Guessing Game #2
 

I was the T on a backcourt throw-in under the hoop. She inbounds and a quick pass and the ball is at the 3 point line on the other side. There is a block/charge situation, there was contact initiated by the dribbler, did the defense have LGP......ugh!

I was hustling down the floor, but was in no position to make the call. 2 person crew, so my partner was on the baseline, but had girls between him and the play. I no called it. And the coach let me know it, I explained that I didn't have a good enough look at it.

Was I right to no call this?

pfan

ps, this is why you need 3 person

I wasn't there, so I'm not going to guess at what you should have done. ;)

Was the collision in the frontcourt or backcourt?

Don't miss an obvious block/charge play. In some cases, a no call is a worse option than just calling one or the other.

You didn't have a good look, so how can u in good conscience make a call? As long as you were hustling into position (you were), as a coach I've always appreciated it when I'm told I didn't see it, or I didn't see it that way coach. I don't like guessing.

Also - u didn't say what happened on the play? Was a turnover caused? If the offense kept the ball, then I'd say that's probably the fairest outcome.

Front court, I was hustling to get there, but would have not been confident in any call. Two man is an animal all it's own, you really need to help each other out when possible.

Offense maintained possession. But the most vocal coach wanted the charge. Believe me, i know the score doesn't matter, but the guy that wanted a charge was up 20+ in the fourth quarter :rolleyes:

Good responses for the coach Bill, thanks.

Why was your partner all the way at the endline? How may players were above the top of the key in the frontcourt or in the backcourt at the start of the throwin. If you say more than 4, then your partner shouldn't have been at the endline. He should have been at the FT line extended to mid-court depending on the specific location of the players....and that would have put him in a position to help.

While I understand the questions regarding positioning, I think you're missing the point of the OP. He's asking whether or not you think it's better to guess at the call, or to leave it alone.

I'm on the fence about that, and I'd like to hear more to push me to one side or the other.

On the one hand, I understand you want to make some call when it comes to a collision like that. You can't wait to see the outcome of the play, meaning who comes up with the ball, before making a call. That's not how officiating basketball works (unless it's a free throw, and the violation is by the defense, so you want to see if the shot is made or not). I was once told that when it comes to a collision you have to make a call.

On the other hand, I understand that you don't want to make a call since you don't have definitive knowledge of the play. I was also told you shouldn't make a call that you can't explain.

So...? Help?

Sometimes, you just need to officiate.

There's no real rule that's going to help you here.

Sometimes, you "know" that a no-call is wrong, so *maybe* you're better off guessing on B or C -- you've got a 50% chance of being right instead of a 100% chance of being wrong; and you;ll only have one coach mad at you instead of two.

Sometimes, you can make an educated guess. But, your chances of being right go up with experience, and when it's right to do so varies by area and by game and by minute within the game -- so you need some experience to determine whether you need to be 95% sure, or 75% sure, or 50% sure to make the call -- and which way you want to default.