Sorry Coach, Can't Call It, He Fell down ...

[Freddy]

Originally Posted by Rooster

Has anyone here actually used this option? For some reason I have a nuclear aftertaste right now...

Yes. After warning the same defender once not to "fake being fouled" (not the words I used that night), he didn't listen. Several transitions later he flops again, but this time right in the middle of the lane, which caused about five rebounders to come back down to the floor in dangerous ways either tripping all over him or trying to avoid him. I issued a T and, though still criticized by my one partner that night to this day, am not regretful that I did. It was a safety issue. And that's why I'm there. And that's one reason why there's this rule. And it solved what would have been a reoccurring problem the rest of the game.
Most players straighten up and cut it out after a tactful warning.
It's not "nuclear" when it regards "safety."
Most officials are just too chicken to call it even when it's truly merited.