Did he have possession?!
 

Last night in our varsity boys contest, Team A is at the free throw line with 1 shot left. Player A1 is lined up correctly between B1 and B2. The FT hits the back of the rim and is coming almost straight down between the three players. A1, who is a good leaper, jumps and intentionally bats the ball with one hand towards mid court. And I don't know if "bats" does this justice. It was a laser! A2 who is near the division line jumps and tries to stop it from going in the backcourt, but only tips it. THEN, A3 Jumps from the backcourt, catches the ball in the air and lands both feet in the frontcourt.

My question is, did team A gain possession when A1 intentionally struck the ball towards his teammates near the division line?

What's your call?

Here's NFHS rule 4-12 arts. 1-3. You tell us....

I've read the rule, and I need help interpreting the rule in relation to this situation. That's why I've posted it here. :)

Would you grant a timeout in the period in which A1 had contact with the ball?

More likely than not, A1 did not have possession of the ball.

Ok then.

For TC to be established here, pc must be established.

To establish pc, a player must be holding or dribbling the ball. Did your volleyball spike look anything like holding the ball?

The way I try to simplify it in that situation is to see if the player caught the ball and threw it (even if only with one hand) or did he bat/tip/deflect etc.... the ball. One establishes control and the other doesn't.

Thanks fellas!

And this is what the NBA uses to determine possession with regard to the shot clock.