The ultimate confirmation
 

Tonight, BV. A1 pulled a rebound, threw a quick outlet to A2 near the division line. A2 caught the pass looking back, and had failed to see B1, who had set up in his path. A2 turned, saw B1, made a remarkable change of direction and beat B1 to the corner, where there was a collision which would have been a clear blocking foul, but during this very athletic move to avoid the PC, A2 lifted his pivot before he put the ball on the floor. I called the travel, A fans went nuts. Was I positive? No. But I thought it was the right call. Partner told me after the game as he administered the throw-in next to A's bench, he heard the head coach say softly, "Damn good call."

Way to go JAR.

Concur. Best compliment I can get after a game is if a player, coach, or g_d forbid even a fan/parent of the losing team said I called a good game.

Keep 'em coming!

Even not seeing it, I suspect you got the call right. I've called this many times. It's so common for players to quickly move their feet when suddenly confronted by a stationary opponent.

Darn good call!

just another ref:

I am confused, you stated: "A2 lifted his pivot before he put the ball on the floor"

Based upon your description of the play, why wouldn't you be positive. A2 lifted his pivot foot before releasing the ball to start his dribble. That is traveling.

MTD, Sr.

He wasn't positive of the travel because he possibly was too close to the play, or the play was very quick for his eyes, or he didn't find the pivot foot in time (and then surmised some info about the player's foot movements). But he still made the call. Coach knew it was a travel, and by saying "Good call", acknowledged the difficulty with the officiating the play correctly, because of the athletic move by his player.

I'm sure JAR knows the rule - I'm just saying that some element that we wish for was missing - IOW, he could have had a better look, but still made the right call. Just my 2 cents... and I could be wrong.

Should I have said: I made the call based on the theory that he lifted the pivot first? This entire sequence took place, uh, really quickly. Are you positive of every call you make?

just another ref:

The answer to your first question is: YES! Do not guess. If are are not sure if A2 lifted his pivot first before releasing the ball before he started his dribble then call the charging foul.

The answer to your second question is: I thought I made a mistake once but I was mistaken about thinking that I had made a mistake, :p.

MTD, Sr.

And Leave The Clowning To Mark Padgett, He's What You Call An Expert ...
 

Please go and look for an old interpretation, or an old citation, up in your attic. And don't tell me how cold it is up there.

Billy:

It is cold outside: 3F with a wind chill of -9F.

Do you know what they say about men with big hands and big feet? They are clowns. :D Ain't I a stinker.

MTD, Sr.

I wish it was -9F here, been in the mid -30'sF or so lately before windchill. Very cold, luckily it's a 30' sprint to the school from my house.

I do disagree with this. If I am pretty sure (but not 100% certain) he traveled and the choices are PC or travel, I'll call the travel. I've found that pretty sure usually means he did, considering I'm not one of the "if it's ugly it must be a travel" crowd.

Best compliment I ever got was by a fan. It was a holiday tournament semifinals. Gym was so crowded they let some fans stand on the end. At one point, we had a pass to the wing, kid drove the baseline and crash! I came out with a PC foul, reported it and we had a time out. As I took my place for a throw in, this fan says, "Hey ref, I always yell at you guys. But this is crazy down here on the floor. You guys blow your whistles before I even know what happened."
The guy had nothing but good compliments all night long, and was amazed at how much more quickly the game moved on the floor compared to in the cheap seats.
I asked him to go tell all his friends!

Put the ball on the floor
 

The OP says "avoid the PC, A2 lifted his pivot before he put the ball on the floor."

One can lift his pivot foot drop the ball to the floor (a bounce pass?) but not be the first to touch it.

I think the rule is: You can not left your pivot foot to START a dribble. The START means pushing the ball to the floor. How / When do you determine if it is a start of a dribble or a bounce pass? My interpretation is if the player is the first to touch when it bounces up.

I'm sure there is a case play stating about an airborne shooter dropping the ball to the floor and that explanation may help me if anyone has it.

The ultimate confirmation is when a veteran official tells you that you made a big time call. IMHO Jack :)