"Jim Marshall" Play
 

Local GJV team, with coach who used to be one of us, will do this:

Out of a timeout or to begin after an intermission with a throw-in coming to them, they'll position all their players on the "wrong" end of the court. The inbounder will toss it to the nearest girl inbounds who will then dribble the other way for an uncontested layup.

I've seen it no fewer than six times from them.

As officials, what are our duties?

> non-administering official tells the huddles whose ball it is on the inbounds, pointing direction, when breaking up each huddle
> administering official displays direction point from the time when the teams break the huddle until putting the ball at the disposal of the thrower
> lead official positions himself on the proper end of the floor
> one last direction point and expression of what color the inbounds goes to
. . . then put the ball at the disposal of the thrower.

My partner and I did all those things last Saturday. But alas, the defensive team fell for it yet again.

Question: would the administering official be overstepping his responsibility by delaying the throw-in to tell the defensive team they're on the wrong end of the floor for the throw-in?

(sorry 'bout the dated reference in the thread title . . .)

You'd absolutely be overstepping. You're not there to coach---and everything the "deceptive" team is doing is perfectly legal. Do what you did and nothing more.

Nothing else to do or should do. Team should figure it out on their own. I've seen this play run a few times over the years, most successfully at the start of the 2nd half when home team has arrow and visitors are a bit late coming out of huddle and somewhat disoriented as this is not their home floor. I've been the administering official when home coach told me what they were going to do and that they knew which direction they were going, I guess hoping I would not over emphasize direction White was headed. I've also coached it before to limited success. I would not run it if my team had a comfortable lead and/or expected to continue that way or was a fairly local opponent and I wanted to stay friendly with their coach. At certain lower levels, I look at it as a bit of unsportsmanlike play, although I know of nothing in the rules saying as much. Funny thing, once it was all set up to work, only to have a fan or parent (of ours!) jump up and scream bloody murder that we were about to go the wrong way:D

How many times successfully?

Determine your routine for throw-ins and use it every time the same way. I typically say the color and point when each team comes out of time-out or intermission.

I emphasize color and direction before every such throw in, so hopefully the team who is to be the "victim" of this catches on from my usual announcement.

If they don't, I can't really control that. Hasn't happened in any of my games, though.

Same. It's not our responsibility to tell the teams which direction they're going coming out of a time out. That's what coaches are for.

This season marked the first time - H.S. or NCAAW - I've had a team screw this up and score against itself in one of my games. Home team inbounds the ball. A2, realizing there's no one between him and the basket he and his teammates had been defending, drives in a scores. My partner and I stopped things momentarily just to let the table know the goal counted and the scorers needed to put a notation in their books. Otherwise, life continued as normal.

All. At least six times. Don't recall if it was ever done twice against the same team. Was only done when game still undecided.

Bush league play. But like the throw in play where A2 walks down loudly proclaiming "Coach wants me to throw it in" after A1 has the ball for the throw in, there's nothing to do about it.

I don't think it's a Bush League play.

Know where you're suppose to be and don't follow others. If you're listening/watching, thinking, and communicating with your teammates, you should figure it out.

I think you have to be playing in a bush league for this to work more than once in a blue moon.

Not Bush League. He's Not Even President Now.
 

The fact that it's JV level no doubt contributes to its frequent success over the past six or seven years.

A jv coach should know better and be more on the ball than to let this happen to his team.

I like that one too. Would prob try it before the "barking dog":D

Good, because the "barking dog" play is illegal.

Will We Need Nevadaref's Help To Track This Down ???
 

I remember that this "play" was declared illegal, and I'm not disagreeing with you because I always listen to bob, but do you have a citation to back it up for the rookies?

I believe it was part of the yearly interps. Trying to locate now.

Just went through the archive and can't find it.

Maybe it was part of the Pre-Season Guide one year?

Barking Up The Wrong Tree ...
 

Bingo... knew it appeared in a Pre-Season Guide. Thanks.

Agreed. If this is a bush league play, then so is a shot fake or a backcut.

How dare they try to fool the opposition by playing within the rules.

It is up to the coach to catch on. A kid shooting at the wrong basket happens occasionally. However, as officials, we cannot shout out, "Don't shoot! You are at the wrong basket!" This falls into the same category.
As an aside, at a JV game prior to mine a few weeks ago, a team scored TWICE at the wrong end. My partner and I agreed that it sure would have been great if it were two different players. Not sure it was. We left it alone.

Maybe we should send an anonymous letter to the league commissioner, the principal, and the head coach that the jv coach who fell for this tactic should have his fingernails pulled out as punishment for not instructing his team which basket they should be defending ;)

Thanks Devon!

Really? We're not supposed to say the color and point when each team comes out of time-out or intermission?

I think that JetMet is really saying that it is not our responsibility to REMIND EACH TEAM which direction they are going following each time out. This play is only marginally different from the stack "loop" sideline inbounds play in which a player cuts back toward the backcourt and then loops around (frequently with the help of a screen) toward their attacking basket.

I had BOTH TEAMS in a 5th grade travel game go the wrong way following a throw-in after a timeout. And, YES, I clearly indicated with a signal and a verbal indication the direction of the team taking the throw-in. The throw-in team shot at the wrong basket. The other team got the rebound and went rapidly toward the division line. That team's coach yelled, "there going the wrong way" -- to which I responded, "I know." Fortunately, for him, he called time out BEFORE the player committed a violation.

The coach of the throw-in team was LIVID -- at HIS OWN TEAM -- as he actually had set up an inbounds play that they did not execute!!! As a coach, I have called many, many plays (like the "loop" play or screen-the-screener under the basket) that are 100% designed to deceive the defense into thinking my player was doing one thing when he was really doing something completely different.

This play is little different. This is a COACH problem -- for the defending team!!!

A friend of mine was on a team in high school and run this play. Only they called it "ACT" in reference to the ACT test bc they said their opponents and rivals weren't smart enough to know it was coming.

On a side note the coachs of each team were former high school teammates.

When I coached freshman basketball I tried to run this play once and ended up getting a T.

I told my guys to line up, and the inbounder was to tell the inbounding official that we knew which way we were going, as such and let the officials do their thing and put the ball in play. The other team was confused but the inbounding official held up the game and told the opposing team to stay on that side because we were lined up on the wrong end of the court, and that my guys are lined up on the wrong side. Well I went ape and then I was sitting for the second half. That basket would have cut our deficit to 20 :o

So the T was not for running the play, but for your reaction to the ref giving away the play? Nice:rolleyes: