Rndballref
20 Years Experience
Chicago, IL
Male, 60
For twenty years I officiated high school, AAU and park district basketball games, retiring recently. For a few officiating is the focus of their occupation, while for most working as an umpire or basketball referee is an avocation. I started ref'ing to earn beer money during college, but it became a great way to stay connected to the best sports game in the universe. As a spinoff, I wrote a sports-thriller novel loosely based on my referee experiences titled, Advantage Disadvantage
I certainly encourage you to report this. Most people officiate because they love the game, and if you love the game you have a duty to do anything in your power to advance the avocation of refereeing. I suggest you find out who ran the AAU tournament and voice your concerns. Because of your background, meaning you have training and experience and do not appear to be simply a biased, ticked off untrained parent, the AAU tournament director should be willing to tell you who the assigner of the officials was for the tournament and you should contact him/her directly.
I think most states would not allow an official complaint at the state licensing level because AAU tournaments are not normally state sanctioned contests even though they only hire "patched state officials".
Share Answer: 
To have a backcourt violation a team must first achieve possession in their front court. There is no team possession on a throw in.
So, in your scenario Players B1 and A2 touch the ball, but neither have achieved possession. Therefore, no backcourt violation when A2 retrieves the ball in his backcourt.
Share Answer: 
I understand your point. In nearly all sports, coaches make moves that help determine the outcome of games; time outs, call in plays etc. I think the NFHS needs to decide if they want to completely eliminate the "everyone in the gym knows it is an intentional foul" being ignored or called as a common, or leave it unevenly called as it is. In the past they have tried to issue guidelines, but the gray area for interpretation is a mile wide. Don't know how much noise they hear about this issue, but NFHS has not settled on a good solution yet.
Share Answer: 
Thanks for the kind words!
Share Answer: 
Las Vegas Cab Driver
Do people ever ask you to keep your meter off in exchange for a cheaper fare?
Antiques Dealer
If you buy an item that turns out to be stolen, do you have to turn it over to the police?
Border Patrol Agent
Do Mexican authorities help on THEIR side of the border?
There is no provision in the mechanics or rule books for NFHS. In fact, although one official is designated as the "referee" and the other two are "umpire 1" and "umpire 2", the referee is not enpowered to overrule the others. Here's how I handled this: In the pre-game I asked my partners to agree to this. If they think I got the call wrong, approach me and tell me what you saw, and I will decide whether to overrule myself based on your input. That way, we could undue a really bad missed call, but if I passed on a call for my own reasons (advantage disadvantage for example) I could ignore my partner's input. Also, if I changed my call I could better explain to a coach why it was reversed. Most of the people I worked with agreed to use this system.
Share Answer: 
The referee (as opposed to the other officials) has the responsibility to decide matters upon which the timer and scorekeeper disagree. Furthermore, "the referee shall make decisions on any points not specifically covered in the rulebook."
There is no explicit provision in the rule book to address the situation you describe. So, the referee has to decide what would be consistent with the intent of the rulebook.
Share Answer: 
It depends on 1) your current size and potential size and 2) your level of fundamental skills (dribbling, shot accuracy, speed, passing, basketball IQ, selflessness, and most importantly the needs of your team).
Share Answer: 
-OR-
Login with Facebook (max 20 characters - letters, numbers, and underscores only. Note that your username is private, and you have the option to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
(A valid e-mail address is required. Your e-mail will not be shared with anyone.)
(min 5 characters)
By checking this box, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to Jobstr.com’s Terms and Privacy Policy.
-OR-
Register with Facebook(Don't worry: you'll be able to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
Browse Jobs
Host a Q&A
Search
Submit Your Question
Host a Q&A
Last 7
