Interrupted dribble

[force39]

I was watching a state playoff game and the player had a fastbreak and then lost control and finally came up with it and they called a travel or d.d. When does it become traveling or D.D.? I thought it was ok to fumble and take steps and then gain control.

[JRutledge]

It depends on what the player was doing when they lost control of the ball and what they did to control it. Was the player in an active dribble when he lost cortrol of the ball? Was the player holding the ball at the time of losing control? Did the player stop a dribble?

In order to answer this question, there has to be some more information given. And there is judgement that plays apart in this too.

Peace

[Camron Rust]

Originally posted by force39
I was watching a state playoff game and the player had a fastbreak and then lost control and finally came up with it and they called a travel or d.d. When does it become traveling or D.D.? I thought it was ok to fumble and take steps and then gain control.

Chances are they called it wrong. I see this called wrong several times per year at all levels.

The typical case is that a dribbler trys to pick up the ball but fumbles it (although it never leaves the vicinity of the hands) and after a few steps, does actually get control of the ball and immediately shoots/passes/stops. Too often, it gets called a travel.

It should only become a travel if the player continues to move their feet after they actually catch and hold the ball.

[ChuckElias]

Originally posted by Camron Rust
Chances are they called it wrong. I see this called wrong several times per year at all levels.

In fact, we've discussed a similar play that was called a carry in an NCAA D1 game recently

http://www.officialforum.com/showthr...?threadid=7195

Chuck

[force39]

Of course it happened quick but it appeared that he was dribbling towards the basket lost control of the ball then finally got control but it didn't appear that he took a step. They even showed a replay. So they way I read it if a fumble takes place as long as when he gains control he doesn't take a step or dribbles again he is alright.

[iref4him]

i remember what a seasoned official told me-->a fumble presumes possession. He said you won't find it in the rule book, but take the fumble vs muff definition as in football rules. Fumble implies possession and a muff implies no possession. SO if the player had possession and lost the ball, then travel or dd could be appropriate. But if it was deamed no possession, then travel and dd is impossible. It has kept me out of trouble and easy to explain to the coach.

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by iref4him
i remember what a seasoned official told me-->a fumble presumes possession. He said you won't find it in the rule book, but take the fumble vs muff definition as in football rules. Fumble implies possession and a muff implies no possession. SO if the player had possession and lost the ball, then travel or dd could be appropriate. But if it was deamed no possession, then travel and dd is impossible. It has kept me out of trouble and easy to explain to the coach.

It may have but that's not what the rules say.

A fumble is an accidental loss of player control.
You can't have traveling without player control.
You can't have a dribble without player control.

[canuckrefguy]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by BktBallRef

A fumble is an accidental loss of player control.
You can't have traveling without player control.
You can't have a dribble without player control.

Agreed. Chalk this one up to not wanting to go looking for reasons to blow the whistle.

Like I always say....

[JRutledge]

Originally posted by iref4him
i remember what a seasoned official told me-->a fumble presumes possession. He said you won't find it in the rule book, but take the fumble vs muff definition as in football rules. Fumble implies possession and a muff implies no possession. SO if the player had possession and lost the ball, then travel or dd could be appropriate. But if it was deamed no possession, then travel and dd is impossible. It has kept me out of trouble and easy to explain to the coach.

The Football comparison does not really fit here. Because a muff or a fumble has more to do with what can be done by the opposition on recovery than just whether possession is gained or not. And as Tony says, the rules clearly state what a fumble is in basketball terms.

Peace

[BigJoe]

BktBallRef is all over this one! This is probably the rule that is mis-interpreted the most in basketball. You can't make a call just because it looks like a travel or a DD. You must back up the call with solid interpretation of the rules. That is why the fumble is called a DD all of the time. If an official calls the play based on the rules this will not happen. The same thing goes for the play where the dribbler loses control of the ball and tips it a couple of times in an effort to gain control. This is called travelling more often than not. Sorry for the venting, but this bothers me when I see these situations called incorrectly. It should really bother me that officials that call it wrong get less grief from the coaches and the fans than the ones who call it right!

[rainmaker]

The other important part of this is how the player gains control. If she is dribbling, then fmbles and then recovers with two hands, or one hand under, she cannot dribble again. if she can regain control by keeping one hand on top, and continuing the up-down motion, it's legal. But if you see her recover with two hands, stop and consider whether she ever had control in the first place. If not, even a two hand recovery is legal.