Fist bump your partner? (Video)
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJn1Xeh6M8

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There is a mini firestorm about 2 NFL officials giving themselves a fist bump for helping each other out on a TD call. A Player is characterizing the gesture as a 'celebration' and is questioning the impartiality of the involved officials.
What else is new, right.

My question is, do you engage in such acts during a game with your partners?

I know I constantly give 'thumbs up' or say "Good Call" as encouragement when I am working with a newbie or otherwise.

What about y'all?

I was advised long ago not to do any fist bumping or celebratory handshakes with my fellow officials until we were away from the court, and I've followed that advice.

I do give my partners a "good call" shout out when I feel it's needed.

We fist bump before the game.

I don't like to shake hands with my partners until I'm in the locker room. Call me paranoid.

Another example of perception.

In a high school game last week, a guy I know walks onto the floor to ask me a question about a situation. I quickly usher him back to his seat and tell him that I can talk to him after the game. When we chatted the next day, I reminded that (first of all) you never step onto the court during a game. And secondly, he was at the game because his daughter was playing. It never occured to him how this might be perceived that the father of a player was coming onto the floor to talk to an official during a timeout.

The absurdity of the "firestorm" proves the point of being "above reproach".

I am in the "good call" camp but no handshake/fist bump after initial one right before start of game until we get to the locker room.

Keep in mind that the NFL has what many consider absurdly excessive retrictions on player celebration -- which may be an undercurrent to the "firestorm" about the referees . . . let's just penalize the zebras 15 yards and move on . . .

. . . but on the serious side, why do it and risk someone misinterpretting it?

The only time I shake hands or fist bump is before (halftime during football games as well) and after the game. Usually after the game is the only time when it is not public. I would not do this in this particular situation, I would wait until the game was over. But that is just me.

Peace

this is how I roll :D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCvmZ-lfkqM

I've developed a habit of, when a partner calls one in my area that I didn't have a good look, saying "Good help" or "good pickup" or "Thanks, glad you could see it" or something on the way by. I may have to rethink that, because in my first game at a new NCAA-W level this year, when I said "Great help, thanks!" to my partner, the home coach heard it and apparently went NUTS on my partner for me "cheering at his call." Guess I'm not doing that anymore...at least not as loud.

I've exchanged fist bumps with partners before a game. I don't think I'd do it during, though. My main reason would be that I simply don't see a reason to do so.

If I wanted to thank a partner for making a good call or for picking up something in my area that I missed, I can easily mention that at halftime or after the game. That way, I have any questions or wish to seek constructive feedback on the situation, there's enough time for that.

A good-bye handshake or final interaction usually happens inside the locker room after we've changed and before we leave for home.

YMMV

I just use a head nod to non-verbally indicate to parnter if I agreed with the suspect call. I would never fist bump in the heat of public competition and with all those folks in the gym with Ipads and cell phones recording the games, opens up a can of stale achovies! :eek:

Fist bump...the germophobic answer to the handshake
 

Always before the tip ("Good luck and D.F.I.U.") out of habit and superstition...

Sometimes after the game as we're leaving the court (if it was a tough game that didn't turn into a train wreck).

I don't think anyone has ever noticed...if they did, it's never been mentioned.

As far as NFL officials...one of the toughest calls they make is a goal line scrum. If a partner helps get it right, who is harmed and what is the perception? Sounds like a whiny coach (ie Harbaugh) or whiny player that lost that day. Much ado about nothing IMHO

Worked some youth games with a new official Sunday, 2 person. He had one call that I loved so much I yelled over to him (in a totally quiet gym): "GREAT CALL, GREAT CALL!!" I also taught him the more subtle pounding fists signal for those times you can't yell. :p

In regards to the NFL thing, Mike Pereria says NFL will tell it's officials "no fistbumps, no handshakes, and no smiles on the field". Sauce.

I usually do a fist bump just before we sprint to our positions from the table just before tip off. I think it shows a little bit of crew unity at least among the crew (if you don't work together often) if not the coaches, players and fans.

I do not fist bump during the game. I will however give a "Good call" to a partner if it really is a good call and the players and/or coaches don't like it. I think this gives credibility to the call and the partner, and hopefully deescalates the angry coach or whatever.

This can be dangerous, too. One call, you say good call when the coach is chirping. The next you don't cuz you think he kicked it . . . and the perceptive coach comes out with "Even your partner knows you blew it" because you've tipped him off by how you responded to the prior call. YMMV.

That assumes I would care in the first place what a coach hears or does not hear.

I think people worry too much about what observers (meaning coaches and fans) think about things we do. Coaches perceive all kinds of silly things that are absurd. So if I tell a partner "good call" I really do not care what they think if I say nothing. Coaches perceive we do not like them based off of some silly situation we were involved with them and it is simply not true. Coaches have to do better than that if they wish many of us to change something.

Peace

No smiles? I'll really miss Hochuli.

I didn't assume anything about you. The post to which I was responding said he did it because it added credibility to the call and de-escates with the coach. My point is that bolstering some calls is inherently not bolstering others. Which is soemthing to be careful about. (Saying it just for your partner's benefit is a different issue.)

Definitely no fist bumping or anything like that during the game. I'll give a fist bump to my partner(s) right before we take our positions for the opening tip (sometimes, depends on the partner), and after the game, usually a handshake (again, depending on the partner). During the game, especially if it's a newer official, and I have a look on one of his calls and I feel he nailed it, I'll tell him "good call". I usually don't do that too often though, usually save that kind of stuff for the postgame.

Huh?

I was not responding to you as if you were talking directly to me. I was stating that many of us, including me do not give a d.a.m.n. about what coaches even think of them. I have been doing this too long to worry about those things anymore. I know off the bat there are going to be coaches that love me and coaches that hate my guts. And often times that is going to be for things I have no control over at the time. Like where I live, who I work for, what conferences I have worked, where they saw me previously and maybe they loss when I was on the game.

So if I were to tell my partner "Good call" the last thing I would be thinking about is how the coach feels about that statement in the context of that call and other calls. And if you are concerned that some calls are bolstered and others are not, well you know what I would say to a coach. "Coach I did not see the play clearly in question. When my partner gets around to you, ask him what he saw. We are all not looking at the same stuff all the time." And walk away from them. My experience has told me to not care about these things, because it will be a waste of your time with irrational thinking coaches.

Peace

*sigh* Lighten up, dude, you missed the point I was making entirely because it isn't what you do. (Which is what my last sentence of my second post said: doing it for your partner is different from doing it for the benefit of coaches.) My response was to Sharpshoornes, who obviously does care about what the coaches thought of his partner's call as he was saying "good call" because he wanted the coaches to be influenced by what he was saying:

If you're not doing it for that reason, then nothing I said is relevant to you. My only was that doing something for the purpose of showing coaches you agree with your partner risks throwing them under the bus when you don't do it.

Not professional at all. With every game on TV, there is no place for this because it can be perceived in so many ways. I believe it was innocent but they should know better performing on national TV every week.

I have to lighten up? You acted like I you were responding to me.

OK, I see what kind you are. ;)

Peace

When I tell my partner "good call", my tone and timing most definitely gives the coach no doubt who the real target of the comment is. The perceptive coach won't venture into that convo afterwards.

Exactly!!!

Peace