Using my voice
 

Hey all,

2nd Year official here, out of Rochester, NY Board 60. Its been a fun season so far and I've been working more JV games than last year. One of the comments that the Varsity refs seem to critique me on is using my voice more. I'm now trying to get into the habit of always saying the color of the team on out of bounds, announcing the violation when i call it, announcing the type of foul when doing preliminary and communicating to the table with my voice better. What other situations should I use my voice and is there such thing as using your voice too much? Thanks in advance guys.

Also orally indicate the inbound spot on violations and the spot / shooter (and number of shots) on fouls.

You can also use it to tell your partners when a the next foul will put a team in the bonus.

There are times you can be too loud (yelling as opposed to a stern, authoritative voice).

You don't want to have same the voice for a routine OOB calls as you would for OOB play that involves multiple players touching the ball. ("White!!! Off Blue 22's leg)

You want to use your voice when you have a non-shooting foul (foul on dribble or before shooting motion) in which the player goes on to shoot the ball. ("Foul on the dribble"; "Foul before the shot").

Also, say you grant a Time-out then the ball is turned over, player travels, ball is passed. ("Before...., time-out White Coach")

After granting time-outs, communicate about the throw-in spot with your partners ("Time-out Red, sideline throw-in in the backcourt")

I'm a voice guy, and I get good marks for it. When I report fouls I say thngs like, "hit to the head", "ran through the screen", "hit from behind". I like to communicate so that there are fewer questions from coaches as to what & why I am calling something.

You can also use your voice to get teams lined up faster on free throws. I've gotten in the habit of saying, "let's line up gentlemen/ladies" in free throw situations when I'm not the official that called the foul. It keeps the players focused and makes the game flow a little faster. It also appears to players and coaches as though you're more in command.

Along the same lines of communicating the free-throw scenario to the players as the non-calling official ("white here, white here" for the 2 required spots, to get them lined up quicker), you can also use your voice to get the ball back in your hands more quickly after a whistle.

As you know, players will often stand dumbfounded holding the ball with no idea where it should go once play stops. A little, "here you go, white; right behind you, white; thanks, white" goes a long way toward having the ball ready to inbound/administer as soon as your partner's ready to roll.

Careful with the "ladies." I've been told to call them players. What if they doing like being called ladies?

If you're fairly new, you're likely not loud enough.

It took me a few camps and a few repetitions with the same stubborn clinician to realize I needed to be *louder* all of the time and EVEN LOUDER sometimes.

If I was told to call them players, I would nod politely and ignore the advice. (This is assuming the advice was about a girls' game. I don't really recommend using the term "ladies" during a boys game.)

I have heard that same advice from some big-dogs in NCAAW.

I don't doubt it. I just don't buy into the philosophy that there's something wrong with women being treated with respect that's rampart particularly in the college arena.

I'm working almost all boys games this season.

So I'm filling in for a guy with a bum knee just before Christmas. Go towards a huddle on the first horn..."First horn gentlemen..."

Well, I could've been talking to the coaches!

To each their own. I'll just say that you're safer calling them players. I know for a fact that they are all players... :)

I like to tell my partner that I liked his call. Especially when someone else is giving him crap for it...

Using a big voice will reduce how much crap you take for making great calls. It shows a big presence. You will love your voice once you make it a habit.

Maybe, but I think calling them "players" is both condescending and offensive; so you may not be safer either.

Imitation.
 

RocRef,
Find officials who you admire. Attend their games. Listen to how they use their voice. Imitate them.

PS, use your voice on all occasions that the Mechanics Manual tells you to.