Intentional Foul???

[M&M Guy]

Originally Posted by Eastshire

She kicked the player in the arm. In soccer, I've got a foul and a unsporting behavior caution for a reckless foul. It it was done with any force I've got a foul and a serious foul play send off for excessive force. If she hadn't made contact, I've got a dangerous play.

The point is, even in soccer, an attempt to play a ball being controlled by the opponent above the waist with the foot is going to be a violation even if you miss.

If her foot was away from her opponent, she wouldn't be trying to play the ball and we wouldn't have an issue.



Kicking the ball simply isn't trying to play the ball. The scenario is a second case scenario from your list.

Beyond that, in a sport where intentional leg contact with the ball is disallowed, there is a serious safety issue when players start kicking above their waist. For the players' safety, you need to heavily penalize this act. Even in soccer, this play would be a caution at least, which is half way to an ejection.

While the attempt is admirable, comparing rule enforcement reasoning in two different sports doesn't always apply. Would you use the soccer example to penalize a football punter if he kicked a defender in the head on the follow-through on his punt? Would you say dribbling with the hands is ok in soccer, because, hey, it's not only accepted but required in basketball? Perhaps over-the-top examples, but it illustrates the faulty reasoning to compare rule enforcement between sports.

Stick to basketball rules when discussing the game of basketball. Is there any specific basketball rule that tells us to "heavily penalize this act"?