illegal dribble?

[Adam]

Originally Posted by mbyron

Disagree. It's impossible to throw, bat, or roll the ball TO another player by accident.

It is possible for the ball to move from one player TOWARD another player by accident, but that's not a pass, IMO.

If they would simply add "interrupted dribble" to this definition, it wouldn't matter.

I don't see anything inherently intentional in a pass. A pass is defined by the result, not the intent. Consider:
A1 is holding the ball and has already used his dribble.
A1 attempts to throw the ball to A2.
A2 does not see the throw and turns to cut around his defender.
A1, seeing this, retrieves the ball after it has bounced a few times.

What was intended as a pass has now become an illegal dribble.

Personally, I find the "pass" definition easier to justify with the rules. The definition of fumble requires a player to have a "grasp" of the ball. While a dribbler is certainly in "control," as defined, he is certainly not "grasping" the ball.

In the OP, what if A2 grabbed the ball, then dropped it for A1?
What if A2 had purposefully batted it back to A1?
Play, A1 dribbling, loses control. A2 bats the ball back to A1 who grabs it with two hands and then proceeds to dribble. Call?