"pet-peeve"
 

Thinking that this might be an interesting question.
What do you find most irritating about an official that you might be working with or watching?:rolleyes:

The most annoying thing is looking up during the game and my partner is right next to me...:D

I'd say the most frustrating thing about working with some of the people up here is the lack of time appreciation. Partners who show up late (Yes, 5 minutes before tip-off is late) drive me up the wall. The other thing that gets to me (sometimes) is partners who don't comunicate with me on the floor.

Case in point... 2-person. HS girls tourny final, rival schools (White vs Red). Partner calls a foul on Red as L in a scrum, reports the foul without telling me what is going on with ball. I give the ball the Red, thinking partner called the foul on white (bad on me for not checking I know...). Red in-bounds, drives, gets fouled in the act of shooting. My call. Now I get to explain to the White coach why her team got double whammy'd. All this could of been avoided by 2 things -

1. Partner could of not been in a rush to report and communicated what was to happen with the ball.

2. I could of gone seeking more information from my partner, to be sure we're giving the ball to the correct team.

Other than that 99.99% of the people I work with are great to work with. The other 0.01%, I've blocked due to personality conflicts.

My biggest pet peeve has nothing to do with officiating. It's when my opera cape gets snagged on some homeless person's junk.

I hate when that happens. http://www.runemasterstudios.com/gra...mages/rant.gif

Don't let theoracle read this...He might be forced to move to your area to work these .01% of officials to improve them. That would invariable ruin it for the other 99.99% of officials that he wont find need to improve at all.

Individuals thinking that Women's basketball is NOT basketball. ;)

Boy, I wish I could at least understand the jab you are trying to throw.

Bad communication stinks. But my pet peeve is guys that don't physically hustle. That is about the only thing that we can all control 100%. There is no excuse for not physically trying.

Refusal to rotate.

I agree with working with guys who think the girls games are just something to do since they are not working a guys game that night. Wait, a bigger pet peeve is finding out that they end up at the state tournament level for girls.

In two man - the guys who don't hustle, don't switch, and then roll the ball to you all night.

I keeping waiting for someone to say it is a partner who leaves the seat up.

Biggest Peeve
 

Biggest peeve is when meeting an official in the dressing room, he begins the conversation blabbing about the last technical he dished out.

Second biggest peeve is when the Referee begins the pre-game captains' meeting with, "OK fellas, we're going to play the solid black line all the way around," as if on some nights they might consider the bleachers the OB boundary.

Third biggest peeve is when the dressing room location is a side-office off one of the teams' locker rooms so we have to walk with them or past them to get to/from the dressing room.

Fourth biggest peeve is a partner who doesn't stop play for a violation with an upraised, open hand, but just gives the violation signal immediately.

Fifth biggest peeve is a partner who calls "out of bounds", then turns to retrieve the ball from wherever it went instead of letting a player get it.

Other than that, I don't have any peeves, not even pet ones.

Where did "rolling" the ball get started?? A chest pass, a bounce pass or even a lob over the players heads. I am 6'3" why in the heck are the "rollers" making me bend all the way over to the floor? :(

Watching the ball.

When I'm observing, you can see what an official is looking at by looking at their eyes. Unbelievable amount of 'experienced' officials following the ball.

When my partner calls a foul/violation in my area. It's pretty obvious they aren't watching their own area.

I've tried all the comments, such as "what were other 8 players doing while we were both watching the ball", etc. Those don't work very well.

My favorite comment was when the Lead called traveling on a player that just crossed the division line. I waited until the next dead ball and said "You really saved me on that last one". Partner says "What"? I say, "That last traveling call. It was right in front of me and I somehow missed it. Thanks for helping me out on that one".

I don't know if he started watching his own area, but he didn't make any more calls in my area.

Officials that don't:

- show up early/on time

- take pride in their appearance,

- hustle on the court,

- study the game but "think/act like they know everything"

- give each game "their all" as they are just going through the motions because maybe this game is beneath them. "I mean, gosh, how can I still be doing JV, MS, F, and rec games?"

And officials that aren't willing to learn, admit mistakes, and help the younger and newer guys/gals coming up.

Officials who are overweight.

You know this is a disability. Are you discriminating? :D

I dislike:
Dead ball visiting with fans,
Echo whistles,
Blowing my lines.

Hence why I said those who "don't take pride in their appearance" - which can be translated however you like - faded uniform, belted pants, facial hair, overweight, unauthorized shoes, etc., etc.

Belted pants rarely need to be Welmered.

People who post things that "might be an interesting question."

I worry more about how well people call the game. Give me an overweight official who does his job over someone who calls in my primary, calls every bit of contact instead of advantage/disadvantage, and generally sucks.

Of course, I'm a short guy who could stand to lose a few pounds (and always could). Nice to know you'd hate working with me without even knowing how well I do on the court. Must kill people like you knowing I work 40+ varsity games each year and am generally wanted back by schools, conferences, etc.

This is, naturally, going to change my generally positive perception of you on this board. C'est la vie.

I have to agree - appearance only goes so far. I see no problem with someone being overweight as long as they can move fast enough to get into positon.

Secondly, no problem with facial hair.

Oh and since when are beltless pants required? (case play please)

Partners that don't hustle.

When I have to guess why my partner blew their whistle.

Partners that disappear in the last few minutes of a close game.

There's nothing in the rules that prohibits middle-aged, balding men from officiating with a shoulder-length pony-tail, either.

When I am watching an official, I hate it when I see official not in the proper uniform.

When I am working with officials, I hate it when officials are not communicating basic information (e.g. where the ball is to be put out of bounds).

Peace

Agreed on uni. Another peeve is poaching.

Rich, I'm not one to take up for Nevada, but I don't think needing to shed some pounds falls into the category of Nevada's "overweight" statement. If you're overweight and not getting up and down the court, I pretty much have a issue with that as well. I could care less if you make the greatest calls in the world, if your weight affects you getting into position or having to make a AT&T call because you're steady getting beat down the court, then it's a problem. I'm sure I don't have to tell you that perception is everything now days, and I heard it all summer long in camps about officials being overweight, or they need to shed some pounds etc. etc.

I also dislike officials who eat multiple burritos right before a game - or worse, at halftime! Especially when they stand close. :eek: :eek:

Well, I see the difference, sure. I still have to work a lot of 2-person varsity and if I wasn't getting in position, I'd hang it up. Do I get beat down the floor a couple times a game? Absolutely, but that's because I really step down as the trail on rebounding and get the best angles on closely guarded situations and I'd rather work the whole game well as the trail than to be able to brag that "I never get beat down the court." I can officiate from behind a couple of times (1-2) a game and still get the calls right.

Camps? I find that this is the best excuse to eliminate someone you don't want in the conference. Not personally as I haven't attended one of those "full camps" in 5 years. I don't spend $300 to be worked like a dog for 3 days.

They charge people tons of money and run them for 3 days straight and if you aren't running like a gazelle in your 12th game of the weekend, you can't "keep up." It's ludicrous.

What a ludicrous practice, really, considering I never work more than one game at a time.

My comment was this: If you are putting this at the top of your list of pet peeves, you must be working with some pretty perfect officials on the court.

#3. Wearing a college shirt/jacket in a high school game.

#2. I worked with a fellow recently who put smokeless tobacco in his mouth during halftime of the first game. A school administrator told him it was a tobacco-free zone, and he did again later in the night!

But my biggest pet peeve:
#1. The guy who doesn't wear a lanyard, and then tells me and my partner all night why it makes him a better foul caller.

I am 6'2 and weigh 230#s. I need to drop a few pounds.

I occasionally ref with a partner that needs to drop a few more than that and because of it there is a lack of hustle and being out of position to make the call. It is not professional.

There isn't an official alive that can truthfully make that statement. We <b>all</b> get beat down the court at one time or another.

Is he from Virginia?

But some officials do their best to minimize it by:

-Breaking to the other end while the rebound is still in question
-Breaking to the other end when the ball is knocked loose by the defense
-Not working up properly on the press

etc., etc.

I see it in college games and high school games. By skinny and not-so-skinny officials.

I see a lot of officials work 1 step from the division line as the trail, never working deeper, never working onto the court, not even in 2-person, where it's required.

Yup, you're giving up good position on 95% of the plays to get good position on 5% of the plays. Not a wise trade-off imo either.

As a first year official.. Mine are in order.


1. Not rotating on fouls. When I go to rotate and they are waving me back it makes ME look like I dont know what I'm doing... I dont need thier help to look clueless.. I do that well enough on my own as is.

2. Lazy refs. When I'm trail.. and I beat you down the court on a fast break.. and there is no earthly reason that should happen... :mad: One time I just kept running and made myself lead cause this guy just walked down court.

3. When you know that this could be a good official, but they suffer from the two syndromes above.

4. Officials who YELL at coaches and fans. As their partner.. I feel like crawling in a hole.

5. Officials who are all of the above giving me advice cause I'm a first year official. :mad: I dont mind advice.. I welcome it, but when I'm dealing with all of the above and then they have the nerve to tell me what I'm doing wrong...

Just a point of clarification, you don't rotate on fouls, you switch (I am assuming two man).

All of your other points are valid and should be discussed with your partner.

Just remember all of these points as you move up and work with first year officals yourself.

a partner that makes a 'make up call' because I missed on an earlier one

players that talk out of the sides of their mouthes just soft enough so you can't actually hear what they are saying, usually following a call against them

And sometimes rather immediately followed by another call against them :D

(before anybody flames me to a crisp, I am just kidding)

(mostly)

One of my pet peeves is officials who try to run backwards, their days are numbered!

Mine are....

Guys who don't hustle....get yourself in position cause if you are not where you should be, you are making us both look bad.

Guys who make up their own signals...Like the "superman" for their "over the back calls" rather than the push signal. Use the approved mechanics, that's what they want us to use.

The guy who who refuses to listen to anything you have to say cause he's patched/licensed or has more years of experience than you...I couldn't possibly understand anything cause I let my license lapse a couple years ago and I've been doing this for 7+ years! :rolleyes:

Guys who take it all too personal ...If another official is advising you, just listen, don't take it personally. You don't have to agree or utilize what they are saying, but just listen....It might not be the way you do it, but that doesn't make it wrong and it doesn't mean you are doing it wrong either...

Lack of eye contact.

Showing up dressed 2 minutes before tip-off

Ripping on other officials and how bad so and so is and why do they get good games.....

Unprofessional talk--for example, the hot mom in the stands, how hot the coach is, etc., etc., as if all men are simply pigs and I care about that crap.

Feature this - last night I'm getting ready to administer an inbound when my partner puts his hand up to wait. After about 5 seconds, he puts it down and I proceed. At the end of the quarter, I asked him why the holdup? He said he was watching "some hot babe in tight pants walk up the bleachers"!

I wasn't mad, just a little upset that he didn't point her out to me. :rolleyes:

BTW - this guy is in his 5th year, I think.

Four years ago it was the way guys dressed. I got so tired of going to games with ELMER FUDD wannabees....:)

It takes a few years before an official is experienced enough to be able to relax and really take in all the atmosphere of the game site. :D

Whats wrong with enjoying the scenery from time to time....Hell, isn't that supposed to be one of the perks of the job?

My pet peeve is working with a partner who thinks that watching the "scenery" is one of the perks of the job.

Welcome back, Juulie. Where ya' been, sweetheart? Happy Valentine's Day.

Of course, when you work with Juulie, she is the scenery. :)

Freddy and I have a lot of the same pet peeves. Perhaps we could work well together.

My pet peeve is when my officiating partner is a very attractive female. :p

Might help to keep you from ball watching.:D

NICE!!!!!!

Wait.. wait hold on....

There are hot babes in the stands...??..:confused:

Wait .... wait... They have those??....:confused: :eek:

You're darn right there are. And if you make a call against their little baby, they transform immediately from hot babe to somebody's irate old lady :)
What a bummer!

You mean like this....

http://members.lycos.nl/AmazingArt/images/6beers.gif

EXACTLY! Except in the opposite order, I think.
(and I'm glad I have a laptop. I would've hated to have to turn a monitor upside down to see that pic!)

I usually scan the crowd in pre-game so I know right where to look during dead balls. :D

Found another pet peeve
 

Working a Girls contest and having my partner tell me that they only reason they are working the girls side is cuz there is no boys games going on. OR hearing an official say that they are going to scale back their season next year for health reasons and just do Girls.... MAKES ME WANT TO SCREAM...:mad:

except that the girls games are slower, less physical (athletically that is not the girl type of pushing), not as challenging. Just my opinion. And I can exert half the sweat doing a girls game than a boys game. Not that I work any less -- its just not at the same pace or level.

Sheez, deecee, that argument hasn't flown since about 1996, if then. You really need to get with the times.

No, that argument is still much alive. People are just too PC to make the argument, now.

I don't know, Juulie, what deecee wrote that isn't true:

(1) Games ARE slower
(2) Games ARE less physical
(3) It's just his opinion
(4) Officials run much harder in a typical boys game

Which of these do you disagree with? How much boys varsity do you actually work?

J,

Its honestly reality. Not that I have anything against girls games. I probably do more girls games than boys and I enjoy them. In fact I recognize a lot of the girls players from over the years and thats kinda nice. I am just saying the reality of it is that comparing girls basketball to boys basketball is apples to oranges when it comes to the level of skill afforded each side. Not saying that I have a higher utility for one or the other its just that it takes much more on the teams parts to make a girls game REALLY EXCITING simply because they are not as quick, agile, skillfull, fast, physical, strong, etc. as boys. That is just fact, not opinion.

J - I am not bashing girls, I am just stating that one is a higher degree of ability and skill than the other when it comes to basketball.

Games are less physical?? Are you kidding? I would submit that you are missing a whole lot of crap going on in your girl's games if you really believe that...

Boy's games are faster (usually) and require more running, but they are also much easier to call - the fouls require very little judgement/thinking. Most female games require a whole lot more judgement, working to get better angles to see the play better, etc...

Legal physical play is what I was talking about.

And I would submit that your second paragraph is not accurate, at least not in my experience. Boys can work through contact and that makes the advantage/disadvantage decision harder. Girls: Bump, down, foul. Anyone can call those.

That said, a good girls game played by two top teams is a treat. The 91-19 game is not a treat (and it's almost never that the boys games are blowouts to this degree).

Short list of peeves:

Partners who do not communicate/make eye contact with you.

Players who do not pick up the ball.

Scorekeepers who don't care or are sloppy.

Dirty floors.

Know it all fans, who don't know basketball from jai-lai

Meek whistles

Coaches

Pet peeve?

Folks who think that all ref's should have the same on-court personality.

In a tight gym with fans right on top of the court you best believe I will have a few short (very short) verbal interactions with fans especially during a full time-out when I'm the officials holding down the throw-in spot.

I'm not agreeing or disagreeing with any of it, except that it's his opinion. I just said that we've had this argument repeatedly over the years, and it's passe. The current, trendy topic is pet peeves, which kim expressed.

How much boys' varsity I work is completely irrelevant to any of it.

I agree. Arguing this is passe.

I love working girls games when they are competitive. No different than boys games, in that respect.

Mine:

#1 by far - When my partner in the lead comes out with a foul on a drive that's coming from my primary and gets it wrong. Especially when it's a bang-bang block/charge and I'm coming in selling it hard. I always cover this in pre-game, even when I am not the R.

#2 - Partners that put the ball on the floor after a timeout and start a count. I know some of you robots out there will do this, but it's very bush league IMO. I feel it makes us look like we think we are above the game.

#3 - Partners that work too high in the slot. Having two trails is not why we have three-man crews. Get your a$$ free throw line extended or below. Especially when we all have the same interpreter who teaches "when in doubt, go low".

Sooooo, when a team is consistently slow and late coming out of times-out what is it you think the robots should do instead?

ps: also a pet peeve--"Partners that put the ball..."; should be "Partners who put the ball..."

Hmmmmmm....interesting.

One of my pet peeves happens to be partners who don't have the ....um....testicular fortitude to use the resuming play procedure because they're afraid that a coach might say something nasty to them. They'll do anything to avoid any kind of confrontation, including practically begging coaches to come out of their huddle. Their favorite excuse is that it's "good game management" ("bush league" works too;) ). Jmo, but I think those kind of officials are in the wrong avocation.

Actually, the instruction I've been getting the past couple of years is to go high as C. You get a different look than going low, and I have found that it's more often a better look. Also, if the ball is on your side, and moving toward the bucket, the L should be on his way over, and you're going to be heading back to T anyway.

In fact, I like the look I get by going high so much that I use it almost exclusively when at T in 2 man, where I used to go low.

JMO

I have no problem with this if the teams are not getting out of the huddle. I have not done it in awhile, but when I do the whole gym knows that I have made it clear to the teams that they are stalling. If I see any girl hustling to the spot, I will wait.

But, I think you are referring to the people that hear the 2nd horn and immediately place it down.

Just tell him instead of looking at the bad side of working a girls' game to look at the good side, such as the foxy female coaches.

I'll never forget the time I was working with someone who felt the need to schmooze everyone. I had never met him and was already looking to getting away from him as soon as the game was over.

He walked up to the female head coach of the visiting team and wished her a Happy Valentine's Day (it was February 14). Picture a woman that looked quite a bit like Jabba the Hut grunting at my partner and turning her back to him without shaking his hand.

Great start, I ended up whacking her before the end of the first quarter.

Mark has said Juulie is. I like to think I am.

Did a men's rec game the other night. Two undefeated teams. TWO female officials out of three. One young enough to flirt with, the other old enough to be their mother.

Just good basketball, not a bit of trouble. They were quite well behaved.

It was fun.

Rita

Mark has a beautiful wife, and is blind to anyone else's true beauty or lack thereof. His judgment of my attractions is quite grossly mis-placed. You'll notice that everytime I say this no one here who knows me argues. That's because I'm right, and Mark's not.

There are, however, other attractive female refs. Personally, I prefer being unattractive. It keeps anyone from wondering if I'd be interested in them. I know they're only working me to get the calls.

I think you should get a better understanding of angles. Going high or low shouldn't be your priority, getting open angles should be. Getting open angles means moving in the correct direction. When a play is going to the hoop, going high is often the best direction to go in. Going low will get you straight-lined more than going high. But you can do what you want.

My pet peeve is an environment without open, honest conversations. I have been told point blank what I was doing wrong and I like it because there is no BS involved. I don't think that is the case as much anymore.

Which one were you? :p

And, all the women on here... lets be honest... we only ref to meet all the attractive male officials.. NOT ;) ! The secrets out now...How many times I meet a officials wife and they look me over and then they find out that I am happily married.

GEEZ, juulie and Rita C - did we start officiating because we wanted to hang out and meet the worlds most eligible bachelors at a rules/association meeting?:) :)

You are correct, I'm talking about the people that seem to always be on a power trip.

I definitely see what you are saying. I'm talking about the people who are just too lazy to worry about getting the angle. If you need to go high to referee, by all means do so. It's the partners WHO stay high by default that bug me.

Whatever philosophy works for you, knock yourself out. The OP was about pet peeves, I offered mine, that's all.

This board is very interesting. I get great information and insight about rules and interpretations. It also shows how officials from different parts of the country have their own nuances.

EWWWWWWWWW!

Rita:eek: :eek:

ooo, kim, do you even have to ask??? I guess my new pet peeve has to be female refs who tell our darkest inner secrets to the public on the forum:rolleyes: !

I agree. I know a few officials who work much better when they incorporate illegal drugs into their pregame activities.

No, no, no......

Keep it up. I think it's.....cute.

http://www.littlefolkspuzzle.com/cat...ZLE-KITTEN.JPG

Only true for some teams around here. But the top teams are just that, tops.

Last week did two JV games from same school. One boys game, one girls game. The girls was the better game of the two. It really isn't a true overall statement for either. Some teams are better than others.

A good matchup, whatever the sex of the players, is a good game.

Rita

I'm always the mother out there.:p

And it cracks me up out there. I seem to get the kid reaction when I call the fouls and violations.

Keeps a smile on my face most of the game.

Rita

As are many of the male comments on this forum as well.

We're all just cute as can be.

Rita

Amen.
 

Amen.

In addition: To those kids, to any kids, on the floor, that game is the most important game at that time, and we, as officials, should always be aware of that, and officiate that game like it's an important game to us.

I didn't play college, or profesional ball, but back when I played during high school, I thought that I played like Bill Russell, and I expected all the officials in my games, to officiate like Mendy Ruldolph.

One of my most memorable games from my first year...
 

would be a week ago. Freshman girls, 7pm start. Worked it with a top varsity guy in my association. I'm thinking how the hell did he end up with this game? He brought his 'A' game, and I learned a lot.

Game was pretty nip and tuck back and forth... until the final few seconds.... A1 steals... drives to the basket, gets fouled hard. Intentional foul. A1 is down for a bit... Gets up saying she hit a tooth on the floor....

I'm administering the cleared lane Fts. Girl is thrilled at the chance to win the game, then you can see she's scared, then she's thrilled! All in the span of about 2 seconds.

She steps up and drains two. Needless to say, she is now completely thrilled. Team inbounds, runs out the clock... game over.

Hey - mine are all legal. I can't help it if I have about 20 different prescriptions.