Another episode of "T or No T"...you make the call

[amusedofficial]

I don't think the mere act of pulling one's self up after a dunk is a T, they have to land after taking their momentum to the hoop and I don't think fear of the other team getting two and the ball ought to be a factor in doing a pull-up motion to stop the momentum and allow a straight drop to the floor. Didn't any of you people ever climb trees as a kid? Two hundred something bounds on an ankle or knee the wrong way ends seasons and careers.

I also don't think it matters that there are no bodies below the shooter; one can land just as badly on an open court as on another person.

However, a one-and-a-half gainer after the shot is pure gymnastics, intended to call attention to himself and for no other reason and deserved a T.

[JetMetFan]

Originally Posted by amusedofficial

I also don't think it matters that there are no bodies below the shooter; one can land just as badly on an open court as on another person.

Correct, it doesn't. The rule allows a player to grasp the ring to avoid injury. But as others have said, I don't think the kid was grasping the ring to avoid injury. This looked like more of a "flourish" at the end of the move. As MTDS and others have pointed out, the kid's head went higher after he put the ball through and the only way that happens is by pulling himself up.

If I'd called a T in that spot my reaction to the complaints of the coach would've been "Coach, did he need to do what he did to protect himself or actually make the shot?"

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by amusedofficial

I also don't think it matters that there are no bodies below the shooter.

I believe that this used to matter, maybe twenty-five, or thirty, years ago, but it doesn't matter anymore.