"Shooter Changes His Mind" Travel (Video)

[BillyMac]

9.5 SITUATION: A1 dribbles and comes to a stop after which he throws the ball against ... the opponent’s backboard ... and catches the ball ... RULING: A1 has violated; throwing the ball against an opponent’s backboard ... constitutes another dribble, provided A1 is first to touch the ball after it strikes ... the board. (4-4-5; 4-15-1, 2; Fundamental 19)

Fundamental 19. A ball which touches the front face or edges of the backboard is treated the same as touching the floor inbounds, except that when the ball touches the thrower’s backboard, it does not constitute a part of a dribble.

Originally Posted by just another ref

In the plays above it is clear that the intent of the ball handler was not to dribble. A pass is when the ball is directed to another player. If the thrower is first to touch, the other player is eliminated from the play, creating the violation.

A1 ends his dribble and throws the ball against his opponent's backboard. What are we going to call this "throw(ing)" motion?

It can be a fumble, but I think that the NFHS would have told us it was unintentional if they expected us to think that it was a fumble. So, it's not a fumble.

Maybe it's a pass? But some in this thread have stated that a pass must be to somebody, and I doubt that there was somebody sitting on top of the backboard. Maybe there was somebody waiting to catch the pass after the ball deflected off the backboard, but the NFHS did not give us that information either. So, it wasn't a pass. Which is much better stated in just another ref's post above.

Maybe it was a try? But it couldn't have been a try because we at know that you can't have a try at an opponent's basket. So, it wasn't a try.

Let's see? What left? A dribble. That's left. It must have been a dribble. The NFHS even tells us that it was a dribble in the casebook play ("constitutes another dribble").

So it was a dribble, and when does the NFHS want us to call this illegal (double) dribble violation?

When the ball is released (pushed to the floor, which in this case is the backboard) by the ball handler? No.

How about when the ball hits the backboard (pushed to the floor, which in this case is the backboard)? No.

How about when the ball hits the real floor? Again, another no.

It appears that the NFHS wants us to call the violation when "A1 is first to touch the ball after it strikes the board" (of course the backboard is the same as the floor in this case).

So it appears that the NFHS wants us to wait until A1 touches the ball before we call the violation. Why would they want us to wait? Because a few things could happen that would prevent the violation? Like what? What could happen to prevent the illegal (double) dribble violation from being called?

A teammate touches the ball first? Sure, that would prevent the violation from being called, it's just a very odd, but legal, bounce pass.

An opponent touches the ball first? Sure, that would prevent the violation from being called, and the opponent would probably get credit for a steal.

The ball bounces of the real floor and then out of bounds? That can happen.

As the ball bounces on the real floor a foul is called, or the horn sounds to end the period? All certainly possible.

Bottom line, the NFHS wants us to wait until the ball handler touches the ball again before we call an illegal (double) dribble violation. Not when the ball is released (pushed), and not when the ball hits the floor (or the opponent's backboard). The NFHS wants us to wait until the ball handler touches the ball again (after the release, and after the ball hit the floor) and then, and only then, we can call the illegal (double) dribble violation.