New Mechanic? Da Chop

[M&M Guy]

Originally Posted by BktBallRef

You sound like our state supervisor, who abhors this mechanic and will not let us do it in 3 man.

Sounds like a smart guy.

Originally Posted by BktBallRef

It can be, when the L is opposite in the far corner on the end line.

But hasn't that always been the case? How did timers handle this before the mechanic change?

Originally Posted by AllPurposeGamer

You can still watch off ball and chop in at trail...you don't have to be staring at the ball. Been doing this in 2-man for awhile, and it's been no issue.

I understand that, and I believe most good officials can handle it that way. But I have 2 problems - I believe less experienced officials will be more inclined to ball-watch, and it still won't help start the clock correctly if the L isn't being seen. How does the T see the tip on the inbounds pass if they aren't watching either the ball or the L directly?

I believe most timers watch the ball and start the clock when they see it inbounds, and don't watch the chop from the administering official, no matter where the ball is inbounded. I've also seen many delays between the chops of the L and T, so I know they aren't always seeing the same thing.

In 3-person, the C can still handle a lot of the off-ball activity, but the T has more responsibility in 2-person. It just seems like an unnecessary mechanic that may promote more bad habits than problems it corrects. JMHO.