Putting the ball in play...
 

Player A has the ball ready to throw it in. (A) Player A bounces the ball, but hits his foot and on the fly crossed over the endline and lands inbounds or (B) Player A bounces the ball, but hits his foot and bounces twice before crossing the endline.

I believe the ball is live in (A) and a violation in (B). Do I have this one right?

Violation in A and B.

9-2-2 The ball shall be passed by the thrower directly into the court...

9-2-4 Once the throw-in starts, the ball shall be released on a pass directly into the court...

I suppose that the case could be made in A that the the ball did go directly from the thrower into the court if he/she bounced it only off their own body and it went directly into the court.

Could, should, shall, will, may, might, must, sometimes, always, never......ah, it must be exam time........ ;)

You could make that case, but 9-2-2 and 9-2-4 require that the release constitute a pass: can you pass with your foot, or any other body part than your hand?

Hint: 4-39 says that "A pass is movement of the ball caused by a player who throws, bats or rolls the ball to another player." The case could be made that only hands can throw, bat, or roll. ;)

There is an NCAA case ruling which says to stop play and readminister the throw-in. The NFHS doesn't have such a ruling, but does have a very similar one for a FT.

I'm of the opinion that if the player screws up and loses the ball after having clear control, then that is his fault and he doesn't deserve another chance.

I would allow play to continue in case (a), but call a throw-in violation in case (b).

Here It Is ...
 

NFHS 9.1.1 SITUATION: A1, at the free-throw line to attempt a free throw: (a) muffs the pass from the official and it rolls forward; or (b) while performing his/her habitual dribbles prior to the release, accidentally allows the ball to deflect off his/her foot into the lane. RULING: In (a), the official should sound the whistle to prevent any violations and then start the free throw procedure again. No freethrow violation should be called in this situation. In (b), a free-throw violation shall be called on A1. (9-1-3a, e)

Please Convince Me ...
 

Why would you allow (a) without calling a violation? I'm not completely disagreeing with you, I just need some convincing, maybe with a rulebook or casebook reference. Please.

I'd like to see that NFHS case. Can you provide a reference?

BillyMac just posted it above.

In the cited free throw case there was no violation in (A) when control was not established. However in (B) control was established and there was a violation. With regard to the original throw in situations, in both A and B the thrower had control, failed to directly pass the ball onto the court and thus violated in both cases

The NFHS FT ruling in part (b) is new as of last season. Prior to that the official was instructed to give it back to him and allow him to attempt the FT.

Why do you state that the thrower has failed to pass the ball directly into the court in both cases? The ball only bounces out of bounds in one of the two cases. In the other case the ball goes directly from the player into the court. That's legal.

Still Not Convinced ...
 

I'm not saying that you're wrong, but be careful with your reasoning. The ball actually bounces out of bounds in both cases:

NFHS- Rule 7
SECTION 1 OUT-OF-BOUNDS — PLAYER, BALL
ART. 1 . . . A player is out of bounds when he/she touches the floor, or any
object other than a player/person, on or outside a boundary. For location of a
player in the air, see 4-35.
ART. 2 . . . The ball is out of bounds:
a. When it touches or is touched by:
1. A player who is out of bounds.
2. Any other person, the floor, or any object on or outside a boundary.
3. The supports or back of the backboard.
4. The ceiling, overhead equipment or supports.
b. When it passes over a rectangular backboard.

I guess the crux of this situation is, what does directly onto the court really mean? It is legal for the throwin player to "dribble" the ball before a throwin. However, it is illegal for a throwin player to throwin a long throwin bounce pass that hits out of bounds, outside the designated spot, before the throwin ends. Again, it comes down to what does directly onto the court mean?

NFHS 9.2.2 SITUATION D: A1 dribbles the ball on floor on the out-of-bounds area before making a throw-in. RULING: Legal, a player may bounce the ball on the out-of-bounds area prior to making a throw-in.

Your statement does not accurately reflect the original post (see below). In both cases the ball enters the court. In both cases, after the ball last leaves the thrower's hands, the ball hits the thrower's foot before it has inbounds status.

Here's the NCAA case:

A.R. 175. A1, on a throw-in from a designated spot, fumbles. A1 leaves the designated spot to retrieve the fumble. Is this a violation?

RULING: No. Since there was a fumble, the official shall blow his/ her whistle, which causes the ball to become dead, and then shall re-administer the throw-in. (Rule 4-31.1 and 7-6.5)

And here's an issue I have with this. Suppose that team B is putting a lot of pressure on the throw-in. You reach 4 seconds when A1 fumbles the ball. Doesn't that give an extra advantage to A, who gets a new 5 second count when you re-administer?

Sounds like a rule the coaches can attempt to hustle us on.
Wondering if the interpretation really means if the thrower fumbles upon receiving the ball & not after it has been in their possession???

I am fully aware that the ball strikes the thrower's foot before heading inbounds. It could also strike his knee or some other body part. It doesn't matter. As long as it goes directly from the player to the inbounds area of the court, there is nothing wrong. I took that into account in making my statement.

What if the throw-in were following a made goal and A1 attempts to pass the ball to A2 who is also standing OOB behind the endline, yet the ball strikes A2 in the shoulder and rebounds into the inbounds area of the court without touching anywhere else? Is that a violation?

Yes. As an earlier poster noted it comes down to what is the definition of a pass directly onto the court. A ball that leaves a throwers hands and does not directly enter the court inbounds (e.g. hits a foot or shoulder out of bounds) is not a pass directly onto the court. We apparently disagree on this point. It woud be useful to get NFHS clarification of this definition via a case or other means.

What if the throw-in were following a made goal and A1 attempts to pass the ball to A2 who is also standing OOB behind the endline, yet the ball strikes A2 in the head, and because of the amount of hair gel A2 is wearing, sticks to his head? I guess you would just continue your five second count.

Things That Make You Go Hmmm ???
 

Agree. I've been pondering this situation for several days, and have thoroughly searched the rulebook, casebook, and annual interpretations, and I can't find a definitive answer for this (throwin ball accidentally hits foot and caroms inbounds).

It comes down to this. Either a throwin ball that accidentally goes from the throwerin's hands to his foot and then inbounds is directly thrown inbounds, and is thus legal, or it's indirectly thrown inbounds, since it didn't go directly from hands to inbounds, and is thus, illegal, and is a violation.

And, I don't believe that this is a one in a million situation that isn't worth discussing. I think that this is a situation that really could happen.

Worth A Second Look ???
 

Several members have commented that this is a violation. They're probably correct. However, since a throwin player is allowed to intentionally dribble the ball out of bounds before making the throwin, isn't that player also allowed to make an interrupted dribble out of bounds, within his designated spot, before making a throwin? What if it's a run the endline throwin? Also, if it is a violation, and it probably is, exactly when does the violation occur, when the ball hits the foot, when the ball hits out of bounds after it hits the foot, when the ball crosses the endline, or at some other time? In this post, for simplicity reasons, I'm assuming that the player is intentionally dribbling the ball, and that's this is not a fumble. Making it a fumble, I believe, would further complicate matters.

I'm going to chime in with this. If it takes serious logical gymnastics to come up with why it's a violation when it happens so rarely as to never likely occur during a given official's career, let it go.

Chances are, when it does happen, the player who muffed it will be the first to touch it after it lands in bounds anyway, and you can call that violation. For the even fewer cases where the player is heady enough to let it bounce and there happens to be a teammate in bounds near by, give them the benefit of the doubt for their quick thinking.

Remember, For Many Of Us, This Is Still The Off Season ...
 

Where's the fun in that?

Is it still a violation if the free thrower ball deflect off his/her foot and a team member gets the ball and toss it back to his/her teamate to finish the free throw?

Yes.

Should it be? That's a different question.