Making calls out of your primary area

[bbcoach7]

Interesting to me several references to learning to not watch the ball. My first year coaching I had to learn to stop following the basketball. I recal it seemed to take most of the year and a little bit of my 2nd season before I could consistently follow the action away from the ball. Then later when I coached my own kid, I had to train myself to not just watch my kid.

I have no chance of ever figuring out what the opponent is doing on offense and defense unless I watch the action away from the ball. Players think they really know & understand the game from playing so much. I thought I did. But there's so much more to know, especially when you start figuring out and learning other systems.

[TheOracle]

As usual, I'll give a differing viewpoint. There are pirmary areas written as guidelines. Whomever of the 3 that has the best look at a play should make the call. On every play, one of the three has the best look at it. Most of the time, if the ball is in yur primary, you should have the best look, but with good officials, they have a sense of who has it and who should take it.

If you have the second look at it, you can help if needed. As people here have stated, it is a crew dynamic. Some people will, some people won't. Either way, calling from the second look can help or hurt. I tend to avoid calling from the second look. Many others don't.

Calling from the third look is reserved for the O My God calls, when there is a non-basketball play or brutal event that could ruin the game. If done right, your partners will be thanking you for your help on these, especially since they happen maybe a couple of times per year.

Primary areas on court maps are guidelines. You cannot always have the best look in your primary. That's baseball.

[Raymond]

Depends on who you're working for on any given night. Different supervisors have different views on calling outside your PCA.