Hoops

Herald Sun - Nbl Coaches

I don't think that has been the case for some time. But the whole "let it go unless there is a turnover" way of calling things has had an adverse effect on the games. If the choice is there between less whistle/scrappy game, or more whistle/better skills then i'll take option B.

Paul - "If you call every foul by the rule book, the people in the stands and watching on tv are going to be bored by a foul fest and wont watch too many more games"

I see it differently. I think that by letting stuff go to the point where the game becomes overly physical (particularly for ball handlers) detracts from the game and is a turn off for spectators. I'd rather see a PG advance the ball quickly over half court and get in to his offence than seeing him getting smashed until 4 seconds remain on the shot clock. There can still be good D played, in particular good team D, but allowing guys to grapple and hold does not make them good defenders, and it's worse when one team is allowed to do it, but on the other side of the country the refs call it differently.

Call the force if that happens - I don't think they called a lot. Refs calling it differently, some games they almost lost control.

Watching Bruce getting banged into while Schenscher was getting held onto and pushed around wasn't enjoyable. The game IS actually more free flowing when called correctly and the guards back off a bit from fouling.

Correct Paul. The games will be in the bonus 4 mins into each quarter and nobody wants to watch a free thorw shooting contest

Anonymous on your first comment regarding games internationally, if you think that about me and my experiences then good luck to you but i assure you your thoughts are incorrect. Dont let the name Sebastian fool you.

Internationally and in euroleague any overt contact on the ball carrier is now called with greater regularity than in the past. That's how FIBA educate their referees these days. Prior to all major tournaments they conduct clinics so that all officials are on the same page especially as they generally have officilas from weaker zones within the refereeing group. Never judge refereeing standards at a tournament by the preliminary rounds due to this fact. Your best indicator at an Olympics or worlds at any level or age group is in the second round. You draw your conclusions about referee standards from there as this is when the best referees are doing the games. They allow the game to flow from the quarters on and the game is run by advantage/disadvantage. Simple as that.

The language barrier is why the game is called tighter internationally because you cant communicate as well so referees dont talk they just blow. Players dont respond to preventative officiating as they use the language barrier as the excuse for not conforming. But if they get a call they dont like, they soon remember how to speak english.

Totally agree that the reason coaches and players get the sh*ts in Australia but anywhere for that matter is the lack of consistency from call to call and game to game. This is the main improvement the NBL panel must strive for now and in the future. The main problem is the difference in ability from referees ranked in the top 4 to the referees ranked in the bottom 4 is massive. This gap needs to decrease significantly for things to improve. As you say in the last 6 or 7 years Australian referees have ranked and performed exceptionally well on the international stage for such a small country in basketball terms especially.

Yes our refs in my opinion are smart enough to decide advantage/dis but the NBL coaches dont agree and feel that the group as a whole doesnt have the knowledge or experience to do this consistently thus they just want the crap blown out of it. No adv/dis, a defender puts his hand in regardless of outcome and its is a foul. Plain and simple as that. They say players will adjust. Whether you agree with it or not, that's how they want it called.

Blowing the game tighter this season has nothing to do with making the game more free flowing. Coaches say they just dont know what is a foul and what isnt due to adv/dis so to remove their frustrations they just want to take adv/dis out of the decision making process and just call everything. It will be a sh*t spectacle trust me but that's what the directive is this season.

If you watched the AFL press conference yesterday the best thing that the 3 guys said was their role is to let them play football. Simple as that. The same could and should be said about basketball.

One of the problems i think will occur is referees will second guess themselves more than ever. They have been so used to holding their whistles and trying to let the play develop that this season i think they will get caught between the 2 styles. They will go is that a foul, sh*t im not sure, oh but no adv so play on but wait it has to be a foul now and i think you will find the inconsistencies will increase not decrease. You cant move to full FIBA basketball and full FIBA rules and then take out the major principle of the international game "advantage /disadvantage" and expect there not to be problems.

I look forward to watching the season opener tomorrow night to see how they call the game. Especially with 1 Aussie ref and 2 New Zealanders on the game.

Assuming the refs are being consistant and not guessing (yes its a massive assumption) wouldnt a high foul count be more due to the players not adjusting their play to the tighter reffing rather than refs being overzealous? If you set the tone for the game early the playesr know where the boundaries are and will play accordingly. If a guard picks up 3 fouls in the first 1/4 for reaching in and bodying the player bringing the ball up surely they will be forced to move their feet more and reach less when they get back on the court. If not they will foul out.

As for good games having low foul counts - Ill agree with you there, but, does the low foul count indicate the refs let a lot of softer stuff go, or were the players just playing good legal defense without the hand and body checking?

Paul - having a no call after an offensive p[layer has negotiated his way past a reaching in defender might disadvantage the offense on that specific play as the D can then reset but surely letting the violation go uncalled will disadvantage them in the long run as the defender hasnt used up one of his fouls and can do the same thing on the next play?

I personally like to see the game called a bit tighter than it has been when guards are bringing up the ball. Sure it might slow the game down in the first few minutes but Im sure the defenders will adjust pretty fast when they see their foul tally going up and the game then will flow better.

I guess the main thing though is having consistancy across the board - and this I feel has been the main downfall of our refs in recent times.

Anonomous, if you think that's how its called overseas you my friend have you head up your .......

Handchecking is key internationally in Europe. Its in the block they are allowed to kill each other to a certain degree.

I get sick of hand checks not being called just because the ball carrier doesn't turn it over. If you don't like seeing hand checks after a defender has been beaten, you need to hope the defender learns to keep his hands to himself.

It's his job to question the refs. Goorj was the master of it and look how he turned out.

Blitz Grand Final had 48 fouls called

Read this earlier today. Stacker in that roel should be interesting...how long can he hold his tongue for?

Good thing Goorj is out of the league!

"The summit agreed that NBL games would be called tighter by the referees with particular focus on illegal use of the hands against players with and without the ball and that any hand contact against the ball handler should be an immediate foul."

Thank God for that. I know they figured that less calls would mean a free-flowing game, but it actually had a negative effect. Seeing a ball handler being abused in the backcourt while retaining his dribble, which leads to less time to run an offence, makes the game a poor spectacle.

Time for some linky for all the lazy ones ;)

http://linky.com.au/2akwq