Poll: What do you have?

[just another ref]

We all have our own perception of what the truth is. My own perception is that the game today is suffering because more and more officials refuse to call more and more violations. I think that without question this started at the NBA level and trickled down. The question is why? I speculate that at least part of the problem is lower level officials with big-time ambitions: "I call just like the big dogs!"

Whether the "big dogs" and the big dog wannabes "miss" so many violations,

1. by design

2. because they are afraid to blow the whistle and be wrong

3. for some other reason

I find any of these unacceptable.


Case in point is the video on this thread. The foul has proven to be 15 pages of debatable, block, pc, or no-call, none of which seems to be totally out of the question to most. The travel(s), on the other hand, one of which is undeniable, are there and so often uncalled, they seem to be less and less worthy of mention at all levels. I find this disturbing.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by just another ref

We all have our own perception of what the truth is. My own perception is that the game today is suffering because more and more officials refuse to call more and more violations. I think that without question this started at the NBA level and trickled down. The question is why? I speculate that at least part of the problem is lower level officials with big-time ambitions: "I call just like the big dogs!"

Whether the "big dogs" and the big dog wannabes "miss" so many violations,

1. by design

2. because they are afraid to blow the whistle and be wrong

3. for some other reason

I find any of these unacceptable.

How about, not every official knows how to recognize a violation properly. Why does it have to be a conspiracy to not make a call? And being afraid is one of the funniest comments of all. We get yelled at when we make the right call, when the participants do not know the basic rules. If fear was a driving factor, I do not see why anyone would want to put on the whistle and stripped shirt in the first place.

Originally Posted by just another ref

Case in point is the video on this thread. The foul has proven to be 15 pages of debatable, block, pc, or no-call, none of which seems to be totally out of the question to most. The travel(s), on the other hand, one of which is undeniable, are there and so often uncalled, they seem to be less and less worthy of mention at all levels. I find this disturbing.

The reason there is debate and there will always be debate on most videos of plays, is because not everyone has the same judgment, the angles are not perfect and none of us saw what the official saw. If we were to be that far away from a play and called a travel or foul, not only would you be vilified, it would be justified. The officials on the tape had much better angles than any of us had and on the travels, you cannot even see the ball and what the player was doing with the ball to say one way or another that the play was clearly missed. If that disturbs you, then I would like to watch your games and constantly point out what you call on tape, and not consider any of your positioning or angles you had and evaluate you as an official in total. I bet you would think that was not fair, and you probably would disagree with my assessment and other's assessment about your ability as well. That is why when tape comes into play with supervisors, they usually talk to the calling official about what they saw and consider where they are as it relates to the play.

Peace

[just another ref]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

And being afraid is one of the funniest comments of all. If fear was a driving factor, I do not see why anyone would want to put on the whistle and stripped shirt in the first place.

Afraid might be too strong a word, but most officials, when in doubt, will lean in varying degrees toward a no-call on a violation, and rightfully so.

Originally Posted by JRutledge

When I think I see a travel, I do not make any call. I only call what I see clearly as a travel.

But anything can be taken too far. Many officials, myself included, have said
"I would rather miss a travel than call one that wasn't." But would you rather miss ten than call one that is wrong? I wouldn't. How many?
Two? Five? Everyone must draw his own line.

A coach once told me it should be a jump ball every time the ball goes out of bounds if the official is not 100% sure who touched it last. I disagreed. There will always be a certain amount of guesses, hopefully educated guesses for the most part.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by just another ref

Afraid might be too strong a word, but most officials, when in doubt, will lean in varying degrees toward a no-call on a violation, and rightfully so.

But anything can be taken too far. Many officials, myself included, have said
"I would rather miss a travel than call one that wasn't." But would you rather miss ten than call one that is wrong? I wouldn't. How many?
Two? Five? Everyone must draw his own line.

I did not know there was a count. I do not want to miss any call, period. And I certainly do not want to call a travel that is not there. I would rather miss a minor or technical travel, then call a travel that clearly is not there.

Originally Posted by just another ref

A coach once told me it should be a jump ball every time the ball goes out of bounds if the official is not 100% sure who touched it last. I disagreed. There will always be a certain amount of guesses, hopefully educated guesses for the most part.

OooooKaayyyyyy!!!

Peace

[just another ref]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I do not want to miss any call, period. And I certainly do not want to call a travel that is not there. I would rather miss a minor or technical travel, then call a travel that clearly is not there.

A minor or technical travel? Minor I guess I can figure out, but you may have to enlighten some of the rest of us to what a technical travel is. It is admirable, if unrealistic, to not want to miss any call, but if you cannot clearly see a travel in the video on this thread, good luck to you.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by just another ref

A minor or technical travel? Minor I guess I can figure out, but you may have to enlighten some of the rest of us to what a technical travel is. It is admirable, if unrealistic, to not want to miss any call, but if you cannot clearly see a travel in the video on this thread, good luck to you.

A technical travel would be an example of someone moving their pivot foot a couple of inches rather than a couple of feet. Or when someone calls a travel on a jump stop because one foot came down a split second before the other and we do not consider the feet to come down simultaneously.

I guess you have never heard the term, "Call the Obvious" either?

And no I do not see a travel on the spin move. Sorry, I cannot see how that is so obvious half a court away. Then again, my life is not depending on it either.

Peace

[just another ref]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

A technical travel would be an example of someone moving their pivot foot a couple of inches rather than a couple of feet. Or when someone calls a travel on a jump stop because one foot came down a split second before the other and we do not consider the feet to come down simultaneously.

I guess you have never heard the term, "Call the Obvious" either?

And no I do not see a travel on the spin move. Sorry, I cannot see how that is so obvious half a court away. Then again, my life is not depending on it either.

Peace

So it's okay to move the pivot foot a couple of inches. How many?

I have heard call the obvious, but I've also heard that if you call only the obvious you let a lot go, which I know many players and coaches like.

I find that a travel in a case like this is perhaps easier to see from this distance than close up. It allows you to see the whole picture, that the player had control of the ball, and that he moved both feet, one then the other, a couple of feet, not a couple of inches.