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Message: [QUOTE="CL82, post: 3592939, member: 44"] It's not "baiting" the refs so much as it is "working" the refs. At the college basketball level, it's is a conversation. Calhoun commented on pretty much all the questionable calls early and often, but quietly. That puts him in a position to question a call loudly, if necessary. It is something you learn over time. Calhoun tells a story of how early on he'd question every bad call loudly and vehemently. One time a ref, I don't remember which anymore, walks up to him and says "C'mon Jimmy you are up by 20 and we're doing a good job." Calhoun learned to be more tactical after that. That's something Ollie didn't get. He'd either be disengaged or pouty the bulk of the time. The paper push was an entertaining move but it was absolutely at the wrong time. The great ones really understand the timing. It is an art form and it gives them an edge. I have a lot stories about coaching (as we all do) and I have shared a few here over the years. The biggest point I'd make is if you are a middle aged man (or woman) and you find yourself yelling at a middle school aged ref, you are wrong even if you are right. Like another poster said above, if a ref is missing things or making over a mistake, you call him over during a dead period and you mention it to him. If it is really bad, talk to the other coach first and then both do it, but do it calmly. It is a teaching moment. Most kids do not have the tools yet to interact with an animated overly forceful adult. One story I think I've told here is about a select soccer (probably U-15) with adult refs. It was important game in the standings (1 vs. 2). The guy I coached with was an excellent coach and one of the nicest guys generally. As was pointed out, the local league hires the refs and in this particular game it showed. They were making abysmal calls and non-calls right from the start. As a coach or a player you don't mind bad reffing so much so long as it is consistently bad both ways. This wasn't. My buddy made a "call if both ways" argument ("if it is 'x' there then it has to be 'x' here too') and the ref says "That's it coach if I hear one more word out of you, you're gone!" My buddy just looks at me and I said "Yeah, Jim, I've got it" and take over the vocal coaching of the game. The next play the ref decides to make a point and let's a kid get a pass way behind the defense and I mean literally 10 yards behind them. The kid drills a hot shot toward the left corner and my keeper dives and slaps it out. "I yell out "Nice Roberto, nice work! If you can stop them when they are [I]that[/I] far offsides you can stop anything." The kids on the bench who saw the interaction between the other coach and the ref look up at me with a "Oh coach you are going to get tossed" look on their faces and I said to them with a smile "What? He's my player, I can say anything I want to him." [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach