How far do you push?

[Nevadaref]

Nope, he has to learn the hard way. I'm not going to make a big deal out of an incorrect rules application during a freshman game. I'm sure that this isn't the only thing that such an official is doing incorrectly.

If there is significant booing from the spectators and complaining from the coach, the official will remember the play and it will probably come up during the postgame. That is the proper time for teaching/instructing.


Let me add that I am one of the main instructors for my HS association. I have formed a few opinions about how to teach officials over the past several years. Some things work and some don't. What we are after is improvement from game to game and season to season. The key is to get people to retain what is taught to them. Often a live and learn experience is more memorable than a partner trying to fix stuff for a person on the court.

I am also quite aware of what we teach our new officials, so if they don't listen in the classroom or during the on-court demonstrations prior to the season, then I have little sympathy for them. We now have more officials than we have games for, so those who work hard, apply what we teach, and do some extra studying on their own are the only ones who will be sticking around. We give the new folks a couple of seasons to show us that they are trying and improving, but we aren't going to have someone just taking up space for ten years at the freshman level. We have other people who need those games for developing.