"Don't point fingers"

[bballref3966]

I follow a very well-respected official from Georgia on Twitter whose username is @RayTheRef. Today, he tweeted three tweets which caught my attention...

"What's up with the officials using the one-finger pointing? Why "buy into" this instead of using the Approved, Proper & Professional Signal?"

"One finger for Direction, One Finger for Counting, One Finger for Starting The Clock, One Finger for last minute, etc. No dignity. No pride."

"Weren't you taught as a child not to point? Some officials have gone for 4 fingers to 2 & now 1. I'm worried as to which one finger is next."


This is something that, for me, I've never really thought about, probably because my assigner really couldn't care less if I signal direction with one, two, or four fingers. I know that in high school the chart says to use four fingers, and I try to get in the habit of it. I also chop and count with a full hand.

My question is: is this something that your assigner(s) are strict about, is this something you think is a big deal?

[JRutledge]

Technically, the state cares. Is it a deal breaker? Nope.

Peace

[Rich]

I'm not sure a lot of people care. His Twitter feed is amusing.

I'm a big fan of doing things right, but this guy sounds like it's a religion to him.

[JRutledge]

Well he goes on and on about doing things right, but he never seems to say what level he is talking about. Many levels do not have mechanics that do what he suggests.

Peace

When you point at things in real life, do you use four fingers or one? Why should your pointing on the court be any different?

Honestly it varies state-by-state and official-by-official but my personal belief is simple: I don't give a crap about your "signal package" as long as you are communicating adequately. IMO the approved signals are not there to get everyone looking the same for posterity, they are there to provide a set of guidelines for clear communication as to what calls you are making. If my signals do the same job communicating what I have while looking stronger and selling my call better, I am going to use those better signals. Your mileage may vary.

An aside: I was recently discussing a play on the court during a timeout and pointed to the spot of the play. After the game one of my P's told me never to point when discussing a play -- people in the crowd might see it and think we are discussing something because we got it wrong. Is that something I should care about?

[Freddy]

No problems when it's done by the book (cf. Faceless Pictograph Guy/Girl):
5-4-1.
5 - Upraised open hand subsequent to whistle for violation
4 - Direction play will resume
1 - Location of throw-in (used to be 2, but picto-graph guy changed last year)

A "deal-breaker"? Maybe not with all responsible authorities. But it's promoted as the standard for signaling and just looks good when everyone in the pool does it the same.

As to general pointing, no big deal.

Pointing to the bench of the team who fouled (the "Accusatory Point") when reporting to the table was branded "verboten" and considered unapproved several years ago.

Pointing at the spot of the violation when no approved signal is given is approved by the manual. Nothing impolite about that.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by AremRed

An aside: I was recently discussing a play on the court during a timeout and pointed to the spot of the play. After the game one of my P's told me never to point when discussing a play -- people in the crowd might see it and think we are discussing something because we got it wrong. Is that something I should care about?

I've had a couple of mentors who are adamant about not pointing or doing any type of arm movements while having a discussion with partners, and especially with coaches.

[bob jenkins]

If your assignor cares, you should care.

[bballref3966]

What about pointing to the offending player/coach after a T?

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by bballref3966

What about pointing to the offending player/coach after a T?

If T'ing a coach, I will point in the general direction of the coach/bench while looking at the table when I first signal the T. When I report it, I do so as I would any other foul.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

Technically, the state cares. Is it a deal breaker? Nope.

Peace

Same here, and same with the assigner. It gets mentioned every year during meetings.

[Kansas Ref]

I use two appressed fingers to indicate directionality. I've seen a few officials use the one finger to indicate directionality and I'm not a fan of it--as it just looks too shall I say "pedestrian" i.e., common place and not ascribed to a profession. But that is just me being pompous
Our manual shows an open hand to show direction, but I use an open hand with fingers appressed to indicate a violation.
Don't most of you think that using one finger is not a good look?

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by Kansas Ref

...
Don't most of you think that using one finger is not a good look?

In this part of the country, especially at the college level, it's the norm to use 1 finger.

[Rob1968]

When I asked an official why he uses 2 fingers to indicate direction, he said "Because it looks stronger than 1 finger, why?" (did I ask)
When I replied that the manual shows a full hand - that is, all 4 fingers - which then, must be stronger than 2 fingers, he frowned, and had no further reply.
It's notable, in my area, that most of the higher ranked officials - those who consider themselves to be among the power elite - use 2 fingers. It seems that they do it because they feel that it sets them apart from the common, lower ranked officials, who just do what the manual indicates.