Jump stop/pivot/step

[dave30]

I know it is travelling if a player does a jump stop and then takes a step or pivots. It is also travelling if a player's feet do not land simultaneously.

Is this rule different in college?

I saw a Wisconsin player do a jump stop. The left foot may have hit the ground a split second before the right foot. I could see missing that. But, then he took a step with his right foot and made the shot. No call was made.

Is there a lot more leniency on player's going to the basket in college? Is the rule different from high school?

Just wondering because this is the call I have the most trouble with in high school. Player's sometimes jump and go to the basket with two big steps and it's legal, but sometimes it is a jump stop and it's travelling when they step. Does it have to do with picking up the ball before jumping or keeping the dribble alive and grabbing the ball while in the air?

Can anyone explain it in a way that will help me get this call right every time?


The other tough call for me is deciding when a player lowers his shoulder on a move and the defender gets position and flops after no contact (or minor contact). Sometimes it looks like a player control foul but it really isn't and sometimes it is a foul due to the contact. It's hard to tell the difference sometimes.

[Juulie Downs]

It depends on what you're calling a jump stop. If the player had the ball gathered (dribble ended) in the air and then the player landed on both feet, he can take one more step. If he had it gathered as he jumped off one foot, and then landed on both feet, he can't.

[dave30]

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

It depends on what you're calling a jump stop. If the player had the ball gathered (dribble ended) in the air and then the player landed on both feet, he can take one more step. If he had it gathered as he jumped off one foot, and then landed on both feet, he can't.

If a player gathers the ball in the air and lands .... then his feet do not have to hit at the same time..... if it is not on a move to the basket, then the first foot to hit is the pivot foot. If it is a move to the basket, then it like two steps on a layup. Do I have it right now?

[Juulie Downs]

Originally Posted by dave30

If a player gathers the ball in the air and lands .... then his feet do not have to hit at the same time..... if it is not on a move to the basket, then the first foot to hit is the pivot foot. If it is a move to the basket, then it like two steps on a layup. Do I have it right now?

well, sort of. whether or not it's a move to the basket doesn't really matter, as far as the rules go.

The feet don't have to hit exactly perfectly simultaneously to be a jump stop. Should be pretty close, though. If he gathers ball in the air, lands on both feet, either foot can be the pivot. He can then step off the non-pivot foot to shoot or pass, but can't put the pivot foot back down again, so it's more or less one step, as long as that step isn't taken by the pivot foot. That's all true whether or not you consider what he's doing a "move to the basket".

You're right that if he gathers in the air, he can land on one foot which then becomes the pivot foot, and then step onto the other foot and jump up to shoot or pass. So it's more or less two steps after the gather. It's just that the rule isn't defined in terms of the number of steps so when you word your play that way, it's a little hard to just say "yes" or "no".

A better way to describe travel/no-travel questions is with regard to the pivot foot. The whole question is laid out in relation to when the pivot foot is established, and which foot is the pivot. When you know which foot is the pivot, and when everything else happened in relation to that, you've got it made!

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

If he/she gathers ball in the air, lands on both feet, either foot can be the pivot. He/she can then step off the non-pivot foot to shoot or pass, but can't put the pivot foot back down again.

If he/she gathers in the air, he/she can land on one foot which then becomes the pivot foot, and then step onto the other foot and jump up to shoot or pass. The rule isn't defined in terms of the number of steps.

A better way to describe travel/no-travel questions is with regard to the pivot foot. The whole question is laid out in relation to when the pivot foot is established, and which foot is the pivot. When you know which foot is the pivot, and when everything else happened in relation to that, you've got it made!

Juulie Downs: Well put. This should be printed, enlarged, and posted in every sports bar for the next two weeks.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Juulie Downs: Well put. This should be printed, enlarged, and posted in every sports bar for the next two weeks.

I worked a boys varsity game in a small town rivalry that went to the buzzer and we got the DVD. The visiting team was well coached in the jump stop and listening to the announcers was hilarious. They acknowledged the legality of the jump stop, but called it a "jump step" the entire game and then told everyone how much they hated it, especially on a play where the kid jumped off one foot and was fouled coming down into the jump stop (the defender stepped in and the kid with the ball pretty much landed on him).

That said, we did miss one during the game -- the feet came down very fast and only with a number of replays did it become obvious the feet didn't come down simultaneously when they needed to, by rule. It was in a tough place to get 2-person, but it's one thing I need to work at next year -- moving more aggressively to get angles as the trail in these types of situations.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

The feet don't have to hit exactly perfectly simultaneously. Should be pretty close, though.

Huh? Either the feet land simultaneously, or they don't. If they land simultaneously, then either foot can be the pivot foot. If they don't land simultaneously, then the foot that lands first becomes the pivot foot.

[BktBallRef]

Originally Posted by dave30

Is there a lot more leniency on player's going to the basket in college?

There's a TREMENDOUS of "leniency" in D-1 college basketball.

There's also a TREMENDOUS amount of traveling that is ignored.