Player/Team Control during "simultaneous possession"?

[MechanicGuy]

Originally Posted by just another ref

You realize that the whistle is not the key, right? I believe that simultaneous possession is not a term that can be found in the books, but rather when opponents have such a firm grasp on the ball that it cannot be pulled away without using excessive force. (or something like that) When this occurs, the ball is dead, regardless of when the whistle blows. A timeout or a travel would have to occur before this point.

Yes, but coaches don't seem to like that explanation. They see a tie-up, scream time-out just before the whistle and expect their request to be granted.

It doesn't help that some officials will comply.

I was trying to find solid ground in the rules, but was unsuccessful.