More thoughts from John Adams

[M&M Guy]

Originally Posted by just another ref

Yes, but I've also seen players that automatically point in their own direction on
every out of bounds call, and then say good call when I point the other way.

Of course, they are the same players that think they never foul either, but you learn to tell the difference. On the OOB call, I've made what I thought was the right call while the players are walking the other way, and I'm grateful when I see my partner coming up to tell me I missed a tip. It's kind of hard to ignore when all the players disagree with my initial assessment, not just a single player.

If you work this game long enough, you can see subtle differences in reactions and behavior between players that "want" a call, and players that truly know when you've missed one. I'm going to go out on a limb and say you can sometimes even tell from a crowd reaction that a call was missed. Of course, I don't normally listen to crowds and players, but sometimes there is a different tone and reaction than the normal displeasure. Like I said, it doesn't happen every game, but after a while you can tell a difference.