The Art of a Professional

When watching any sports team play on the big screen, the main attractions are the extraordinary athletes that perform amazing feats on the court. We idolize big athlete names such as Kobe or Lebron because of their god like abilities to play the sport at a higher level than any other athlete. As we keep our focus on the players in the game, we tend to forget the other three men that are also on the court but are neither part of any team. These men are part an elite group that regulate the game of basketball in order to maintain the equilibrium of the sport. Although they may not be what people look at during the game, they are constantly bombarded by fans and athletes.

With any call that is made by a referee, there is sure to be an outcry from the team and fans that it affects. The outcome of any game lie in the hands of the referee since they dictate how the flow of the game will be directed. It takes a lot for any referee to take on that pressure to make the correct call. All officials have the tendency to lose sight of the correct call, not on purpose, but because of their angle of view. What many people don’t realize is that a referee cannot make the correct call if he did not see the action from his viewpoint. This usually results in a jump ball in order to restrain favoritism within the game.

After the referee has made a call, he gets challenged by players and fans that heckle towards him for the decision he made. This is by far the most important character a referee must contain in order to keep their professionalism in the game. There can be many instances of a player getting close to the face of an official and cussing him out because he did not favor that athlete’s side. Referees must remain calm at all times in order to not have their emotions conflict with the game or they would be branded as unfit to regulate anymore games due to their biased opinions about a certain player or team. This difficult task to not retaliate against another athlete is what makes a referee a professional.

The job of officiating a basketball game at the highest professional level is a difficult task that only a select few are allowed to enter. This occupation is not for the faint-hearted and neither for the weak-minded. It requires strength in professionalism, mental agility, and self-control. A referee may be one of the most hated person in the sport of basketball, but there is no doubt that they have earned the respect of what they constantly go through on the court.

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