First, let's agree that the "jump stop" is something that occurs at the end of a dribble. Certainly if that were not the case and a player caught the ball on the ground, jumped in the air and then came back to the floor again with the ball, that would be a "traveling" violation. That's easy.....
Next, let's also agree that it is IMPOSSIBLE for a player to "travel" while dribbling. No matter how ugly or how awkward, no matter how many steps the player takes from one legal bounce of a dribble to the next legal bounce, he CANNOT travel. I know this is sometimes harder to accept, but that's the way it is. I'm not saying that referees don't get a little "antsy" sometimes and they blow that whistle because it "looks bad...." That happens, unfortunately. And it doesn't help the situation because in the next game, someone sees something that looks just like something called in the last game.....so, of course, since it was called in the last game, it MUST have been the correct call, right?? Wrong. This is why we talk about this stuff, to help YOU understand what the REAL answer is.
A big part of understanding this is to recognize WHEN THE DRIBBLE ENDS and what the player can legally do thereafter. As I've said in this column several times before, the dribble ends when the dribbler CATCHES the ball. Here are the possibilities.....
A. If the dribbler catches the ball while in the air, he is ending the dribble there. He is entitled to land on one foot, jump to the other foot (or both feet) and then take off to shoot. He needs to release the shot before returning to the floor once again. In the blink of an eye, it looks like two steps. Actually it's more like a "step and a half"......that is, the half step (on the landing) and a full step thereafter as he goes up to shoot. We see this at the end of almost every fast break layup.
B. If it happens that after catching the ball in the air, he then lands on both feet simultaneously, then either foot can become the pivot and he can still take that step and take off and shoot. Think of a post player who goes up to catch an entry pass and comes down on two feet simultaneously. He can establish either foot as the pivot and then (just like Abdul Jabbar's "Sky Hook") he can wheel off the other foot and launch his shot (provided he gets it off while in the air). Any additional movement of the pivot foot beyond this is a violation (traveling).
C. If he catches the ball while one foot (or both) is on the floor, he can step to the other foot and then take off to shoot. (this, again, is the same "step and a half" but in reverse because the full step comes first, followed by the half step going in the air to shoot).
The hard part for all of us is to recognize the CATCH. The worst case is when a dribbler is going hard towards the basket and has the ball slightly behind him. He reaches back to gather it in, swings it forward quickly to avoid the defender(s) and then jumps up to shoot a "dipsy-do" kind of off balance shot. Well, if he "ran" with the ball while gathering it in, wouldn't we all agree that he traveled?? Okay. So, what if he DID NOT run with it but awkwardly caught it sort of in the air in mid-step and landed on one foot, jumped off that foot and then landed on two feet? THERE'S YOUR JUMP STOP. It's one of the things coaches teach and it is LEGAL!! It's what the players refer to as "a good hop...." Once they learn it, it is a valuable offensive tool because the player is more under control (not "broad jumping") and has the ability to change direction to avoid the defender and a possible "charge" call.
Too tricky? Not really. The key point, once again, is to recognize "the catch" which signifies the end of the dribble. The rest of it all flows together very nicely. Next time you see a player with "a good hop" try to take notice of exactly where he is when he catches the ball.
Do you have a question? Have you seen a play you didn't understand? Was there a controversy you'd like clarified? Send your questions in and I'll do my best to get you an answer.
Skip Yutzler
IAABO Board 127
35 Years High School and Junior College Official
5 Times NY State HS Championships - Glens Falls
