GUIDELINES
FOR
EVALUATING
OFFICIALS



 THE
FOLLOWING
NUMBERS
ARE
TO
BE
USED
ON
THE
RATING
SHEET
TO
BEST
DESCRIBE
 MISTAKES
THAT
MAY
HAVE
LED
TO
MISSED
CALLS
OR
NO
CALLS.
 (Writing
the
number
down
allows
for
a
quick
notation
of
what
occurred
without
taking
 the
evaluators
attention
away
from
the
game
for
too
long
a
period
of
time.)
 
 ON
BALL
COVERAGE

 (Items
1‐7)
 
 1.
Tight
focus
is
on
the
player
with
the
ball
 • Tight
focus
means
the
official
is
looking
only
at
the
player
with
the
ball
rather
 than:
 • Taking
a
“wide”
view
of
his
area
(compare
this
to
driving
a
car.

We
don’t
just
 watch
the
back
of
the
car
in
front
of
us,
we
see
cars
to
the
side,
oncoming
 traffic,
merging
vehicles.

Brake
lights
mean
possible
problems,
so
we
look
 more
closely
at
the
spot
where
trouble
is
likely
to
take
place)
 • Watching
the
defensive
player

 
 Watching
the
“trouble
area”
in
his
part
of
the
court
where

the
action
is
likely
to
occur
 such
as:

 • Near
cutters
that
are
moving
toward
the
ball
 • Where
screens
are
being
set
to
free
the
ball
handler
 • This
is
not
to
say
the
official
does
not
watch
the
offensive
player
at
all…an
 official
is
always
aware
of
the
offensive
player,
but
more
attention
should
be
 on
the
defensive
player.
A
tighter
focus
is
used
when
the
ball
handler
is
being
 closely
guarded,
with
that
view
being
primarily
on
the
defensive
player
 applying
the
pressure.
 
 An
offensive
player
can
do
one
of
three
things:
 • Shoot
 • Dribble
 • Pass
 This
means
we
can
watch
for
traveling
or
other
violations
without
limiting
ourselves
to
 watching
only
the
offensive
player
 
 Practice
watching
the
defensive
player,
and
moving
to
position
yourself
to
determine:
 • Did
the
player
establish
a
legal
defensive
position

 • Did
the
player
initiate
illegal
contact
 • Did
the
player
move
to
maintain
legal
guarding
position
 • 
 Drills
for
watching
the
defensive
player
during
on
ball

 coverage:


• •

When
watching
games
on
TV
or
live,
practice
focusing
on
the
nearest
matchup
 or
defenders
as
though
you
are
officiating

 Do
the
same
drill
only
expand
your
view
around
the
player
with
the
ball
(when
 it
is
not
a
competitive
match
up)
and
tighten
up
your
view
when
pressure
on
 the
ball
is
eminent.



 2.
Did
not
get
open
look
 An
“open
look”
is
the
term
used
when
the
official
can
see
between
the
offensive
and
 defensive
player.


 • Move
to
see
between
the
offense
and
defense
 
 A
“closed
look”
is
one
where
you
can
see
only
the
back
of
a
player
(you
cannot
see
 who
creates
contact
or
if
contact
occurs)
 • Move
to
see
between
offense
and
defense
 • Step
to
wherever
it
takes
to
see
“through
the
play.”
 • Without
an
open
look,
officials
often
call
what
they
cannot
see
 • Without
an
open
look,
you
are
usually
guessing
at
contact
 
 3.
Did
not
maintain
open
look
 • Official
did
not
move
with
the
play
to
keep
an
open
look
to
see
between
the
 offense
and
defense.
 • As
players
move
and
plays
develop,
officials
must
move
to
keep
themselves
in
 position
to
see
through
the
play.
 • A
step
farther
onto
the
court,
a
step
toward
the
sideline,
a
step
closer
to
the
 paint
could
be
necessary
to
see
the
through
the
play.
 • Get
to
wherever
it
takes
to
see
the
play
 
 4.
Missed
call
on
shot:

a.

foul
called


b.
no
call
made
 During
the
shooting
of
the
ball:
 a.

Foul
was
called
that
should
not
have
been
called
 • Good
defensive
position
might
have
been
penalized
 • No
contact
occurred,
but
official
was
not
in
position
to
see
the
play
was
legal
 b.

No
call
was
made
when
a
foul
occurred
 • Contact
that
affected
play
took
place
that
was
not
called,
usually
due
to:
 • Official
did
not
move
to
keep
open
look
or
had
a
tight
focus
on
the
person
with
 the
ball
 • Contact
is
often
missed
on
the
arm
of
the
shooter
when
not
in
position
to
see
 between
players
 

 5.

Missed
block‐charge
on:
 a.

Defensive
Player
 • Foul
incorrectly
called
on
defensive
player
who
had
established
legal
guarding
 position,
moved
legally
to
maintain
position.


Official
did
not
pick
up
defensive
player
to
help
recognize
if
player
established
 and
kept
legal
position
prior
to
contact
 • Official
did
not
recognize
contact
was
imminent,
and
did
not
see
entire
 play…late
to
pick
up
defense
 b.

Offensive
Player
 • Foul
called
incorrectly
on
offensive
player
who
did
not
contact
defensive
player
 “square”
because
defense
had
not
maintained
legal
guarding
position
 • Officials
was
not
in
position
to
see
the
entire
play
or
saw
only
“end”
of
play
 • Official
did
not
see
how
defense
got
to
position
or
whether
they
had
 established
legal
guarding
position
prior
to
contact
 

 6.
Missed
call
on
contact
on
dribbler
(freedom
of
movement
prevented):

 a.
Foul
called
when
 • No
contact
occurred
but
official
was
not
in
position
to
see
the
play
 • Offensive
player
initiated
the
contact
 • Offensive
player
created
contact
by
taking
a
path
where
not
enough
space
was
 available
 b.
No
call
 • Foul
was
not
called
that
should
have
been
called
because:
 • Contact
affected
balance,
route,
or
speed
of
dribbler
 • Contact
created
a
turnover
 

 7.
Tight
focus
on
ball
when
no
competitive
match‐up
 • On
ball
official
is
watching
only
offensive
player
with
the
ball
when
no
one
is
 guarding
the
player,
or
has
no
defensive
threat
 • Official
should
be
taking
a
“wide”
view
of
what
is
taking
place
and
be
ready
to
 officiate
developing
play,
while
being
aware
of
ball
handler
 • Know
when
and
where
problems
might
develop
 • On
ball
official
is
leaving
other
two
officials
to
officiate
9
players
 

 II.

OFF
BALL
COVERAGE
 (Items
8‐12)
 
 8.

Did
not
work
to
get
or
keep
“open
lane”
of
vision
to
see
cutters,
post
play,
 screeners,
or
other
action
 • Official
working
off
ball
allowed
players
to
block
his
view
of
action
without
 moving
to
see
through
players
 • Off
ball
official
must
move
with
the
play
to
maintain
an
open
look
and
be
ready
 to
officiate
when
and
where
problems
are
likely
to
take
place
 

 9.
Watched
ball
outside
of
their
area
 • Official
“ball
watched”
or
watched
ball
all
over
the
court
 • Official
did
not
officiate
“off
ball”
responsibilities
 •



 10.
Fouls
in
post
area
 a.

No‐called
foul
that
should
have
been
called
 • Official
with
off
ball
post
responsibility
did
not
officiate
illegal
post
action
either
 by
defensive
or
by
the
offensive
player
 • Displacement
of
offensive
post
player
was
not
called
 • Illegal
use
of
arms
by
offensive
post
not
called
 b.

Called
foul
that
should
not
have
been
called
 • Called
contact
incorrectly
because
official
did
not
see
through
players,
or
saw
 only
the
end
of
the
play
(guessed)
 
 11.

Illegal
screens
 a.
No‐called
illegal
screen
 • Did
not
anticipate
screen
taking
place
and
missed
screener
taking
illegal
 position
for
screen
(often
not
giving
time
and
distance
to
player
being
 screened)
 • Often
missed
due
to
official
being
too
focused
on
player
with
the
ball
(by
 official
with
on
ball
or
off
ball
responsibility)
 • Did
not
recognize
offensive
scheme
and
did
not
anticipate
screen
being
set
 b.
Called
foul
on
legal
screen
 • Official
did
not
see
entire
play
 • Officials
did
not
pick
up
screener
moving
into
position
to
determine
if
screen
 was
legally
set
 • Contact
“looked
bad”
or
was
hard
contact
so
a
foul
was
called
 

 12.

Focus
too
tight
on
non‐competitive
match‐up
(did
not
have
wide
view)
 Off‐ball
officials
had
narrow
focus
on
players
in
their
area
who
were
not
in
position
to
 foul
each
other

(must
recognize
where
potential
for
problem
is
likely
to
be)
 

 III.

COMMUNICATION
 (Items
13‐16)
 

 13.
Did
not
respond
to
coach
when
needed
 • Official
did
not
recognize
when
coach
had
question
or
concern
that
deserved
 response
or
“a
listen”
 • Missed
coach’s
request
for
time‐out
 

 14.
Talked
too
much
to
coach
(as
peace
maker)
 • Official
spent
too
much
time
with
coach
rather
than
officiating
the
game
 • Unfair
to
opposing
coach,
players
and
other
officials
by
being
unprofessional
 • Answer
questions
when
asked,
and
then
referee
 

 15.

Did
not
give
coach
a
warning
or
T
when
needed


• •

Did
not
enforce
sportsmanship
or
bench
decorum
when
needed
 Allowed
improper
actions
to
continue
rather
than
taking
care
of
them
as
soon
 as
needed




 16.
Did
not
communicate
with
other
officials
when
needed
 Official
did
not
take
time
to
check
with
co‐officials
on
inbounding
ball,
taking
fouls
to
 table,
making
eye
contact
when
needed,
and
talking
through
situations
when
officials
 should
have
come
together
 

 IV.

MISCELLANEOUS
 
 (Items
17‐26)
 

 17.

Rotated
too
much
 • Official
rotated
when
not
dictated
by
the
play
 • Official
did
not
recognize
when
play
required
movement
or
when
it
did
not
 necessitate
rotation
 • Official
rotated
him
or
herself
out
of
position
for
no
reason
 

 18.
Did
not
rotate
enough
 • Official
did
not
recognize
when
play
dictated
that
he
rotate
in
order
to
have
 open
look
or
be
ready
to
officiate
when
action
was
likely
to
take
place
 • Official
did
not
recognize
when
rotation
was
necessary
in
order
to
help
his
co‐ officials
be
in
position
to
referee
what
was
taking
place
 

 19.
Signals
 a.
Not
appropriate
 • Signal
used
did
not
fit
the
call
or
the
violation/foul
 • Signal
was
not
approved
officiating
signal
and
did
not
properly
communicate
 the
infraction
 b.
Not
believable
(too
weak)
 • Signal
did
not
exhibit
confidence
in
call
 • Poor
mechanics
used
when
giving
signal
 

 20.
Not
in
proper
position
(did
not
move
to
referee
competitive
matchup)
 • Official
did
not
recognize
position
needed
to
see
through
the
defense
and
 offensive
 • Officiated
while
not
being
able
to
see
the
entire
play
 • Did
not
move
to
be
in
best
position
possible
to
referee
 

 21.
Missed
travel,
carry,
or
double
dribble
 • Missed
violation
by
calling
one
that
did
not
occur,
or
by
not
calling
one
that
did
 occur.

Usually
due
to
not
being
in
position
to
see
the
play
resulting
in
 “guessing.”




 22.
Focused
on
the
ball
in
flight
(shot,
pass,
rebound)
 • Official
watched
ball
in
the
air
rather
than
watching
players
 • Ball
in
flight
will
not
foul…watch
players
at
all
times…that
is
where
the
 problems
will
occur
 
 23.
Called
a
foul
that
should
not
have
been
called
 • Did
not
see
entire
play

(had
a
quick
whistle
before
play
finished)
 • Anticipated
illegal
contact
that
did
not
take
place
 • Penalized
good
defensive
or
offensive
play
by
guessing
(often
occurred
because
 something
“looked
bad”
that
was
actually
legal
play)
 

 24.
Did
not
call
a
foul
that
should
have
been
called
 • Allowed
illegal
contact
that
affected
play
 • Position
of
the
official
caused
the
official
to
miss
illegal
action
 • Did
not
recognize
contact
as
illegal
 

 25.
Missed
rule
interpretation
 • Misapplied
rule
 • Incorrect
procedure
used
for
rule
 

 26.
Any
other
negatives
not
listed
above
 • Could
include
variety
of
things:

did
not
allow
game
to
have
flow;
did
not
have
 “feel”
for
game;
calls
did
not
“fit”
the
game;
etc.
 
 
 EXPLAINATION AND RATIONAL FOR BASKETBALL OFFICIALS EVALUATION FORMS AND CRITERIA • • •

• •

Triplicate form listing six general categories on which each official is rated A scale of 1 through 5 is used on these criteria, with 5 being the highest score. Appearance  Is the official physically fit  Is the officials’ uniform properly sized  Does he or she carry himself/hershelf with good posture and look like they belongs on the court  Is he/she concerned with the game itself rather than drawing attention to himself/hershef  Is he/she confident without being cocky Rules  Are rules correctly applied Judgment  Are calls correct  Are fouls called when needed

•

•

•




 Are non-calls made when legal play occurs, even though something may “look bad.” Game Management  Is illegal action called throughout the game or does the allowed level of contact change during the game  Are potential problems between players recognized and addressed before they escalate into technical foul situations  Are coaches addressed when needed and warned for inappropriate behavior  Is inappropriate bench behavior allowed to continue  Do officials have an awareness of the game clock, one and one situations, and communicate clearly with the table  Does each official clearly communicate with his crew members during foul calls, prior to inbounding ball, unusual situations that may occur Hustle  Are officials able to keep up with the pace of play  Can officials get into position to see through the offense and the defense  Are officials purposeful in their movements during dead ball situations  Do officials administer free throws and throw ins in a timely fashion Mechanics  Does the official know his areas of coverage and responsibility in relation to ball position  Does the official watch off ball or does he keep his eye on the ball at all times  Does the official use proper signals  Is the official confident and strong with his or her signals  Is the official believable and clear in his or her foul call reporting techniques  Does the official cover the floor as needed in relation to his or her coofficials  Are rotations done at the proper time  Is the official watching competitive match-ups