How late is too late??

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by Jimgolf

1) If you tap a player on the shoulder is it a foul?

2) How about if you tap a player on the shoulder and he looks up and dribbles the ball off his foot?

3) The tap on the shoulder doesn't cause him to lose the ball. The player's inability to dribble when not playing close attention to what he's doing causes him to lose the ball.

1) If the tap gives the other team an illegal advantage by making the player lose the ball, then it sureasheck is a foul. Every time.

2) Yes, that's a foul. The tap created a definite disadvantage for the offensive player. He lost control of his dribble because of the contact.

3) Disagree. Diverting the player's attention through illegal contact caused the player to lose the ball. The defender gained an illegal advantage through that act. That's why it's a foul.

Methinks you really need to get someone to explain advantage/disadvantage to you. You don't seem to understand the concept. The degree of the contact isn't the deciding factor. The result of the contact is.