Hi Im new to this forum , but I love what I see, I used to play ball and coached a bit and just want more knowledge overall.... So here is a Huge question.

In the pas several years I have seen a growing number of players drive to the basket, pick up thier dribble and take a hop step, (jumping of the ground and landing back down with both feet)how is this legal, and why isnt it an up and down travelling call?
Clearly if u stop dribbling and just straight up and down its a travel, why not in this case?

U always see this in College and now NBA.
Thanks.

The way I see it is that if the dribble has not been stopped and the hop is the last step like a jump stop there is no violation.
I have seen some pretty creative moves regarding this maneuver but I try to see if the dribble has stopped before the jump.

I just ref Rec stuff but I enjoy it. Here's the scoop. Get a NFHS Rulebook - they have a Web Site. Traveling is Rule 4-42. It's not easy. There's a ton to it.

In short, if you catch the ball or p/u your dribble with one foot "on" the floor or if you catch the ball or p/u your dribble and land on one foot - THEN - you can jump off that one foot and land on two feet, neither of which can be a pivot. You can then lift one or both feet but not return either to the floor without passing or shooting.

So when you see, Catch - Land On One - Jump Off One - Land on Two - Jump Off Two - Shoot. That's OK.

What you see a lot is, Catch - Land on Two - Jump Off Two - Land on Two - Jump Off Two - Shoot. That's a travel. And it's not always called right on the HS level.

Some players like Iverson do it so quick that even in slo-mo I can't see if they are making the first jump off one foot or two. I don't call a travel unless I can see it.

Another big travel is off drop steps. Typically you see, Catch in Air - Land on Two - Pick Up One - Step With One -Pick Up Two (OK UNTIL NOW) - Step with Two (Traveling) - Shoot. As soon as the second foot hits the floor the second time - traveling. I once watched a very very good coach teach this incorrectly to his kids. You gotta release before setting that second foot.

It's a complicated rule.

Here's something I've done that has helped me with this:

I tape games off the TV(college, not NBA). This doesn't help at all in many situations since the camera focuses almost exclusively on the dribbler and whatever defense is on the dribbler. But that's great for studying travelling. I get to a place in the game where someone is called for travelling. I replay this segment over and over, and sort of memorize a rhythm, a feel, a look. I say words to myself like this, "step, gather, step hop" I say it over and over. The next game I work, I'll see three of these!

The other time I work on this is during warm-ups. There is one team in my area that always, always, always does the drive-lay-up sequence correctly. During their warm-ups I just open up all my pores and absorb the rhythm and the feel. Then I watch the other team. Most other teams aren't meticulous during warm-ups (which I think is a coaching mistake, but then nobody asked me!) They are usually not moving at high speed in warm-ups, so I can say my words, "hop, gather, step, step.." or whatever. It's usually clear which rhythms are okay and which aren't. I think this has given me a real feel for travelling on the drive-lay-up. I had one evaluator at camp last week commend my travelling calls. Coaches aren't quite so complimentary!!

[This message has been edited by rainmaker (edited July 09, 2000).]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Geneva">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by John Crow:


In short, if you catch the ball or p/u your dribble with one foot "on" the floor or if you catch the ball or p/u your dribble and land on one foot - THEN - you can jump off that one foot and land on two feet, neither of which can be a pivot. You can then lift one or both feet but not return either to the floor without passing or shooting.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

As I am reading this, you are saying that if you pick up the ball with one foot on the floor and come to a jump stop, you cannot then establish a pivot foot? I have never seen this interpretation. I have always thought that when you come to a legal, simultaneous two-foot landing, you can establish either foot as the pivot.

You have gotten a lot of good advice about how a pivot foot is established. That is crucial to getting the call right.

There are too many scenarios for me to remember them all - so the first thing I determine is the establishment of the pivot foot. Once I know which foot is the pivot, it is easy to see travelling.

It is travelling if the pivot foot is lifted before releasing the ball to begin a dribble, or if the pivot foot is raised and returned to the floor before releasing the ball on a pass or shot.

It is also very effective in explaining to a coach that questions a call if I can say, "His right foot was his pivot, and he raised it before dribbling." Works just as well to explain a no-call. If you can confidently say which foot was the pivot, you were watching much more closely than any one else in the gym, including the coach, and it helps your credibility.

If you catch the ball with both feet off the floor and land on both feet at the same time either foot can be the pivot foot.

John Crow is exactly right,if you perform a "jump stop" as he described neither foot can be the pivot foot.