Intentional Foul

[Nevadaref]

Camron,
I believe that mbyron is refering to strategic fouling by a team near the end of the game. These fouls are certainly done on purpose or intentionally, yet are not automatically intentional fouls.

The reasons you cite, that the foul is given purposely to stop the clock, keep it from starting, or to negate the obvious advantageous position of an opponent, have an element of intent to them, but there is more. The intent to commit the foul itself is not enough, the foul must also do something else in order to be deemed an intentional foul. You have pointed out in the rule what those something elses are.

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by Nevadaref

Camron,
I believe that mbyron is refering to strategic fouling by a team near the end of the game. These fouls are certainly done on purpose or intentionally, yet are not automatically intentional fouls.

The reasons you cite, that the foul is given purposely to stop the clock, keep it from starting, or to negate the obvious advantageous position of an opponent, have an element of intent to them, but there is more. The intent to commit the foul itself is not enough, the foul must also do something else in order to be deemed an intentional foul. You have pointed out in the rule what those something elses are.

Yet, if many of those something else's happen without intent, they remain a common foul. For example, stopping the clock....for it to be intentional, it has to be specifically designed to stop the clock, which is the same as deliberate, intentional. For that matter, all fouls stop the clock. The only thing that makes it an intentional is the fact that it was deliberately/intentionally committed so the clock would stop. What else is left to separate them? We dance around it a bit by saying that if they make a half-hearted attempt to make it look like a normal foul, we'll call it as such, but it is a bit of a farce because everyone knows they are breaking a rule in hopes that it will work in their favor...exactly what the intentional foul rule is designed, in part, to prevent.


Many fouls also negate an obvious advantageous position....that is basically what advantage/disadvantage is saying. Yet, it is intent (or excessive force) that makes them an intentional foul.