Stupid tournament rules
 

Grade school tournament, with a "no zone defense" rule. Of course, no explanation as to what can and cannot be interpreted as a zone....
I'm handing in the ball on an inbound, the tournament host team is on defense, lined three across the lane (while the inbounding team is stacked up). Gosh. Doesn't LOOK like a man. Looks like a zone. Offended coach is screaming, "No zone! They are in a zone!" Well, he's got a point. My partner and I shrug and ask the hosting team's coach to take his boys out of the zone. "It's a dead ball! They can be there!" Sorry, coach. YOUR rules say no zone, doesn't say any exceptions. Ask them to man up. So after a little further discussion, he calls his boys over to the bench. "Come and stand here by me. That's what they want!" The other coach is yelling, "Really? Really?" So he's waiting for us to inbound with no defense in the paint. Play on. By the way, he's got a 17 point lead with three minutes left...

After the game, I went to find tournament management to tell them they need to straighten this clown out. Guess who it was? Assistant clown coach. SMH

Ring him up. Now the throw in is at the division line.

Harrumph.
 

Three minutes left, no impact on the game? I'm already in get done-get out mode. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

Not saying it's the only way, just what I would have likely done (acknowledging that I wasn't there and you were.)

The league I officiate on weekends has special rules for the 4th and 5th graders, the no zone defense being one of them. Take it from me just because the rules are explained and in writing doesn't change the way coaches exploit/interpret them.

I'm glad they're not teaching at the grade school level anymore. :rolleyes:

I'd probably let them inbound with no defense, score, THEN ring up the clown coach.....:D

I don't understand the reasoning behind the no-zone rule. What it does is turn the game into a one on one contest. A smart coach clears a side and puts the ball in his best player's hands. Young kids are notoriously bad at help side defense.

Rulz Is Rulz, Even If They're Stupid Rulz ...
 

The first year my daughter started playing basketball, probably fifth grade, after giving up dancing, the recreation league that she played in had a no zone rule, just man to man. My daughter was a pretty smart player. Whenever a teammate would get beat, she would leave her man to defend the ball handler. Officials: "Sorry, can't do that. Stay with your man".

She was a pretty good ball player for a beginner. She wasn't shy about going to the hoop when she got the ball, and the girls defending her weren't shy about fouling her to prevent her from scoring. Officials: "No free throws. We don't have lane lines on the court, and it takes too long to set up. Possession out of bounds".

She signed up for travel ball the next winter. We had enough of that nonsense.

You want stupid rules, read the OP in this thread: http://forum.officiating.com/basketb...rade-game.html

MTD, Sr.

That is nonsense. While it has been a while since I have worked a no-zone game, it was never managed that way. Teams were free to double team and help and some even played a match-up zone.

Since these rules were usually used only at a level when the player were very poor shooters beyond about 10', the point was to keep a team from packing 5 defenders deep in the paint and making the opponent shoot from outside all the time or just stand out there with the ball.

It also served to promote the better learning of individual defense.

In my parts Coaches absolutely try to do this but it is written in the rules that you cannot isolate and that help defense is allowed in the paint. Very difficult to officiate but we manage. First offense is a warning, second is a T on the coach. The theory is that kids at the younger age don't have the range for outside shooting and a zone that packs it in is too difficult to play against.

+1
I should have read this post before I just commented. This is exactly what our youth league does. Man to man outside the 3 pt area. So no zone pressing. Double teams inside the arc and anything goes in the paint so long as you don't plant yourself there to start.

Triangle and 2 is the way to go. Put your 2 biggest guys on the blocks. Put your 2 best/most active guys chasing the ball. Put your smallest/weakest player just inside the free throw line so he gets help from both sides.

I hate these youth league rules about defenses and is one of the main reasons I did not work a local youth league here that pays very good money for games with running clocks. Don't want to deal with the crazy local rules or the crazy coaches.