Basketball Traveling Rules/Picking up your dribble

[APG]

Something has to be getting lost in translation here....it's not really as hard as you're making it out to be.

It does not matter what the rule set it. A pivot foot can not be established unless you're holding the ball. Depending on when you end the dribble/gather the ball and the subsequent actions afterward will determine which foot is the pivot foot or if the player even has a pivot foot. But fundamentally, you can not establish a pivot foot until you're holding the ball.

As to your scenario, if a player isn't holding the ball, or the ball doesn't come to rest in the player's hand (aka the player doesn't palm the ball), then the player can take as many steps has he wants.

And no, a player is called for travelling for moving their pivot foot in excess of certain limits...not because he took too many steps (unless you're working in the NBA and even with that, that's still moving the pivot foot in excess of what is allowed). It's not as you describe because theoretically, a player could take as many steps as they want as long as they aren't' holding the ball or commit a dribbling violation.