Origin of pulling your whistle out of pocket when you're just about to tip off

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Tio

Having a lanyard hanging out of your pocket looks sloppy and attracts undue attention to yourself. He should have been humiliated that he held up the start of the game and if not, I would have made sure to let him have it at halftime.

Lighten up, Francis. If I had done it, I'd probably be laughing with the rest of my crew.

My goodness, this isn't brain surgery we're performing out there. Seems as though some people can't ever have a little FUN on the floor.

(That said, I used to be a pocket person and I just put my noose on under my jacket now.)

[Tio]

Originally Posted by Rich

Lighten up, Francis. If I had done it, I'd probably be laughing with the rest of my crew.

My goodness, this isn't brain surgery we're performing out there. Seems as though some people can't ever have a little FUN on the floor.

(That said, I used to be a pocket person and I just put my noose on under my jacket now.)

No, it is not brain surgery, but it is unprofessional to have a lanyard hanging out of your pocket and then have to untie a knot and hold up the game. This is not the tone we want to set starting a game.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Tio

No, it is not brain surgery, but it is unprofessional to have a lanyard hanging out of your pocket and then have to untie a knot and hold up the game. This is not the tone we want to set starting a game.

Well I guess I am "unprofessional" as I have my lanyard hanging out of my pocket before the game. I do that so I make sure I have it with me and hardly anyone notices considering it is black and my pants are black. But hey if that is a problem then someone would have been saying something by now. Now I put my lanyard on well before the jump ball in time. I do what I do kind of as a superstitious thing and to get my mind right with a routine.

Peace

[rockyroad]

Originally Posted by Tio

No, it is not brain surgery, but it is unprofessional to have a lanyard hanging out of your pocket and then have to untie a knot and hold up the game. This is not the tone we want to set starting a game.

Like Rich said, Lighten up Francis (great movie by the way)...

There mare so many other things more important than this when it comes to "setting a tone" to start a game.

It really is ok to laugh and smile on the court when things like this happen.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by rockyroad

Like Rich said, Lighten up Francis (great movie by the way)...

There mare so many other things more important than this when it comes to "setting a tone" to start a game.

It really is ok to laugh and smile on the court when things like this happen.

Last week I was about to tip off the 1st game a BJV/BV DH and realized I didn't have my whistle. It actually ended up lightening the mood of the official scorer who seemed irritated during my pre-game table meeting. She teased me about it and then she and I were best of friends the rest of the evening.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by BadNewsRef

Last week I was about to tip off the 1st game a BJV/BV DH and realized I didn't have my whistle. It actually ended up lightening the mood of the official scorer who seemed irritated during my pre-game table meeting. She teased me about it and then she and I were best of friends the rest of the evening.

Speaking of pi$$ing off table staff...

We were watching a bit of the JV game at a school last week. My partner noticed that the timeout timer was put up on the clock and ticked down for every timeout called. He wanted that shut off and, well, I agree. Teams want to know how much time is left in a quarter, the officials want to know, etc. etc. Watching a timeout tick down is silly.

During his meeting with the timer, he told the timer to shut that function off. This really ground the timer's gears apparently, cause when I went over prior to the game he turned away when I went down the line to introduce myself and shake hands. I immediately turned to my partner and said (pretty loudly), "Now look at what you did."

He did turn off the function, however.

[Sharpshooternes]

Originally Posted by Rich

Speaking of pi$$ing off table staff...

We were watching a bit of the JV game at a school last week. My partner noticed that the timeout timer was put up on the clock and ticked down for every timeout called. He wanted that shut off and, well, I agree. Teams want to know how much time is left in a quarter, the officials want to know, etc. etc. Watching a timeout tick down is silly.

During his meeting with the timer, he told the timer to shut that function off. This really ground the timer's gears apparently, cause when I went over prior to the game he turned away when I went down the line to introduce myself and shake hands. I immediately turned to my partner and said (pretty loudly), "Now look at what you did."

He did turn off the function, however.

Had a stinkin' parent during the same game I tossed the coach running the clock for 6th grade. Clock was only supposed to stop for TOs and during FTs. The entire game he would stop the clock when he wasn't supposed to and then forget to restart it pretty much every time. Bill, clock, every 30 seconds was really annoying. Anyway, got that game finished and realized he would be doing the next game because his son's team was doing a DH. About 3 min. into the game I had been hollering at him for about a minute and so was my partner to start the clock. he didn't. As we were transitioning, I slapped the table really loudly and hollered at him "clock!!!" The rest of the game ran very smoothly after that.

[refiator]

Originally Posted by rockyroad

Like Rich said, Lighten up Francis (great movie by the way)...

indeed.

[tomegun]

I think having the whistle hanging out of your pocket is just another ritual. I don't see it being a big deal either way. Really, people don't pay as much attention to us as some of us think.

What I do with my whistle is actually on the opposite end of this discussion. When I start getting dressed, I put my whistle around my neck...before I do anything else. Well, almost anything - depending on what I'm wearing. If I'm wearing anything except a tie, the whistle goes on before I start undressing. It is just something I do and have done for a long time.

[bob jenkins]

Originally Posted by tomegun

I think having the whistle hanging out of your pocket is just another ritual. I don't see it being a big deal either way. Really, people don't pay as much attention to us as some of us think.

+1.

But I do think you should take it out of your pocket in time so that if you do need to straighten it out, you don't delay the start of the game.

Up next: at EXACTLY what time during the introductions do you take off your jacket? Does it depend on whether the announcer alternates teams or doeas all of one team first followed by the other team? (Sorry -- flashing back to an overly detailed pre-game from many years ago)

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by bob jenkins

+1.

But I do think you should take it out of your pocket in time so that if you do need to straighten it out, you don't delay the start of the game.

Up next: at EXACTLY what time during the introductions do you take off your jacket? Does it depend on whether the announcer alternates teams or doeas all of one team first followed by the other team? (Sorry -- flashing back to an overly detailed pre-game from many years ago)

For the first time in awhile I had a game where the announcer alternated each starter. That has not happen in some time.

Peace

[Rich]

Originally Posted by bob jenkins

+1.

But I do think you should take it out of your pocket in time so that if you do need to straighten it out, you don't delay the start of the game.

Up next: at EXACTLY what time during the introductions do you take off your jacket? Does it depend on whether the announcer alternates teams or doeas all of one team first followed by the other team? (Sorry -- flashing back to an overly detailed pre-game from many years ago)

When I feel like it? We used to always take them off after the visiting team was announced. Now I may take it off earlier, depending on how I feel at the time.

If both teams go in and we go back to the locker room, we may just leave them there. Hasn't happened this season, though.

[fullor30]

Originally Posted by bob jenkins

+1.

But I do think you should take it out of your pocket in time so that if you do need to straighten it out, you don't delay the start of the game.

Up next: at EXACTLY what time during the introductions do you take off your jacket? Does it depend on whether the announcer alternates teams or doeas all of one team first followed by the other team? (Sorry -- flashing back to an overly detailed pre-game from many years ago)

Ha.....just was thinking about this last week. my rule of thumb is after player intros we take them off, always waiting for R to start first. Had a partner last week, just before intros, unzips and jacket comes off as myself (r) and U1 kept them on.

It was a harbinger of things to come for rest of the night by the way.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by tomegun

When I start getting dressed, I put my whistle around my neck, before I do anything else.

I'm picturing Brooke Shields, as a basketball official, getting dressed.

"You wanna know what comes between me and my whistle? Nothing."

(And it's a pretty picture.)