Two man coverage on transition 3
 

End of the game the other night. 17 year old boys. Team A down 3. Team A has the ball in quick transiton. I am the lead in a two man game. Player A-1 comes to the top of the top of the key to stop for the big game tieing 3. The trail is just across the division line and I have two knuckleheads killing each other in front of me as I hustled back with them and am under the hoop.
How do we cover this? He shot an apparent 2 and all the "center officials" in the stands evidently saw his foot slightly on the line. My partner throws his hands up and signals a three and at the same time looks for me for help with the line. As I stated, all I saw was two twin towers in front of me tustling.
What is the correct mechanic to cover this and don't say hire a third official?

Lead has the entire 3-point arc on full-court plays until the trail gets into position.

Don't miss a "was it a 2 or 3" at the end of the game. You're in transition... and that means, imho, that the L has the shot origin. Forget the 2 kids tustling, for the second that it takes you to determine if it's a 2 or a 3. If your P signals otherwise (including the lack of a signal to mean a 2-pointer), kill the play and get together to fix it.

The fact that your P was looking to you for help, and also had a signal, tells me that he didn't follow proper procedure: L has the 3-point line until T is in position.

Hire a third official. Oh, wait, you said...

Since you said you were already under the basket, and the T was across the division line, I would say it is the T's call all the way. It should be their responsibility to get into a position to see that foot. Of course, they can look to you for help, but if you're already watching a matchup, you're doing what you're supposed to be doing.

Of course you pre-game this situation, but in most cases the only time the L would call "outside" their area is if they were even with the lead players in transition, while the T is still in the back court.

I've been told not to guess on 3 or 2. If you don't know, it's only worth 2.

So if your Trail wasn't sure, then he handled the play poorly. One cannot make a call AND THEN seek help. One should seek help first and then make the decision.

Given that the team was trailing by 3, you probably suspected that the player would pull up and attempt a 3 rather than continue to the basket. By understanding the game situation you can put yourself in a position to observe the most important action which is about to unfold. In this case you desire a place from which to view both the location of the shot and the two players under the basket. Why not hold in the C position at the FT line extended in this case as you transition down the court? It seems that would have been the most appropriate position.

This is ideally a pre-game topic. Even if it's not, as L, I'm taking a good peek at the feet as soon as I notice him pulling up. Getting it right is what's most important in this situation. In a "big" game during the regular or post-season, someone's going to have it on tape, most likely, and it's always more fun to be backed up by the tape than the reverse.

IMHO, in transition, the L must be prepared to offer help on a possible 3 point shot. Depending on circumstances, that may mean picking up the feet as you pass by the shooter and signaling to help your partner, or it may mean not getting so focused on the knuckleheads in the post (a secondary play) that you can't sneak a peek at the shooter (the primary play) to assist your partner. NV's suggestion is worth considering. The prime directive of officiating is be where you need to be to see the play. Or in this case, to see both plays.

I would go so far as saying that it's a requirement.

Agreed. Forgot about those two guys. If they cause trouble, and you miss an elbow to a ribcage - too bad - it's a limitation of the 2-official system.

If L is already baseline in this transition, s/he might be able to rule on both - but the shooter is, as you say, primary. To be honest, I don't think that the L is already at baseline if T is barely across the DL. It just doesn't happen like that most of the time.

In this situation as the new Lead I would have got a position in the Slot as was stated already. Most important here is seeing the 3-point line and seeing a possible foul against the shooter.