3 seconds....THREE SECONDS!!!

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Jurassic Referee

Every time we blow our whistle, it's a "game stopper". Are you suggesting that we should never call anything?

More diplomatic than me, I see.

The phrase "game interrupter" or "game stopper" has morphed from its original intention (passing on contact that doesn't cause an advantage/disadvantage) to "don't call anything." I've even heard people say not to call traveling cause it's a game interrupter.

Of course it interrupts the game!

The higher the level you work, the fewer times you'll have 3-second violations. I went almost 3 years without one and I wasn't not calling them on purpose.

And we can work on preventing them, but at the varsity level, I gotta admit I don't spend much time talking people in and out of the lane -- if you don't get it by then, there's not much helping you. I will talk at post play early -- "Straight up!" -- that kind of thing, mainly to let them know I'm watching them off ball -- but 3-seconds? If it gets to the point I've called the violation, they should've known better.