Ejection Championship Game

[twocentsworth]

Originally Posted by SC Official

Is our job to differentiate between the best player and everyone else?

To not whack or throw out ANY player for this kind of behavior, or to not whack or throw out a player on the basis that he is the best player on the team, would also simply be a complete lack of officiating common sense and game management. It would also fly right in the face of what our job mandates we do. Our responsibilities don't change because of the game's platform, believe it or not.

And please show me where our job description mandates that we give a coach an explanation after throwing out the best player. If (s)he wants an explanation, (s)he'll let me know with his/her words or body language.

Your insistence on avoiding technical fouls and ejections at all costs is not going to get you far.

This is a classic example of how important communication skills are in being a good official…..NOWHERE in my post did I say, hint, or infer that, based on the OP, I would NOT give a T or eject the player in question. I ONLY said, that IF you throw the best player on the team out of the game (or any player really), you definitely owe the head coach an explanation.

You CANNOT assume the head coach knows why you ejected the kid…just like you CANNOT assume meaning to a statement/post that I did not say/post.

The best officials posses two key components (before you assume that these are the ONLY "ingredients" - there are others…): judgement & communication (be it mechanics, dealing w/ players/coaches, or any # of other communicative elements).

Any call (or non-call) made in a game is based on the view or angle that an official has on the play. Because your view is different than the view that virtually everyone else in the gym/arena has, it causes people to sometimes have a different opinion as to what happened. In certain situations (like the one described in the OP), you will need to explain/discuss with people what you saw and why you ruled the way you did.

An official can certainly make calls and NOT explain/discuss/talk with anyone during a game, but that official should expect that he/she will not receive the games/advancement that he/she desires in the future. If someone thinks that officiating is ONLY about "getting the calls right", then they are not living in the real world of officiating.