Canadian reffing NBA Summer League

[canuckrefguy]

Had a friend email this to me:

An official from Alberta is in Vegas this week at the D-League tryout. I've never worked with him (he's in another province), but have seen him work, and he's excellent. His dad is regarded as one of the best officials Canada's ever produced; by all accounts, the kid is a chip off the old block and then some.

Ref eyes roundball history - The Globe and Mail

It’s not just in the casinos on the Strip where some dreams are being realized and others shattered.

A few kilometres east, on the University of Nevada-Las Vegas campus, basketball prospects and former stars alike are playing in the NBA Summer League this week, hoping to show a team they’re good enough to fill out a roster as the 12th or 13th man this coming fall.

Then there’s Michael Weiland.

The 29-year-old from Calgary is here working as a referee and similarly trying to show he’s got enough game to officiate at the NBA level. The odds are impossibly long. In the league’s long history, it is believed that no Canadian has officiated an NBA game.

“It’s always been a dream of mine,” Weiland said.

To get there, he had to get it done here in his three game assignments - an overtime thriller between Dallas and Milwaukee, and a couple of one-sided affairs as Denver routed Chicago and the Bulls hammered the Los Angeles Clippers.

“It’s been a great week,” Weiland said. “I knew it would be faster and quicker here and the biggest challenge is not just the speed of the game and the athleticism, but the fact that where normally I’d have a full second to make a call and get it right, here that second becomes a split second and the pressure to get it right is even greater than normal.”

Michael’s father John officiated internationally for more than 20 years, including assignments at the world championships, Pan Am Games, European championships and the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and served as the long-time assigner for the Calgary Basketball Officials Association.

Michael played at St. Francis High and started refereeing at age 15, working his way up through recreational, high school and community college leagues. Five years ago, he began to work CIS games and last summer earned his card from FIBA, basketball’s world organizing body.

“I had actually refereed hockey when I was 12,” he said. “But hockey parents tend to be a little nuts. ... After I graduated high school, I decided [refereeing] was a way to stay connected to basketball and also a good transition for me since officiating runs in my family.”

Two hundred officials applied to the NBA Development League’s tryout camp in Chantilly, Virginia, in early June, and 60 were selected, Weiland among them. A couple weeks later, he received a call from the NBA. Would he be available to work the Vegas Summer League? Eighteen men and women had been chosen.

“When they called to invite me, it was an emotional thing for both me and my dad,” Weiland said. “I had no idea how I had done in Virginia. But when I got the call, it told me I had performed well.”

In Las Vegas, the NBA’s referee evaluation staff scrutinized his every move, each trip down the floor.

“First, we’re looking for fitness and athleticism - can that person handle the physical pace of keeping up with the play?” said George Tolliver, the NBA’s supervisor of officials for the D-League. “Second, we’re looking for court presence. How do they project themselves? How do they conduct themselves with the players and coaches and how do they interact with their fellow officials?

“Finally, there’s play calling. Are they showing the ability to read and make the right calls?”

In the second quarter of the Bulls-Clippers game, the Clippers' Trey Johnson steamrolled Chicago's James Johnson going to the hoop. However, James Johnson had not established position and Weiland, who was in the right spot underneath the basket, saw the play clearly. He called a block on the Bulls forward, sending Trey Johnson to the foul line.

It's one of the toughest calls for a basketball official to make. But Weiland appeared to have gotten it right.

It is league policy not to publicly evaluate its officials but of Weiland, Tolliver said: “Mike’s got a positive skill set. He’s not a guy we looked at and said, ‘Oh, my God, what did we do here?’ He belongs here this week.

“When Mike came to Virginia in June, he passed the first interview. Now, he’s here in Vegas on his second interview.”

The plan is to hire 10 to 12 new referees in September to work in the D-League this fall. If Weiland were to get one of those precious assignments, he’ll earn anywhere from $375 to $1,000 (US) per game. More importantly, by continuing to progress over the next five years, he could be hired to work an NBA season as a salaried staff member.

“For me, it would be a sense of pride and accomplishment,” he said. “There are only 60 NBA referees in the world and to be included in that club would be amazing.”

[Mark Padgett]

I clicked on the link to his picture and he seems to be using a Fox 52.6 whistle. That's the metric version of the Fox 40.

[zm1283]

Originally Posted by Mark Padgett

I clicked on the link to his picture and he seems to be using a Fox 52.6 whistle. That's the metric version of the Fox 40.

I laughed at that one.

[Ref_in_Alberta]

Originally Posted by Mark Padgett

I clicked on the link to his picture and he seems to be using a Fox 52.6 whistle. That's the metric version of the Fox 40.

Hate to tell you this Padgett, but the Fox 40 is already in metric. It was invented by a Canadian by the name of Ron Foxcroft. Fox-40 Worldwide HQ is located in Stony Creek, Ontario, Canada.

[Ref_in_Alberta]

BTW...

The official in the article and I are from the same local association. He's a great guy and a great official.

He'll go far...

[Judtech]

I lost focus reading after I saw Strip, Dreams and Casino in the same sentence.....

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by Ref_in_Alberta

Fox-40 Worldwide HQ is located in Stony Creek, Ontario, Canada.

Their headquarters is located in a creek!?!? Was the first prototype made for water polo?

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by Mark Padgett

Their headquarters is located in a creek!?!? Was the first prototype made for water polo?

No, white water rafting.

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by Ref_in_Alberta

Hate to tell you this Padgett, but the Fox 40 is already in metric. It was invented by a Canadian by the name of Ron Foxcroft. Fox-40 Worldwide HQ is located in Stony Creek, Ontario, Canada.

And I hate to tell you this also, but the "40" in the "Fox 40" name refers to the co-inventor of the whistle, Joe Forte who is a current NBA official. The idea for the whistle came up when Foxcroft and Forte were working together at the Olympic Games. Forte and Foxcroft also knew each other from working some D1 games together. Foxcroft bought Forte out early iirc.

40 = Forte....and credit where credit is due.

Joe Forte #45

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by Jurassic Referee

And I hate to tell you this also, but the "40" in the "Fox 40" name refers to the co-inventor of the whistle, Joe Forte who is a current NBA official. The idea for the whistle came up when Foxcroft and Forte were working together at the Olympic Games. Forte and Foxcroft also knew each other from working some D1 games together. Foxcroft bought Forte out early iirc.

40 = Forte....and credit where credit is due.

Joe Forte #45

I just bought a new Fox Donaghy! Every time I blow it the point spread changes!

[Back In The Saddle]

Originally Posted by Mark Padgett

I just bought a new Fox Donaghy! Every time I blow it the point spread changes!

Now that's funny

[canuckrefguy]

Calgary referee climbing the ladder
Allan Maki

Globe and Mail Update Published on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2010 8:24PM EDT Last updated on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2010 8:25PM EDT

Michael Weiland’s ambition has taken him to the brink of basketball history.

The 29-year-old Calgarian was told Wednesday he has been selected as a referee for the NBA’s 16-team Development League. No Canadian has ever been hired to referee in the NBA, and Weiland admitted he still has a ways to go. But working in the D-League is a necessary first step, one that only 18 officials were invited to take this fall.

“I was more caught off guard when [George Tolliver, the NBA’s supervisor of D-League officials] called and invited me to the Summer League tryout,” said Weiland, who has been refereeing for 10 years now. “I had a feeling I did okay at the Summer League, but you never know. I’m from Canada. They haven’t had anyone from here before.”

Weiland handled three NBA Summer League games in Las Vegas last month and showed enough athleticism and court savvy to be given the chance to work his way up.

His father, John Weiland, officiated for more than 30 years in Canada and abroad. He was good enough to earn an NBA referee’s tryout in 1978 but didn’t make it. Weiland said it was a special moment being able to tell his dad about his selection Wednesday.

“He’s pretty good at not getting too over-excited but he was on cloud nine,” Weiland said of his father’s reaction. “The first six, seven years of my career was based on getting his insights.”

Asked about the possibility of being the first Canadian referee in the NBA, Weiland replied: “We float under the radar because basketball is not in the media as much in Canada. But in terms of referees, we’ve always been strong, especially internationally. I hope I make it. It’s always been my dream. I hope this is an opportunity where I can say to other guys, ‘Go to an NBA training camp. You never know.’”

Calgary referee climbing the ladder - The Globe and Mail

[JugglingReferee]

I've met John before. Great guy and superb official. It's no surprise that his son is where he is.

BTW, Michael is at least the third Canadian official to make it to an NBA tryout.

[GoodwillRef]

Do they use FIBA rules in the D-League?

[Ref_in_Alberta]

Originally Posted by JugglingReferee

I've met John before. Great guy and superb official. It's no surprise that his son is where he is.

BTW, Michael is at least the third Canadian official to make it to an NBA tryout.

Mike was hired this week which makes him the 1st Canadian official to get the job.

Congrats, Mike!