Running for the door

[drinkeii]

I am curious about a common thread in several of the discussions I have been reading. It seems that in basketball, it is a common practice for the officials to get out of the area the game was held in without delay. They make a point of checking everything prior to the end of the game, several times, so they can essentially run out the door at the moment the buzzer sounds.

This is my first year officiating basketball, but it is my third year doing both soccer and swimming. In swimming, there is no hurry to get out of the area at all - as a matter of fact, the referee is responsible to check that the scores have been added right. In soccer, I have felt a desire to leave quickly on 1-2 occasions, out of probably between 100 and 150 games.

Maybe I am just missing some point, but I don't understand why the officials woulnd't stay around long enough to make sure everything is ok after the game. I have made some major blown calls, but never felt any kind of fear from officials, the fans, or any of the players, even if there were problems from the game. I'm not overconfident - I just would rather see things right than run out the door, and find out later that there was a mistake, making for an awkward resolution at best...

Could someone please explain this to me, seriously... I know there is a lot of joking around in here, and I can see some really quippy replies. I am asking a serious question, and would really like to know why everyone is in such a hurry to get out of the door...

Speaking as a fan, I know there are times I have witnessed a basketball game that I felt the officials were really bad (or even just one, althout we all know that no officials are EVER bad!), but I don't see any reason for them to hurry out the door if there is any question of a problem with the game afterwards.

Thanks in advance.

Dave