I was talking with another official about the foul reporting area at a game last night. I looked it up when I got home and it appeared to be a lot closer to the table than I remembered.

As it turns out, if you compare this year's officials manual to the previous one, the entire reporting area has shifted 1/2 the width of the key (6 feet) toward the table.

That was a quiet change! What gives? Is this a philosophical counterpart to the calling official staying tableside in three-whistle? Is it meant to bring the calling official closer to the coaches?

Frankly, I don't really want to be any closer to the table than I have to be when reporting. Running an additional distance, both ways, lengthens the dead ball time, which is seldom a good thing. And it brings us closer to the coaches on every report, which isn't always a good thing either.

Is this a good change? Am I just being a dinosaur in my thinking?

Not sure what you're thinking of, but I just went up to the attic and all my Officials' Manuals show the same reporting area back to the '00-'01 manual.

I'm looking at the Fed manual here. The 2005-07 is different than the 2003-05. Page 37 in both years. :confused:

Ray, I'm at a bit of a disadvantage here b/c I only get the IAABO manual, which has slight differences from the FED manual. Describe the boundaries of the reporting box that you see. In my IAABO manual, the box goes from top of on 3-point line to the top of the other 3-point line. It follows an imaginary line drawn directly between the two baskets, and extends toward the table until it stops about 10-15 feet short of the tableside sideline.

That's the same reporting box that is shown in my FED manual (not IAABO) from 2000.

What are you seeing?

Short description: it is the previous years area, as you describe it, shifted six feet toward the table.

Longer description: The width is from top of the key to top of the key. It's depth is from the foul lane line nearest the table to where the three point line intersects the endline, or about 3-5 feet from the table-side sideline.

Huh. One more difference between FED and IAABO. I guess the thought is that you're going to end up tableside anyway, so you might as well get over there to report, too.

I'm going to claim that i'm just clarifying the discussion, but really I'm just trying out linking to an image :)

The old reporting area:
http://us.a1.yahoofs.com/users/41a57...AvIhDBeK0AFnjv

The new reporting area:
http://us.a1.yahoofs.com/users/41a57...AvIhDBJvo3CHmx

Maybe becuase now in 3 man, you do table side reporting, so you are going that way anyway.

Does it really matter if it changed? I am going to do the exact same thing I did before.

Peace

That diagram looks to be about 2 steps closer and only 1 step for me. I didn't even catch it in the manual but don't think it's that big a deal. If the coach wants to talk about it then it's just as well to be closer to him. :) I'm kinda like LOL a "people-person" anyways :)

Nope it doesnt, but it was a great observation!

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Gotta go with Rut, here. Don't see any major changes in what I'll do 2-man or 3-man.

Yep, it goes from the near FT lane line toward the table, instead of top of the arch. 6 feet closer.

I'm still not going closer than the top, unless I am coming from table side.