Legal guarding position

[Hawks Coach]

Originally posted by co2ice


Its been said in our asociation meetings and by many officials I work with as well as at camps I've attended, that legal guarding position does not count extended arms or legs, that it is shoulder width from floor to ceiling ( I know this sounds like verticality). My question comes from a sitch where a defender has established LGP but has his leg or legs extended well beyond his shoulders and a ball handler trips over the extended leg. Is this a block or not? As always thanks for the help!

I would say this depends a lot on what actually happens in the situation. What you consider "well beyond his shoulders" is difficult to picture in my mind. If they are well beyond as I see it, then it is an unnatural position and the defender can hardly move. In reality, slightly beyond is a very common defensive stance, especially if making any kind of defensive movements.

So if the player is stationary after having slid in a natural guarding stance, I would think it should be pretty extreme foot extension to call it. The offensive player can see the stance and move past the player without contacting them, so I would see this as a no-call. If the foot is really extended as if to prevent the player from getting by, I would think you should call it, and a trip not a block. If they are moving laterally together and the offensive player turns the corner, they are obviously ahead of the defender if all they contact is the foot. So there you also have a foul because the defender has not established legal guarding position, and again, a trip.