Leg Tap

[eg-italy]

Originally Posted by Pantherdreams

- Is the foul now unsportsmanlike? If it is foul, he not making an attempt at the to play the ball and doesn't make it across to to challenge the shot. He's simply reaching out and whacking the shooter in the leg to try to distract him. As i look at it, if its enough that I need to blow the whistle its going to be an unsportsmanlike or tech.

It's never a T, under any rule set that I know of. With the same reasoning, also reaching in front of a shooter and hitting their forearm just to prevent the shoot should be ruled unsportsmanlike (or intentional for our NF's esteemed colleagues ), even if there is no excessive contact.

Don't try and look into the head of the players: this is why FIBA changed the foul kind's name into "unsportsmanlike"; the same criterion is used in Fed, I believe: judge the contact and its effects, according to the rules; don't judge the player's intention, which you cannot.

If, in your opinion, that contact may lead to rough play afterwards (which it does in most cases), call a foul, otherwise rule it as incidental. Note that your opinion is completely independent of the player's intention. But never warn a player for this: either it's a foul or it isn't.

Ciao