Beginner questions

[easticles]

Originally Posted by SplitInfinitive

Hey everyone,

I started refereeing in May this year and finally earned my stripes (Australia has a green-shirt system for new referees) in September. I've since become competent and independent enough that I can start properly working on my areas of weakness, so I'm hoping someone can help me with the below.

1. Memory. I imagine this will develop in time, but I have difficulty recalling play to defend judgments - I see it, I call it, then I tend to forget the situation. My memory is also an issue when remembering which team is going in which direction; the ball goes out of bounds, and I'm often not sure which way to point (despite knowing the colour). I've resorted to using landmarks around the court (e.g. "green plays towards the sign on the wall"), but this is pretty slow and rough.

2. Rebound contact. I'm good at calling individual fouls on shooters and on the floor, but not great at calling fouls in the rough play following a rebound. I often don't notice if players are fouling (vs. just reaching up), and don't want to over-impact the play. This usually results in me calling a pretty weak foul right near the end of the scuffle (because it's slower and easier to identify), and the player getting angry that the play wasn't stopped earlier when it probably should have been.

3. Consistency. I am often paired up with more experienced partners, who don't tend to take some rules (e.g. 3 seconds) very seriously. Sometimes I notice a 3-second violation, but then decide that, because 3 seconds hasn't previously been called at all in the game, it's unreasonable to call a player out on it unpredictably. Should I call it in this situation?

4. Spotting travels. Since May, I haven't called a single travel (which doesn't seem to be a problem, as I'm good with fouls and other calls). One of the supervisors where I work says it takes time to develop, and not to worry about it. I'm just not good at noticing when a pivot foot is moved. Can you think of any advice?

I would also like a rule clarification on post-shot fouling; as I understand it, once a player returns to a position on the floor after a shot, any foul on him is assessed as "after the shot", thereby resulting in baseline possession instead of free throws. But, in the NBA and other leagues, it seems that fouls on a player even a second or two after landing is still considered to be during the act of shooting. What would you do? We use FIBA rules.

I would appreciate any help with the above questions! I really love reffing, and want to take it as far as I can (I'm already aspiring to the NBL). Thanks for reading.

Cheers,
SplitInfinitive

Hi all. I am a new official to this forum and am also from Australia. I have been reading some of the post and they are very insightful and a great resource for any official at any level.

What I have found to help me in some out of bounds situations is to yell out the color of the team gaining possession of the ball. This has helped on many occasions on a tough to judge situation. A nice loud voice will settle most of these situations and save you a headache from players and coaches from getting stuck into you.

2. Rebounding contact is at times at tough call. Again I have found having a voice on the play to be helpful. E.g. For those players that reach around in an attempt to knock the ball loose. A simple 'hand out' or 'no arm helps. In other situations you have to just call it. At nationals we look plays when players have come from an unfavorable position to gain an advantage, and any contact that causes displacement (movement) and in turn a disadvantage to be called as fouls.

3. Consistency is a hard area of your game to get right. Consistency is key at each end of the court and from partner to partner. For a crew to be consistent this must be taken into account. I often try my best to call similar 'looking' fouls the same as much as I can (unless I really messed up the first one). I then try to call situations as close to how my partner or R on a game would be. This way I a being consistent in what I call and consistent with the other officials on the game. Finally I would not make calls at the end of a game, that haven't been called in the first half such as a 3 sec violation.

4. I too stink when it comes to calling travels. My approach to this is to ensure that I call the ones that have an impact on the game. Small, insignificant travels in the back court with no pressure are ok. However, traveling of the first step, beating a defender must be called as they gain a clear advantage. To effectively call the travels I need I ensure I (1) have vision on the whole play. This means taking a step or two back from the play so I can see feet and up high. (2) I identify the pivot foot (they catch/land/spin on) and (3) identify when the pivot has been lifted and placed back on the floor. This has seemed to help me get the travels I need.

5. A player has a right to land safely after elevating for a shot. If this is taken away from them there must be a foul. If they haven't landed they are shooting FT's. How many time have you heard a coach yell "CRASH THE BOARDS" or "FOLLOW YOUR SHOT"? I a player has landed and then pushed of there spot or off balance by a defender this must be a foul as these players are entitled up a spot on the court can no longer follow their shot and are put at a disadvantage.

Hope this helps.
East!