddy or a spouse. Have them shout out a foul or a violation, like "push" or "charge" or "travel." Then blow it and report it. Partner says "travel." You say "tweet," then signal open hand up, travel signal. Or partner says "push" you say "tweet" then fist up, then preliminary signal, then go report, "white, 3-2, push, sideline out of bounds." That sort of thing. I know it sounds silly, but it really helps.

5. Get out on the court. The only time you work on officiating shouldnt be when you do it live. And you dont need a fancy clinic to work on things. Just get a senior official and another junior official like yourself and go to a gym or an outside court. Have the senior official dribble the ball and the two junior guys position themselves. This helps immensely. People can say "dont work on mechanics and positioning" but if you arent in position to make the call your judgemnet really doesnt matter that much--since you couldnt see it.

6. Get a mentor. This is tied to #5 above. But there is no reason why senior guys wont want to help the young guys. Some dont but many do. Heck, show up early and I'd work with a newer official on the outside court before we even had to be there for our game. No problem.

Basically, if you go the extra mile it will show. If you think you can just show up and learn on the job, you wont develop as fast as others. Plus, some have the gift for it and some dont, but there is nothing you cant overcome with a bit of work.

And finally

7. Dont worry about advancement. The only thing you can control is being the best official you can be. That is up to you. Advancement isnt up to you, it is up to your association. And if you are doing well, you will get noticied. If you dont get moved up, that may say somethign about your association, not about you.

8. Find out how the big dogs want it done. That said, make sure you get the word from teh assignor or the seniour guys how they want things done. Then do it their way. If they want a tight 3 seconds call (which I doubt they woudl, just making a funny example based on recent threads) then call a tight 3 seconds. If they hate patent leather shoes, dont get patent leather. I'm not saying suck up. You dont have to go kiss a$$. But find out how the people in charge want things done and do it the right way.

9. Have a positive attitude and respect what reffing means to the participants. Do it because you love it. This, I think, is key. People take this seriously. It is important to all the coaches and the kids playing. Heck, some of these kids wont go to college and these games will be the stories they will tell with their buddies (in greatly exaggerated fashion) for the rest of their lives. And you are a part of that. Make your preparation and your demeanor reflect that you understand this is both serious and fun.

10. Have fun. Smile. Dont just be a robot. Dont think you are a police officer. You arent.

Good luck!!!!

[Camron Rust]

Originally posted by cdaref
Here are a few ideas:
95% of all the basketball stuff you will see will be stuff you already know--you know what a foul is, you know what stepping out of bounds is, you know there are 4 quarters, you know all that stuff.

I disagree.

Ask any generally basketball knowledgeable person about the following:

Ball inadvertantly hittng the leg....most will call it a kick

Shooter making arm-to-arm contact with vertical defender....most will call it a foul on the defender

Defender sliding sideways and taking in the chest while sliding....most will incorrectly call a block

Player grabbing rebound over an opponent...most will incorrectly call a foul

Player dives to the floor and recovers the ball while still sliding....most will call traveling

Defender jumps staight up and is contacted by the shooter (check to chest)....most will incorrectly call a block.

Defender blocks the shot through contact on the hand...most will incorrectly call a foul.

On a throwin, the thrower shuffles the feet....most will incorrectly call a travel.

....

...and they'd be wrong most of the time.

Most of these situations will occur several times in every game. You don't have to get into the more esoteric rules, even the basic rules are widely misunderstood by those who have not studied the rule book.

[cdaref]

I didnt say dont study the rule book. In fact, I said study it.

Wait, let me go check:

Yep, here is what I said:

"1. Read the rule book. I dont mean "become a rule book official," but a working knowledge of the rules will give you confidence and confidence will help your game."



The point is, a rookie doesnt really need to know what a false double foul is.

But a newbie shouldnt be afraid to call a game. I see more newbies holding a whistle because they are overthinking. You know what a block is, call it. You know an out of bounds, call it. You know a travel, call it. The vast majority of the game are calls that you already know how to make if you know anything about basketball. Blow the whistle, newbies!!! And blow it with authority.



[Edited by cdaref on Nov 23rd, 2005 at 01:22 AM]

[JRutledge]

Originally posted by SeanFitzRef
Good points, SME, but unfortunately a lot of assignors and decision makers worry about the proper mechanics and floor positioning over the decision making. I have been in camp stiuations and heard observers marvel at a camper's positioning or 'proper mechanical form', but the person has flubbed three calls in their primary or the reach out of their primary to get something. Part of the problem with that thinking is that the philosophies are discussed just once, and the mechanics are focused on. Might just be in my area, but my two cents.

The problem is you cannot really judge accurately judgment. Of course I can have an opinion, but the officials on the floor is often times in the best position to see the entire play and see how and why contact (or anything else) took place. I do not think observers just overlook decision making, it is easier to judge mechanics related with the call. If you are in the proper position and use the proper mechanics, let us face it the call is often immaterial. After all officiating is a sales job. Having been an evaluator at times, all I can ask is what the officials saw and give them things to think about. I cannot tell them with much confidence from a completely different vantage point whether a call was correct or not. Unless the call was out in the open easily viewable evaluators would only be able to guess whether a call is correct or not. So unless a rule is applied completely wrong, judgment is just hard to judge sometimes.

Peace

[SMEngmann]

I think you guys are slightly misinterpreting what I said, although the discussion is interesting. My point was not that mechanics and especially positioning aren't important in the development of an official, in fact I feel both are very important. As long as you are in a good position to see the call, and convince everyone you saw it correctly, often you can make the absolute wrong call and not have a problem. My point is more toward the developing of newer officials. I think that newer officials need to show the initiative to learn the basic mechanics on their own and should be able to absorb simple concepts such as proper reporting technique and fist for foul, palm for violation quickly, because these concepts simply aren't difficult to learn with a tiny bit of practice. I think the best way to develop as an official in terms of positioning and even judgement is to officiate, watch other respected officials, even college/NBA on TV and to talk officiating and ask questions. I know I learned a lot coming through the ranks as a newbie because I was exposed to more information and wasn't stuck on having to listen to the same ABCs constantly. And there is one way to evaluate judgement: the tape never lies, but often it shows why calls are missed based on positioning and focus.

[Camron Rust]

Originally posted by cdaref
I didnt say dont study the rule book. In fact, I said study it.

Wait, let me go check:

Yep, here is what I said:

"1. Read the rule book. I dont mean "become a rule book official," but a working knowledge of the rules will give you confidence and confidence will help your game."



The point is, a rookie doesnt really need to know what a false double foul is.

But a newbie shouldnt be afraid to call a game. I see more newbies holding a whistle because they are overthinking. You know what a block is, call it. You know an out of bounds, call it. You know a travel, call it. The vast majority of the game are calls that you already know how to make if you know anything about basketball. Blow the whistle, newbies!!! And blow it with authority.

I know exactly what you said.

You also said: Originally posted by cdaref
Here are a few ideas:

Originally posted by cdaref

95% of all the basketball stuff you will see will be stuff you already know--you know what a foul is, you know what stepping out of bounds is, you know there are 4 quarters, you know all that stuff.

If you take a noob and have them call it as they already know it, they'll be wrong a substantial part of the time. They DON'T know what a block is or what a travel is. If that many people actually knew what a block or travel was, we wouldn't have so many players, coaches, and spectators disagreeing with them.

To expect them to call it as they "know" it will only propagate these all to common myths of the rules. The myths just gain that much more credence with actually being called in a game.