Pick-Up Ball
 

Anybody here play pick-up ball from time to time?

I play some noon-time five-on-five about once a week with a bunch a thirty-and-fortysomethings at a nearby college gym. (Eight-minute games, or first to 11 wins, NBA three-point line.)

When I get to the locker room today after playing, one of the guys had a rules question waiting: how long can a defender wait in the "bucket" (local slang for "lane")? Puzzled, I said there was no limit. (Maybe in the NBA, but that's not my rule set.)

Apparently, there was an argument on the floor the other day about a defender being in the lane over five seconds, and the argument went on for ten minutes! I jokingly responded, "I'm still wrapping my head around that kick call that took away my shot!"

(The ball deflected off a defender's foot to me, who nailed a 15-footer. The defense called a kick.)

Someone from the shower fired back, "It may not have been intentional, but it WAS a kick!" :eek:

My personal favorite is the dude I often guard who likes to get the ball with his back to me, jump up, and starts dribbling. (I don't have the heart to tell him that's a travel. When in Rome, indeed.) He got a little frustrated at day's end and heaved the ball to the other end of the court. My first instinct was to T him up; it took me a second to realize I was playing.

Are you challenging us?

Nope
 

Last time I played, a 14 yr old kid, who turned into an all district D-Linemen, took me out "accidentally" and I tore my ACL, meniscus, and had cartilage damage.

Uh, NO from me. :(

I do similarly, but only in the offseason....around October 1st, I hang up those shoes until March.

Yeah, I still play some
 

in a loosely organized 50-over pick up situation, where we have a local rec center court for us old farts reserved twice per week. We generally have to get some guys in their 40's to make 10, but that's what we do. When I first joined this group a few years back, I was one of the younger ones they asked to play, and experienced some resentment from the older guys. Now I'm one of the older ones, and while I can't say I like playing vs 20 somethings, I don't mind mixin it up with them young buck 45 yr olds!! The position I get in, since most guys know of my officiating background, I'm always being asked to rule on some play. Mostly my response is "are we playing, hs, college , or pro rules out here". All I have to do to get out of it is start spoutn off some rule differences and they roll their eyes and say forget it. Probably the most often debated call in pickup ball is the "self-pass"...prob cuz so many of us are capable of plenty of air balls!!

I play twice a week at lunch on the air force base I work at and occassionally on Saturday mornings at the army post next to my house. Nobody around here ever argues for a travelling call when someone retrieves their own airball anymore. :cool: My next battle is to convince guys it's not boxing out and actually very dangerous to turn and back your butt into someone who is airborne for a rebound.

Soon to hang it up when my scholastic officiating season started but with my minimal HS schedule this year I've decided to keep playing.

+1 The last time that I played I was helped off the court with a severe knee sprain which lead to arthroscopic surgery due tears in the meniscus. It's earth bound now for me.

Groin tear changed my mind.

Broken Bad
 

I fell trying get a rebound @ 46 years real old and broke my right wrist,tore my right rotator cuff and also for good measure what started it all was my right patella tendon exploded. Two surgeons and six hours of surgery along with 65 visits to the physical therapist cured me from ever playing again.

Nope, cant get paid if I get hurt.
I dislike working with player/refs & coach/refs... make a decision!

Geez, thanks a lot guys
 

maybe I should rethink this playing business, although it's hard to tear much up when you don't go very far from the floor!

Live and learn
 

Fifteen years ago: ...5 minutes playing = right inner miniscus tear, loss of 1/2 season of games.
When I called our Assignor: "How did you do it? Was it basketball?"
"Yes."
"Playing or reffing?"
"Playing."
"You have got to make a decision! Which side of the whistle do you want to be on?"
... I haven't played since ...

Not for Me, Thanx!
 

FOUR YEARS AGO:
Cousin: I'm heading off to play in the alumni basketball game.
Me: Don't get hurt!
Outcome: Cousin tore achilles tendon, surgery, missed lots of work.
Me: Told you so.

THREE YEARS AGO:
Cousin: I'm heading off to play in the alumni basketball game.
Me: Again? Don't get hurt!
Outcome: Cousin tore other achilles tendon, surgery, missed lots of work.
Me: Told you so again.

TWO YEARS AGO:
Cousin: I'm gonna play again this year.
Me: Are you nuts?
Cousin: I don't have any achilles left to tear up.
Me: You're still nuts.

I think the achilles
 

is my biggest worry. I've not had a problem...yet...but have heard some horror stories about recover/rehab.

Why does it have to be one or the other? I find that thinking to be very self-limiting.

Granted, there's an injury risk you take when playing. The greater likelihood, though, is that you'll be in better condition for the games you work. Conditioning has been my number one issue, and I address it partially by getting a good run on the court with guys in my age bracket.

If I have a light week of officiating, I'll schedule one afternoon to play. (Won't happen this week.) Either way, I'm getting some needed exercise.

I'm with you Bainsey
 

A little exercise should help us. Also, and I'll be careful how I say this..nothing wrong with seeing stuff from a playing perspective. I really think in some ways it can be helpful.

Concur, knowledge & experience in the game assists with officiating!
The excitement sometimes get to us while playing/coaching & SOME of us forget that we too referee. That is my only problem with some people doing both.

You know what my problem is? Remembering that I can back-track when I play!

Way too Dangerous
 

Like a lot of things in life you can only control so much...there is always that one guy who feels like he can slide in and take a charge. So, I also stop playing ball about two weeks before the season starts. Instead I started playing ice hockey - way less physical and your joints don't take a pounding. And, it is a brutal workout!

Ice Hockey
 

less dangerous...man what kind of pick up ball you guys play up there? I guess you can have legalized fights:D

Nope, don't really play anymore and not because of injury concerns (though that's a pretty good consideration). Pretty sure I've played only one or two pick up games in the past 2-3 years. I don't want to have to deal with the guaranteed argument about some rule they're mixing up between high school/college/NBA.

Bainsey,
The statement "You have got to make a decision! Which side of the whistle do you want to be on?" was from my assignor to me, not from me to you or any other official.
Two points, I think we agree on:
1: Knowledge of the game from a playing viewpoint is very helpful as an official. When I work with a new partner, I can usually tell if they played at an organized/coached level, mostly because of their ability to anticipate the plays. That understanding often puts them way ahead in their progress and performance in our craft.

2. In a training setting, two years ago, with 140 officials, I asked for a show of hands, of those of us who had played at least Jr. High, High School, or College ball. There were eight of us. The starting point for training differs considerably for most of the 132 others - terminology, game strategy and our reactions to it, etc.

In pre-games, I tell my partner(s) that we should understand the basic execution by the teams, after the first two or three times up and down the court: Is their big a black hole, a relay, or a decoy? Zone, vs man-to-man. And during warm-ups, I ask them to try to pick out the real leaders/shooters on the teams.
Sometimes, I get a blank stare.

Several of the younger officials whom I have mentored play on a regular basis. They are among the better officials in our area, not only in physical conditioning, but in game awareness. At my age, my conditioning for officiating takes a different path.

I like playing basketball and tennis. I will continue to do both if I am not injured.

If I was a a race car driver who started selling cars; I think I would still drive the race car.

You might from me, too. I'm not sure that's ever been discussed in any pre-game I've ever worked. We pretty much stick to the officiating basics.

Still, it's an interesting approach. In some ways, we already take this approach by reacting to action on the floor. I just never thought to put it like that in pre-game.

Thanks, Rob.

Its much easier to know when to flex if the crew understands what the teams are running, offensively & defensively. And the sooner we figure that out, the sooner we can do away with unneccesary rotations.
It's nice to know whats going to happen before it happens!

Played until I was 40 - then tore my left ACL and meniscus. Tried it again, but was just asking for more trouble. Now, I'd hate to hurt it and lose my officiating assignments.