TECHNICAL OFFICIALS

The term Technical Officials covers Referees, Scoretable Officials and also Statisticians. All are critical parts of our game and provide yet another avenue for people to be involved in our great game. Seahawks utilise Technical Officials for our Senior Seahawks games in NBL1 and QSL competition, and those accredited for those NBL1 games get paid for their involvement.

Imagine watching your favourite basketball team play a game with no timer, no scoreboard or no stat sheet. Players would have no idea what the score was, coaches would be confused as to how to manage the clock, and fans would be left clueless as to how many points their favourite player scored.

Without scoretable officials, this would be the reality of basketball. Scoretable officials are an indispensable part of basketball, helping keep the game flowing smoothly.

Scoretable Positions

There are several different positions at the scoretable, namely:

commissioner
scorer
assistant scorer
timekeeper

Each position has different responsibilities, but they are all essential.

The scorer’s many duties include filling in the scoresheet and notifying officials when a team is out of timeouts.

The assistant scorer, among other things, operates the scoreboard and maintains communication between the referees and the scorer.

The timekeeper has a variety of responsibilities, the most important being to accurately keep the playing time of the game, starting and stopping the clock as necessary.

The commissioner is appointed to oversee the other scoretable officials, as well as to provide neutral advice or information to the referees.

Keys to Being A Successful Scoretable Official

The keys to being a successful scoretable official can be remembered with four ‘C’s:

CORRECTNESS

CONCENTRATION

COMMUNICATION

CO-OPERATION

Scoretable officials must have a proficient understanding of the rules (correctness), the ability to follow a fast paced game (concentration), the capacity to express information both verbally and non-verbally (communication), and a willingness to work together with the other officials as a team (co-operation).

However, this does not mean you have to already possess a vast knowledge of the game. Most scoretable officials are fans of the game who wish to get involved at the local level. They become scoretable officials to support both the sport of basketball, and the players and teams in the game they are working.

Becoming a scoretable official is an easy and fun way to increase your knowledge of the game (whatever it may already be), and to become a vital part of the games you attend.

How to Become a Scoretable Official

So how does one become a scoretable official and become involved in running a basketball game?

It’s rather simple, really. Beginners take a Level One course through their state associations, which consists of two four-hour sessions, as well as an open book exam. These sessions will leave you proficient at the scorer, assistant scorer, and timekeeper positions; and will qualify you to control domestic games.

Once you have gained experience, if you so desire, you may receive further training to move up to higher levels, even all the way up to NBL and international competition.

If you are interested in becoming a scoretable official, you can contact your state association to find an upcoming Level One course.

Seahawks Scoretable Education

Seahawks Basketball runs Level One scoretable courses from time to time. Contact Admin on admin@seahawksbasketball.com.au or call the office on 5573 1796 for more details.

Becoming a scoretable official is one of the best ways to support your favourite team by getting involved with a necessary aspect of the game. You will receive one of the best seats in the entire arena, and will be able to provide an invaluable service to players, coaches, referees, fans and the media. Your knowledge of the rules will improve, which will increase your appreciation and enjoyment of games. You could even end up working at national or international games, and potentially receive exciting travel opportunities across the country, and even the world!

So contact your state association, and become an active part of the game you love!

Statisticians

there are many other aspects of the game that can be recorded, and which add great interest an excitement for the fans and also for the players. These additional statistics also help coaches to review the performance of their teams.
Common statistics are:

the number of shots taken and from where they were taken
rebounds (when a player catches the ball after a missed shot)
assists (when a player passes the ball to a teammate who scores)
steals (when a player gains possession from an opponent)
turnovers (when a player loses possession of the ball)

The role of the statistician is to record all aspects of the game, which is now usually done on a computer, tablet or smartphone or manually with a paper template.

Full statistics are not taken in most local competitions but they are in more elite competitions.

The effective recording of statistics usually requires at least two people. One to “call” the game by commentating every event which requires statistical recording and the other to “record” the game by making the statistical entries and following the caller’s instructions.

When statistics are collected using a computer it means that fans can follow the game even if they are not able to attend.

Statistician Pathways

A statistician does not have to have played basketball and training will explain the various statistics that are kept. Then, it is a matter of watching games and getting to understand what an “assist” or a “turnover” etc. Often, two statistics will be recorded from the one event. For example, a turnover by an offensive player may also be a steal for the defensive player.

There are some local competitions that do statistics on a competition, however, anyone can get involved by attending a statistics course which is usually arranged by the state associations.

Once you have level 1 accreditation you can participate in state competitions and from there can progress to Australian Junior Championship events, the National Wheelchair Leagues, the Women’s National League (WNBL), the Men’s National Basketball League (NBL) and onto international games hosted in Australia.

Why become a Statistician?

Some people really enjoy the recording and analysis of data and it gives them a different insight into the game. Other people may simply want to stay involved in the game after they have played, coached or officiated at a high level. The reasons for becoming a statistician are many and varied and like refereeing and scoretable it can be an incredibly rewarding way to be a part of the basketball community!

Get Involved

UPCOMING COURSES

Level 2 Scorebench Course

Sunday 5th June 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Seahawks Office at Coomera Indoor Sports Centre

Cost: $20