illegal sub

[Adam]

Originally Posted by just another ref

Does anybody else this is a horrible part of this rule?

I don't. Seems to me you have three options.

1. The way it is, and if the scorer doesn't do his job correctly (intentionally or not), you may miss out on a technical foul.

2. Allow it to be penalized whenever it's discovered. This would enable an unscrupulous scorer to make the change, then keep that T in his back pocket until the most opportune time: such as when the score is tied and there's .1 second left on the clock (an extreme example, but you get the point).

3. Allow the officials to have discretion regarding whether to call it.

Option 1 is a recipe for missed free throws early in a game. Options 2 and 3 are, IMO, recipes for disaster.

Also, just to nit pick JMF's post. It's not too late just because it's after the book has been changed. It's too late once the ball becomes live following that change.