Basketball officials are always making quick decisions, some which may determine the end result of the game. One of the most common decisions officials make on the court, not to mention the most disputed, is differentiating between a block and a charge.
There are many factors that go into an Basketball official’s call. Quite a few of them, again, are often disputed by officials, coaches and players alike. This is why it’s crucial that the official be in good position to make the call, as this can be the difference for a team to win or lose a game. Let’s review some important questions that an official should ask himself before he makes a call.
Was The Defender in Good Position?
Often good position is understood as the defender having two feet firmly planted on the ground with both hands straight up. This, however, is not always the case. FIBA (the governing body of international basketball), has implemented the cylinder principle, in which the defender is considered to be in good defensive position as long as he stays within that cylinder.
What’s often misunderstood is that the cylinder ranges from the floor to the roof in a gym. Therefore, if a defensive player leaves his feat and continues to remain in his cylinder he’s still constituted as having legal guarding position.
Who Occupied The Space First?
This is perhaps one of the most important things to ask yourself when officiating a basketball game. It’s important to remember that the first person to occupy a spot on the floor has the absolute right to that spot. This meaning that if someone displaces that person they are responsible for the contact.
It doesn’t matter whether the contact happened a split second after someone occupied that particular place, the person still has the right to that space. With that said, always be prepared for an argument on your call, as coaches tend to use the excuse of “he was barely there.”
How do you determine if someone has occupied a particular spot on the floor? The person who has a location on the floor should initially have two feet firmly on the ground and be in full defensive position. The arms, as I mentioned earlier, don’t have to straight up, just within the cylinder.
Did The Defender Do Anything Wrong?
There are a few things that can suddenly turn an obvious offensive foul into a blocking foul on the defender. When guarding an offensive player, the defender is allowed to move back and side to side, however, they may not move forward into the attacking player. This is because defenders will begin to cheat, bumping into the attacking player with their chest or sticking out their hip.
All of those examples are a clear reason of why it’s essential to ask yourself whether the defender did anything wrong. But what exactly is constituted as wrong when it comes to the defender?
- Did the player move forward into the attacker?
- Is the player in their Cylinder?
- Is The player sticking their hip out to prevent the offender from passing?
- Did the offender run into the defender to create contact?
What Have You Learned?
Distinguishing between a block and a charge is one of the difficult calls to make in a basketball game. The above points will help you in making those decisions, however, it also depends on your perception of the situation and what angle you’re viewing the play from.
So next time you officiate a basketball and encounter a block/charge situation remember these basic principles:
- Is the defender in legal guarding position?
- Did the defender initiate contact to get an advantage?
- Who occupied the space first?
- Did the defender do something to put the attacking player at a disadvantage?