Endline vs. Baseline
 

Thanks to my watching College Hoops, I've been hearing almost every commentator call the endline the "baseline".

By which name should it be universally known by?

Which do you prefer & why?

When I hear the term "baseline" I am thinking that baseball is being played :eek:

I'm bilingual. I'm good with calling it either.

I'm an endline kind of guy as that's what I've been taught and that's what our books and manuals say. I was "corrected" for the misuse of the other term several yrs back and have now become a proponent for using the correct terminology - which IMO is very important for officials.

I was taught "there are only baselines on the baseball field, not on the basketball court."

That being said, we've had this discussion before, as officials, we have much bigger fish to fry than this......

So you speak both basketball & beisbol?

I was curious cause of the so-called "all knowing" commentators using improper terminology (according to the books/manuals).

Baseline may not be the precise word as is used in the rulebook but there is no need to worry about which word to use in this case....it is completely unlike other unofficial words such as "over-the-back" or "reaching". Neither baseline nor endline convey any different meaning relative to the other; they are precise synonyms of each other. EVERYONE knows exactly what you're talking about no matter which one you use.

Merriam-Webster dictionary (and several others) also define it to mean the ends of the basketball court.

Also, one of the sides of a rectangle is properly called the "base". The basketball court is a rectangle.

And the base of a rectangle is dependent upon which side is the base. :p

MTD, Sr.

Unfortunately, you were taught wrong. Baseball fields have foul lines and runners can establish their base path but there are no baselines in baseball.

Realy doesnt matter
 

As a coach we always used baseline. As an official, the correct term is endline but I often hear both used.

In the end, it doesn't really matter since the meaning is the exact same and I have never heard any confusion/complaints as a result of the use of either.

To add to that, there are "baselines" on the basketball court.

End Line is proper but you probably won't hear it much outside of officials talking to one another. I tend to use baseline when communicating with players and coaches.

I don't expect much in terms of rules knowledge when it comes to common-taters.

Same here. After a timeout I might say something like "White ball on endline" and the players stare at me like "where is that?":eek: I find myself using baseline more than endline

Baseline on the offensive end. End line on the defensive end of the floor. Sideline along the sides ;)

Rosetta Stone ...
 

Sounds good in English, but not in Officialese.

Of course, there is the center line,er, division line....