Foul without contact?

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by MD Longhorn

Well... there's the rules for one...

Hypothetical. For argument sake. A defensive player reaches out and tries to steal the ball from a ball handler but only ends up contacting the ball handler's arm, creating a disadvantage. Foul? Right? Same play and the contact is a big push from behind, creating a disadvantage, but the contact isn't with any "personal" skin on the ball handler, but on his jersey. No "personal" skin to skin contact? No foul? Right? What difference does it make what comes between Brooke Shields and her jeans, or between two players? A jersey? A basketball? Or nothing (skin to skin contact)? Does it, or doesn't it, matter? Does it, or doesn't it, make a difference?

Now let me get my popcorn out of the microwave, so that I can sit back and continue to enjoy this "basketball contact: personal foul, or technical foul" thread, for about the tenth time over the past decade. Maybe we should have a poll? How else will we ever come up with a solid answer without getting any help from the NFHS?