New Referee on the town -- need advice

[Rob1968]

One method of overcoming the tendency to watch the ball is to do the following:
When you transition from Trail to Lead, get to the endline quickly. On the way, think of your new PCA, and look towards it. When you get to the endline, turn your body so that your angle is facing your PCA, rather than being square to the court. Indeed, force yourself to face your PCA, and to look there, even though the ball, and most of the action, is not in your PCA.
As you get comfortable with this attitude, or posture, you will find that you can trust your partner, as you will notice his/her calls that you really didn't see. Making a mental note of such calls will re-enforce your desire, and positive result of "working my PCA" and "trusting my partner."

[Newbie-ref]

Originally Posted by Rob1968

One method of overcoming the tendency to watch the ball is to do the following:
When you transition from Trail to Lead, get to the endline quickly. On the way, think of your new PCA, and look towards it. When you get to the endline, turn your body so that your angle is facing your PCA, rather than being square to the court. Indeed, force yourself to face your PCA, and to look there, even though the ball, and most of the action, is not in your PCA.
As you get comfortable with this attitude, or posture, you will find that you can trust your partner, as you will notice his/her calls that you really didn't see. Making a mental note of such calls will re-enforce your desire, and positive result of "working my PCA" and "trusting my partner."

What is an "PCA" ? thanks,
New REf

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by fiasco

Ball watching essentially means you don't trust your partner. If you trusted your partner, you wouldn't feel the need to watch the ball all the time.

Wrong.

This is one of the most common things I have to try to teach new officials to not do in camp or in evaluations. They usually do not know any better or have the experience to not do this, so they do it. It does not mean they are not trusting their partner when they do not know why this is a problem yet.

Peace

[just another ref]

I think it is a combination of things.

Many are hung up on: " If I see it, I'm gonna call it, no matter what."

This provokes a couple of things.

1. You shouldn't have seen it in the first place, because you shouldn't have been looking over there.

2. If you're 50 feet away, and the play is right in front of your partner, you do need to trust him. "I think that was a foul, but if he can't call it from there, no way can I call it from here."

[tref]

Originally Posted by just another ref

I think it is a combination of things.

Many are hung up on: " If I see it, I'm gonna call it, no matter what."

This provokes a couple of things.

1. You shouldn't have seen it in the first place, because you shouldn't have been looking over there.

2. If you're 50 feet away, and the play is right in front of your partner, you do need to trust him. "I think that was a foul, but if he can't call it from there, no way can I call it from here."

Even if you're the L with all ten players running motion above the FT line extended & there was an obvious foul that your partner no-called because they didnt position adjust?

Also, isnt the object of the basketball officiating to referee your primary matchup(s) while seeing as many of the other players as possible?

I hate discussing plays when partners get all defensive about their incorrect no-calls & resort to "you shouldn't have been looking there in the first place."

IMO, the game has changed & so has refereeing, the let em live & die mentality on obvious fouls is of the past. Get the play right with a proper cadence whistle is where todays game is at.

Not directed to you, but I find that most officials with that mindset dont attend camps to get the updated information anymore nor are they big on effectively breaking down game film.

[jdw3018]

Originally Posted by tref

Even if you're the L with all ten players running motion above the FT line extended & there was an obvious foul that your partner no-called because they didnt position adjust?

Also, isnt the object of the basketball officiating to referee your primary matchup(s) while seeing as many of the other players as possible?

I hate discussing plays when partners get all defensive about their incorrect no-calls & resort to "you shouldn't have been looking there in the first place."

IMO, the game has changed & so has refereeing, the let em live & die mentality on obvious fouls is of the past. Get the play right with a proper cadence whistle is where todays game is at.

Not directed to you, but I find that most officials with that mindset dont attend camps to get the updated information anymore nor are they big on effectively breaking down game film.

50 feet away is beyond the division line on most high school courts if you are the lead, and if something happens right in front of my partner, unless it's a non-basketball play, I can see no reason to go get it.

If all players are above the free throw line then you better be officiating hard in secondary coverage areas to help your partner who should be officiating on-ball.

It's not an either-or scenario. Watch what needs to be watched based on the situation at hand. Especially in a two-man game there is rarely a time when both sets of eyes should be on the same matchup.

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by jdw3018

50 feet away is beyond the division line on most high school courts if you are the lead, and if something happens right in front of my partner, unless it's a non-basketball play, I can see no reason to go get it.

In fact, 50 is in the backcourt on ALL courts.....NBA/NCAA courts are only 94' long....division line at 47'.

And if all 10 players are that far out and beyond, the lead better not be below the endline....and 50 feet away.

Originally Posted by jdw3018

If all players are above the free throw line then you better be officiating hard in secondary coverage areas to help your partner who should be officiating on-ball.

It's not an either-or scenario. Watch what needs to be watched based on the situation at hand. Especially in a two-man game there is rarely a time when both sets of eyes should be on the same matchup.

Agreed....IF all 10 players are that far away, you still have 6-7 of them that you should be covering. Only 3-4 of them are on-ball....trail has those, the lead gets the rest no matter how far away they are.

[tref]

Originally Posted by jdw3018

50 feet away is beyond the division line on most high school courts if you are the lead, and if something happens right in front of my partner, unless it's a non-basketball play, I can see no reason to go get it.

On North-South plays yes, but the court is 50 feet wide too.
Lets just say your C has been known to follow the flight of the pretty ball on 3 point attempts. You knowing this fact at the T, so you keep an eye on his airborne shooters. *BOOM* Crash with 2 players lying on the floor, you see the shooked look in his eyes as they shift from watching the ball rip the twine to the players lying beside him. He then gives the "get-up" signal as many of the posers who miss that call do. I'm putting a whistle on it!!

Originally Posted by jdw3018

If all players are above the free throw line then you better be officiating hard in secondary coverage areas to help your partner who should be officiating on-ball.

I thought thats what I already said...

Originally Posted by jdw3018

It's not an either-or scenario. Watch what needs to be watched based on the situation at hand. Especially in a two-man game there is rarely a time when both sets of eyes should be on the same matchup.

Having 2 man -errr- 2 person crews is a crime & should be treated as such!
With the speed & skill of todays players having that 3rd is very crucial as many plays require 2 officials to be on the play. Yeah team officiating... to some it may be a new concept. But its true!!

[just another ref]

Originally Posted by tref

Even if you're the L with all ten players running motion above the FT line extended & there was an obvious foul that your partner no-called because they didnt position adjust?

Did you really think that was the play I was talking about?

No, here's the ultimate example:

Earlier this year, jr. high boys. I am lead. A1 shoots a 3 deep in the corner, 6 feet in front of me. He wasn't even (I don't think) that close to the line. I marked it, partner (a rookie) didn't pick it up, so I signaled it good. I happened to catch sight of him shaking his head and holding out 2 fingers. I found out after the game that he had overruled my call as he passed the table. "No, no. It was a 2."

When we discussed it afterward, he said he was positive the foot was on the line. I told him I was certain it wasn't, but that wasn't even the point. There were 8 other players between us somewhere, and yes, "You had no business looking over there." Secondly, that he needed to trust his partner on this one, because I obviously had a better look.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by tref

Even if you're the L with all ten players running motion above the FT line extended & there was an obvious foul that your partner no-called because they didnt position adjust?

Also, isnt the object of the basketball officiating to referee your primary matchup(s) while seeing as many of the other players as possible?

I hate discussing plays when partners get all defensive about their incorrect no-calls & resort to "you shouldn't have been looking there in the first place."

With a new official, I'm not going to stretch his primary. Once he learns his primary and how to avoid ball watching, we can discuss situations where he needs to expand.

My response to a poached call is, "What did you see?" If I saw something different, I'll mention it. I move on unless he expresses a willingness to actually discuss it openly.

[TimTaylor]

Originally Posted by fiasco

Ball watching essentially means you don't trust your partner. If you trusted your partner, you wouldn't feel the need to watch the ball all the time.

I strongly disagree. As several others have pointed out, not trusting your partner has nothing to do with it - it's an issue of training and experience.

It's just about understanding your role on the floor and understanding that there's a lot of contact that goes on away from the ball. If you're ball watching all the time, you're not doing your job. Just care less about what the ball is doing and more about focusing in on your primary area of coverage.

This is the only part of your statement that I agree with. As was pointed out earlier, the focus of the action is usually where the ball is and it's a natural tendency to look there. A good official learns to focus on their coverage area away from the ball, and that takes time and experience.

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by fiasco

Ball watching essentially means you don't trust your partner. If you trusted your partner, you wouldn't feel the need to watch the ball all the time.

I don't think that is it at all.

I think it is from many, many years as a spectator/player where most people just watch the ball. It is a habit from pre-referring days. Most people that watch the game like to know what the ball handler is doing and focus on them. For some people that join the officiating ranks, that is a hard habit to break. I think the last thing it is about is trust.

[Freddy]

Originally Posted by kwatson

Im new to it as well and my biggest problem is how to stop ball watching. Any trick or tips that will help me cure this bad habit would be appreciated.

Since you inquired about specific "tricks" or "tips", rather than philosophy and "zen and the art of officiating", how might these help your quest?

A. Make it a point to review a printed sheet of the primary areas of coverage for either two or three-person prior to every game. What the mind sees gradually becomes integrated into a real-to-life setting. I've got a sheet with each official's primary shaded in a different color that I bring out every single pregame conference, regardless the veteran or rookie status of the personnel on the crew for the night.

B. Each time down the court, just before or perhaps right when the ball settles, manually bring your arms up just a little bit and actually point to and express to yourself the boundaries of your primary. What you visualize ahead of time gradually becomes what you prioritize when the action starts happening. Doing it every time early on makes considering your primary area more automatic as time goes on.

C. Get yourself a shock collar and give the remote control to a trusted observer sitting in the stands. Instruct him/her that every time your focus wanders from your primary.....ZAP!!! Should iron out any ball watching problems you have after two or three sets of undergarments.