Get a suitcase when you travel
 

My second HS season comes to an end Friday and one area that I still have a hard time calling is TRAVELING...

Know what book states..but how do you recognize it? what should I be looking for?

Also, more emphasis on traveling in lane versus away from basket?

Thanks for some pointers!

It's all about picking up the pivot foot. Determine that, and that's half the battle. A lot of plays will look awkward, but as long as you don't lose the pivot foot, you'll be able to accurately determine whether or not a play is legal.

And, as the game slows down, it'll be easier. You might be able to anticipate some moves that might happen, and when they do, you'll be ready for them.

When In Barcelona ...
 

My daughter's AAU team played in a tournament in Spain several years ago. The reverse of this (above) was definitely the case there. But I've never encountered this double standard here in the good ole USA.

No it's not. It's about picking up the pivot foot and putting it back down.

I know that. Let me rephrase. It's all about identifying the pivot foot.

So if you knew that why did you give a newbie asking a question the wrong information? That will only add to his confusion. You should go back and edit your post for any other newbies who might read it.

If it looks like a duck...........

He meant "pick up" in the same sense as "identify", not in the sense of "raise".

Lah me.

Oh obviously. :rolleyes: Now that you said it I get it. I have no clue what "Lah Me" means, but it wasn't obvious enough for a moderator to use a snarky response, if that's what it was meant to be.

We're all getting better at calling travel violations or at least we should be trying to get better at it still.

Had a C level game last night and this kid throws the Euro step on a fast break. Caught me completely off guard and I rewarded him with a travel. I was upset because I thought I cut out most of my whistles where it just "looks" funny. :mad:

But as others have said, identify the pivot foot and traveling becomes a much easier call.

Of course, there's the spin move that is/isn't a travel, based on when the dribbler picks up the ball. It seems so many of such moves used to be called a travel, but evaluators/supervisors are telling us to not call it . . .

you know what, you're right. bad choice of words there. Get over it.

IT means "look for the reason the OP might be right in what he's saying, even if it could be more clear, and not for the reason he's wrong or intentionally giving incorrect information."

Lah me.

I'm not going to get into a pissing contest with you, but the choice of words was poor, at best. Who pee'd in your cornflakes this morning? Lighten up, Francis.

I once had a clinician tell me "you know it when you see it." Not the most specific advice that.

This year I've been very aware of identifying the pivot foot. That's led to some travel calls when the ball handler lifts the pivot foot before releasing the ball to start their dribble so it's worked pretty well.

Actually, this comment is not correct either. If the pivot foot is lifted before the ball is released for a dribble, whether or not it's put back down has no bearing on the violation.

I know you know that, but it just seemed like you were quick to point out a fault, without asking what stiffler really meant. And, what stiffler said is actually how I've heard it phrased at many camps. Another good tip I've heard at camp is to pick up the defender a little quicker on a drive so it makes the block/charge call a little easier to call. I sure hope that doesn't mean I have to put both arms around the defender and pick them up off the floor? :eek:

I think Bob was simply pointing out you seem to be the one that needs to lighten up a little. You could've simply asked stiffler what they meant, instead of assuming they were phrasing it incorrectly.

This is the last I'll say about this, so if you want to keep harping on it, feel free. I only read his response one way. It didn't dawn on me that there was another way to take it. I only realized after Bob mentioned the other interpretation of it that I misread what he intended to say. I would have been fine with that (but I still think it's a poor choice of words given the way I interpreted it, which was valid), except for the pissy "Lah me" BS tossed in at the end. As if I'm some sort of moron for reading it the way I did. The "asking what he meant" goes both ways. Jurrasic could get away with that crap but a moderator of the forum should hold himself to a higher standard.

Practical Steps You Can Take to Improve:

1) Identify the pivot foot once the ball is caught by the offensive player. (this takes some practice....so try doing it in the games you have left OR during ALL games you watch on TV).

2) Count the steps AFTER the offensive player ends his dribble....2 or less is OK...3 or more and you've got a travel. (this takes some practice....so try doing it in the games you have left OR during ALL games you watch on TV).

I can't agree with this.
Identify pivot foot if the player picks it up before he dribbles- TRAVEL.
If he picks it up and places it down before he shoots or passes- TRAVEL.

I never go by the amount of steps. It leads to wrong calls.

not if you count correctly...which is pretty easy to do.

Hahahahahaha!!

I love this stuff...Smitty gets pissy with stiffler, then gets all upset when Bob gets pissy with him! :p

That's awesome!:)

check out this video:

LeBron James' jump stop/"travel" against the Boston Celtics in Game 2, 2010 Playoffs - YouTube

doesn't matter if this moves occurs in the NBA, NCAA, or High School....it is not a travel and, if you count correctly, you've got TWO steps after the gather....

Actually it wasn't and mostly people that do not have better to do make an issue out of this. Honestly, I have said the same thing for years and never had anyone assume it was more than what I was talking about. "It is all about picking up the pivot foot" when trying to call traveling. If you know which foot is the pivot foot, then you can call this more consistently. Only someone here would think that had anything to do with what the pivot foot can do.

Lah me. ;)

Peace

End my dribble with left foot on ground (pivot foot). Right foot steps-1st step. Left foot (pivot) steps-2nd step. Travel?

Correct if you gather while in mid air. (Which the video shows he did).

This was also my biggest problem as an official. Sitting in the stands or lying on the couch I could spot a travel with ease. When you get on the court, and everything happens right in front of you it's actually more difficult to some degree.

The biggest thing for me was to start officiating from the ground up. The first thing I do when someone receives a pass is to ID the pivot foot (feet). Once you have that as others have said officiating the travel becomes less and less a conscious effort, and more of an instant reaction when it happens.

Work from the ground up EVERY time and you will become a much better traveling official.

That's your interpretation.

:p:p:p

Damn, you're good Bob!

I disagree , he did not gather with left foot on floor(did not take 2 steps).

Gather occurs with right foot on floor (in this case ball slapped together simultaneously with right foot hitting floor), jumps off right foot and lands on 2 simultaneously (only 1 step).
If he would have gathered while left foot on floor then right foot hits (jumps off right foot) and lands on 2 feet then you have travel.

See topic I started on "Reggie Miller calls travel...."

Under NBA rules, that would not be a travel. The player just wouldn't be allowed to pivot after the jump stop.

Agree, NBA allows 2 steps after "ending dribble" or the gather.

good call

The video clearly shows he gathered the ball with his foot already on the floor...he then took one step...then landed on both feet simultaneously (a.k.a. a jump stop)...then left the floor to shoot.

I guess counting steps is harder for u than I thought. Sorry 'bout that.

While it may be fun to you to sound condescending about people's counting skills, your advice to count the number of steps to determine a travel violation has absolutely no support in the rules, and is not good advice for a newer official.

I can give you examples of a player taking 0 steps and be guilty of a travel, and taking 4 (or more) steps after ending a dribble and not be guilty of a travel. If an official uses your advice and simply counts the number of steps, they would be making more incorrect calls than correct.

The best advice is to still read and understand NFHS 4-44, and NCAA 4-72.

Hmmm...
0: rolling over, 4+: fumbling?

Good advice. Also, don't let crowd/coach/player reactions affect your confidence. Almost every game you will have a sitch where someone, usually lots of someones, are hollering 'TRAVEL' and since you are astutely watching the pivot you KNOW it was ugly, but not a travel.

Personally, I would recommend watching as much game tape or TV games as you can. Watch the take off on the drive. When the big boy picks it up in the paint, watch his feet. Get used to what you are looking for. There was a vid posted a while back of a guard that took about 6 steps, slowly, without a call. It really hit home for me as one thing I have been working on is the "slow" travel. I've gotten pretty good at getting the "quick" travel on a take off. I do good with the jump stop and the post play. What I have missed is the "slow" travel. A1 shuffles his feet 30 feet from the basket under no pressure. It's a situation where I'm not expecting a travel and honestly think I have missed a couple this year.

FWIW, I read "picking up the pivot foot" rhetorically as in picking up = finding. Parenthetical remark was added for clarity.

Jab steps normally (see Rich's frazier thread), but fumbles and bobbles too.

I was just trying to help you, and the OP, out by saying it isn't always simply counting steps. If that is the way you want to do it go ahead. However, there are just too many situations that your idea doesn't work, and I can't allow this idea to teach someone without saying why it isn't as simple as counting. I hope your condescension doesn't get in the way with learning different ways to expand your officiating.