Laying in the paint
 

Had a BF game last week where a defensive post player ended up on his back directly under the rim. He deliberately delayed getting up. Didn't even attempt to get out of the way.

I prompted him to get up by leaning in and telling him to do so.

He stayed down and because of that ended up being the cause of three different players being tripped.

Before it was over the offense successfully rebounded and scored.


What call to make here?
I know we can call a common foul if he "trips" a player on offense. But is there a case to make that it could be intentional maybe?

NFHS rules, he's entitled to that spot, but if he moves and trips someone, call a foul. I can't picture going with an intentional foul, but it could happen.

First, I would want to know how he got there. What caused him to go down?
Did we miss something? Second, was there a possibility he was injured? I don't think I would have waited for three players to trip over him to find out. If he didn't respond to you initially maybe it would be better to error on the side of caution and stop play and have the coach/trainer attend to him.

Nothing. He's legal if he is just there even if people trip over him (NFHS only, NCAA rules are different here). There is no need for you to tell him to get up as there is nothing illegal about what he is doing and where he is.

Defense de jour
 

I can just see it if coaches get wind of this...instead of having your big men play defense on their feet get a couple of them to lie down in the key especially against a team with an inside game.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are saying, but if players accidentally fall to the floor, legal play. If they are going to the floor intentionally (judgement call maybe), then more than likely an unsporting act (non-basketball play).

There is no rule that prohibits the action you describe. Every player is entitled to his spot on the floor, and nothing in the rule defines the size or shape of that spot in a way that prohibits players lying down.

I've had partners argue that it's a foul because the player lying on the floor did not have LGP.
http://www.vpsingles.com/pics/stir.gif

Does a player lying on the floor have LGP? What constitutes LGP? I believe that both feet have to be on the floor and the torso must face the opponent, correct? Do either of these happen when a player is lying on the floor?

This topic is being discussed in this thread:

http://forum.officiating.com/basketb...icut-nfhs.html