Published: November 17, 2010

On Sept. 23, at the referees’ annual meeting in Jersey City, N.J., NBA referees announced new guidelines for assessing technical fouls. Any unacceptable behavior from players will lead to a technical foul from the referees.

Referees are now able to call technical fouls on:

1 Players making air punches or  any other violent motion

2 Demonstrative disagreement

3 Disrespecting officials

4 Excessive inquiries about a call

The NBA plans on making sure that players don’t get away with extreme complaining with the officials. However, “heat of the moment” reactions such as a player raising his hand to show he had proper position will not be called for a  technical foul.

For some viewers, this power is considered to be too much. Also, now referees can be blamed for giving out unnecessary technical fouls.  Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) students were asked about their opinions on the new technical foul policy:

Megan Brandon
FCLC ’13

What is your opinion about the new technical foul policy?

The new technical foul policy is absurd and too uptight. Players should be allowed to express their disagreement with any call made from a referee.

Will this lead to a positive reaction or a negative reaction from the fans and viewers?

Sports fans have emotional attachments to their teams. When they reach success they celebrate and when lose or are fouled, they are sympathetic. If a player can’t express the emotion of anger without being violent, the sports fans will find it ridiculous.

If you were a player, how would you react to the new technical foul policy?

If I were a player, I would be surprised and unsure about the new policy. I would think that the sport is becoming too strict.

Do you think referees and players will get along with the new policy? How?

Even though the players will be forced to act more amicably among each other, the players when fouled will still feel resentment towards the referee, even though they are not able to express it.

Do you think players should be able to express their opinions when a referee calls a foul?

Yes, players should be allowed to express their disagreement with a call made from the referees. If they feel a wrong call has been made, they should show  their disagreement. I think the rule simply prohibits their freedom of speech on the court.

Do you think that the league’s new policy will survive?

I do not think this new policy enacted in the league will survive. The players along with the fans will find it pathetic and will probably not follow them because basketball, along with all other sports, involves emotion. Simply banning the display of this anger is unnecessary. The referees do not need to act like victims in the matter of the game.

Sathi Roy
FCLC ’13

What is your opinion about the new technical foul policy?

Honestly, this new technical foul policy is ridiculous! How else will a player be able to challenge a call made by a referee? Sometimes it’s legitimate!

Will this lead to a positive reaction or a negative reaction from the fans and viewers?

The viewers are going to hate this policy; I think it will make the game look less exciting and passionate.

If you were a player, how would you react to the new technical foul policy?

If I was a player, I’d be upset. Being unable to show my emotions on court would change the dynamics of the game for me.

Do you think referees and players will get along with the new policy? How?

I think the league just wanted there to be professionalism and sportsmanship in the NBA, but I think there’s another way to go about it. By penalizing the players, the game, in my opinion, becomes unfair. Just tell [the players] to stop acting crazy. Don’t affect the outcome of the actual game.

Do you think that the league’s new policy will survive?

The league’s new policy will most likely not survive; at least I’m hoping it’s not going to survive. I’m all about sportsmanship, but if a player can’t show his or her emotions in a civilized manner, that’s just inexcusable.

On Sept. 23, at the referees’ annual meeting in Jersey City, N.J., NBA referees announced new guidelines for assessing technical fouls. Any unacceptable behavior from players will lead to a technical foul from the referees.

Referees are now able to call technical fouls on:

1 Players making air punches or any other violent motion

2 Demonstrative disagreement

3 Disrespecting officials

4 Excessive inquiries about a call

The NBA plans on making sure that players don’t get away with extreme complaining with the officials. However, “heat of the moment” reactions such as a player raising his hand to show he had proper position will not be called for a  technical foul.

For some viewers, this power is considered to be too much. Also, now referees can be blamed for giving out unnecessary technical fouls.  Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) students were asked about their opinions on the new technical foul policy:

Megan Brandon
FCLC ’13

What is your opinion about the new technical foul policy?

The new technical foul policy is absurd and too uptight. Players should be allowed to express their disagreement with any call made from a referee.

Will this lead to a positive reaction or a negative reaction from the fans and viewers?

Sports fans have emotional attachments to their teams. When they reach success they celebrate and when lose or are fouled, they are sympathetic. If a player can’t express the emotion of anger without being violent, the sports fans will find it ridiculous.

If you were a player, how would you react to the new technical foul policy?

If I were a player, I would be surprised and unsure about the new policy. I would think that the sport is becoming too strict.

Do you think referees and players will get along with the new policy? How?

Even though the players will be forced to act more amicably among each other, the players when fouled will still feel resentment towards the referee, even though they are not able to express it.

Do you think players should be able to express their opinions when a referee calls a foul?

Yes, players should be allowed to express their disagreement with a call made from the referees. If they feel a wrong call has been made, they should show  their disagreement. I think the rule simply prohibits their freedom of speech on the court.

Do you think that the league’s new policy will survive?

I do not think this new policy enacted in the league will survive. The players along with the fans will find it pathetic and will probably not follow them because basketball, along with all other sports, involves emotion. Simply banning the display of this anger is unnecessary. The referees do not need to act like victims in the matter of the game.

Sathi Roy
FCLC ’13

What is your opinion about the new technical foul policy?

Honestly, this new technical foul policy is ridiculous! How else will a player be able to challenge a call made by a referee? Sometimes it’s legitimate!

Will this lead to a positive reaction or a negative reaction from the fans and viewers?

The viewers are going to hate this policy; I think it will make the game look less exciting and passionate.

If you were a player, how would you react to the new technical foul policy?

If I was a player, I’d be upset. Being unable to show my emotions on court would change the dynamics of the game for me.

Do you think referees and players will get along with the new policy? How?

I think the league just wanted there to be professionalism and sportsmanship in the NBA, but I think there’s another way to go about it. By penalizing the players, the game, in my opinion, becomes unfair. Just tell [the players] to stop acting crazy. Don’t affect the outcome of the actual game.

Do you think that the league’s new policy will survive?

The league’s new policy will most likely not survive; at least I’m hoping it’s not going to survive. I’m all about sportsmanship, but if a player can’t show his or her emotions in a civilized manner, that’s just inexcusable.