Inadvertant Contact
 

Is there any way to explain to a coach that contact doesn't necessarily mean there was a foul on the play? Had a play tonight in a low level game where an out of control player was on his way to the basket where he met a much bigger kid was standing in the same spot for a good second before contact occur. The offensive player was much smaller and was running full speed when he sort of jumped into the bigger guy, threw the shot up over his head, and hit the ground pretty hard. The defender did not move an inch before or after contact, and yet the offensive player and his coach where both in shock with the no call. The funny thing is the coach had the nerve to come up to me and my partner to question the call, and then question whether we have ever played basketball before (which is obviously besides the point but my partner and I have both played at a high level before switching to concentrate on reffing).

"Incidental contact, coach." Then, move on.

That's how the conversation went during play. He came up at halftime initially asking for an explanation in a friendly manner so we gave him the explanation. After, he said, that was the dumbest explanation I have ever received from a ref. My partner did not like being talked to like that, so before he could reply, I just told the idiot coach to go sit down.

You have to find the words that work for you but something along the lines of,

"Coach, the defender had legal guarding position and did nothing illegal to warrant a foul."

Basketball is a contact sport so some level of contact is expected. If the defender does nothing wrong we are not going to penalize them for incidental or marginal contact.

And another unrelated question/concern as a new official is how to remember to put my open hand up on the type of out of bounds when a player either steps on the line or bounces the ball on the line and keeps playing. My instinct is to run towards where the infraction occurred pointing at the ground. I always point the direction and verbalize the color, instead of putting up my open hand as I would when a ball is just passed or shot out of bounds.

I still do this more often then I probably should and no evaluator or assignor has ever said anything to me about it.

So I wouldnt worry about it too much but like any other mechanic, practice will make both of us better. I would just stand in front of a mirror and practice raising your hand first then pointing to the spot if you feel so inclined.

Thanks for the reminder to practice this. I did it tonight when a player on a drive toward the basket stepped on the endline. I blew my whistle and pointed to the spot without first signaling the violation.

"Coach, the only foul we could have called was a player control, but the defender wasn't even phased, so we passed."

When a coach asks for an explanation, I try to give it if time permits. However, that's it. If he pushes the point, I tell him "Coach, you asked for explanation and I gave it to you. I'm not going to argue the point."

There's really no reason to do that, unless it's a situation where you have to sell it. But every time, no.

Slow down, don't be in such a hurry. Every newbie I've ever known including myself has needed to learn to slow down.

Whatever you say keep it short and simple:

• Contact was incidental
• contact was not illegal
• the defender did nothing wrong
• offensive player initiated all the contact

Do not let coaches engage you in long conversations. Say "coach, we've already given you an answer"

"Coach, if there was a foul it was on your player for jumping into the defender."

The last part of that would have gotten him a T as a present.

Earlier this season I said to a coach, "Not all contact is a foul." His response, SILENCE. I think he had to process what I told him.

But First, Get A Bag Of Popcorn From The Concession Stand ...
 

"Coach, just request three, or four, successive timeouts and I'll explain the Tower Philosophy to you."

The coach is a jackwagon. The comment at the end of your paragraph would likely result in some free throws being shot.

On this one, we'd start the second half shooting free throws. We promote what we condone. Coaches don't get to act this way and get away with it.

Thanks for all the input, everyone.