Jack Plunkett

Long time women's college basketball referee Jack Plunkett passed away this season of a heart attack. Jack Plunkett, 56, is survived by his wife, Sue, and five children. The family lives in Jenkintown, PA.

Fellow division 1 official Warren Harding said, “Most people can’t name all the referees that worked the last three Final Fours. That’s because the greatest impact you make in life are not in your accomplishments but in how you help others around you.”

I met Jack Plunkett this summer. He was one of the instructors teaching about mechanics and positioning. He critiqued my performance once. He didn’t say much. He said enough. I never got an opportunity to speak with him again. What has been more profound to me is how after his death he has been able to impact so many. In a short period of time, I learned how wonderful a person Jack Plunkett was. Jack Plunkett, you should know that your peers have spoken so impeccably about your influence in there lives. You are loved and the referee community misses you.

Opinions are like Butt holes

Opinions are like Butt holes.
Everyone has one.
I’m always amazed how a referee/ observer/ fan can say that one referee is ‘Great’. And another referee/ observer/ fan can say that same official is ‘Horrible’. I always wonder where people base their opinions. I’ve worked with plenty of officials who were labeled great and I walked away saying, “This greatness should be relabeled loser”. On the flip side I’ve encountered someone labeled, “horrible” and I wondered if this idea of horrible could be bottled and preserved.

The impression you get from working with a referee is totally different from the impression an observer gets from watching someone from the stands. I guess it all depends on your pet peeve. I had a referee who didn’t like working with me because I called in there subs. I had an official hate me because I had a double whistle on a foul. I had a referee label me horrible because I didn’t stand in the proper timeout position. I wonder if these peeves had anything to do with basketball.

I also have this delusional thought that I know what is important and what makes a good referee. I care if a referee has my back. Don’t sell me out to dry to a supervisor. Tell the whole truth. I messed up one play with two seconds remaining in the game and you messed up five plays. I don’t care if you blow in my primary, just be right. Oh yea, be a good person first. See I told you...delusional.

See there’s someone out there who has worked with me and used the words horrible and terrible. The truth is, they’re probably right. That day I probably did something that was there referee pet peeve. Chances are, I likely had a bad game. Or, I had my gas face on. That never goes over well with my partners. I wonder if they were right. Am I horrible? Who’s opinion should you listen to? Should I really care?

This season I had a horrible game. I remember beating myself up about my poor selection of calls and my patience. My fifteen year old daughter who was in attendance turned to me as i kicked myself and said, “Dad, for what its worth, I think you did a great job. I thought it was pretty cool.” Sometimes my daughter can drive me nuts, but her Butt hole opinion is the only one that matters to me.

Safe traveling.

THE UNDERWEAR DUDE

 J-WARE is underwear created by textile experts from the University of Tokyo. One of the astronauts of the Space Shuttle has the pleasure of sporting this odor–free garment. This underwear is designed to kill bacteria, absorb water, insulate the body and dry quickly. It’s also flame-resistant and anti–static proof.  Not to mention it’s comfortable and stylish. (yea right)

This underwear is designed to be worn for an entire week.

After reading this I know that three quarters of the men on the planet are cheering and ALL woman of the world are screaming.  Unless my water at my home mysteriously shuts off, a nuclear disaster, or Nostradamus’ end of the world prediction comes true, I can’t think of any reason to wear the same underwear two days in a row. Let alone a week.  

Unfortunately, there’s some referees out there in love with this product and its not even in stores yet. 

“I can referee three games with the same underwear! Watch out!”  

I know, I know, I hate that visual. 

When I first read about this astronaut, I felt sorry for him. Then I saw his picture before he got on the space shuttle. He had this huge smile from ear to ear. He’s either real happy or can’t wait to get on the space shuttle so he can scratch. In my eyes he’ll forever be known as the “Underwear Dude.” If someone sees him in the airport, people won’t say, “There’s the Space Shuttle Astronaut.”  They’ll say, “That’s the Underwear Dude.” At the mall, “That’s the Underwear Dude.” At the local bodega, “That’s the Underwear Dude.”

Damn

Please don't throw him

I refereed a ton of sixth and seventh grade boys' game when I first started. Back then you could work at least four games a day. Basketball junkie was an understatement. These where the games where the parents would scream, stomp and sometimes curse you out. The coaches where just as bad. 

I recall a game where this coach kept giving me crazy beef on every play.  I drew my line in the sand and he crossed it. 

What did he win?

A technical foul and a possible trip to snow covered streets of northern New Jersey.

Of course the coach wouldn’t stop complaining after the first technical.  Just before I decided to send him on his fun filled vacation, one of the kids walked up to me and said, “Please don’t throw him out.  That’s my Dad, he doesn’t know what he’s doing.”

This might have been the only time I could physically feel my jaw drop and eye lids widen. 

This was one of the moments in life where you realize the kids are smarter than the parents. They were content running up and down the court. They were playing on a team. Had a tee shirt with a number on the front.  The referees made it feel official. For these kids, this was their NBA. They were living out there Jordan, Magic and Bird fantasies on the court. These days its Lebron, Kobe, and Wade.They where living the life. I was just blessed to be apart of it.

By the way, I had to get a parent from the bleachers to finish the game after I tossed the coach out the gym. 

LBA, Leader of the Bonehead Association

Being the basketball junkie that I am. I decided to help a buddy out and referee the local men's league. Mistake number one. Never, ever, ever, ever, work the local men's league during the season.
Introducing the LBA, Leader of the Bonehead Association. This is the local cat that complains at the jump ball that I didn't toss the ball high enough. And yes, his team gets the first possession of the jump ball. He's the cat who murmurs under his breath the whole game. He's the dude who gets a technical foul 5-10 minutes into the game. And yes, he can't play. Not even a little bit. 
A few of the guys who play know I work the WNBA. They're good dudes but I wish they wouldn't tell captain LBA (Leader of the Bonehead Association) that I work in the WNBA. The first thing Mr. LBA complains about when he trips over his shoelaces is, "This is a man's game". He says this with a whine and a smirk, and under his breath. I'm good at ignoring stuff but every so often the little demon gets on my shoulder and has to mess my flow up. So on this wonderful occasion, Mr. LBA pulled my last nerve. With four minutes remaining and his team down 25 he found the opportunity to talk under his breath. "This isn't woman's basketball". All of a sudden the little demon on my shoulder grabbed my vocal cords in his little hand and forced me to blurt out. "You're right because Candace Parker would have dunked on you and would have told your momma and little girlfriend how you cried like a..." And then I yanked the demon off my neck.
At home, I look forward to telling my lovely wife about this great day in sports. She'll roll her eyes and probably tell me to avoid that league.
I won't tell her about the ejection and the almost fight.
 

Don't be afraid.

During one of my games this weekend, I saw my two partners talking amongst themselves. This was during the pre-game and timeouts. Every time I walked over to them they’d stop talking. What made it worst, they would have a conversation and then look over at me with this smirk on their faces.  Yup, I got paranoid. They had to be talking about me. I didn’t buy into the idea of  ‘partner chemistry’. They only worked a few games together. Even during the halftime break they where reluctant to talk. So during a timeout I asked, ‘What’s going on?’ Without hesitation my partner responded, ‘Man, I don’t want to say anything that will end up in your comic strip’.

Too funny.

I guess I never realized my partners would be cautious of what they said or their actions around me during the game. So I’m here to tell you.  Yes, you will end up in a strip if you say or do something comical. The truth is, I can’t continue to beat up on my mishaps in basketball. And believe me when I say, its all in fun. No names will be posted. (snicker)  I’m serious. LOL

 

HOT OFF THE PRESS!

I love it. I'm in the newspaper.  And it's not about a missed call. Or a rule I misinterpreted.  My local paper runs a who's who in town article every week and they picked little old me. 

It started out as an article about just my Webcomic and turned into an article about the WNBA.  I get some major airplay about my strip. It's in the PTW Sport section of the Parsippany this Week. Check it out: www.parsippanythisweek.com

Safe traveling

I realize the Daily Record broke the link on their website to my article. Below is the text to the article.  Enjoy.

What's the best part of being a WNBA referee?
The best part is refereeing basketball at its highest level. In the WNBA you have the best Division one college athletes competing in one league. This opportunity isn’t afforded to many. I recognize the blessing given to me and I cherish the moment.
  
How is officiating a WNBA game different than a NBA game?
Well, I never had the opportunity to work in the NBA.  The closest thing I can compare it to is the NBA Developmental League where I worked four seasons.  The men’s game is a lot more isolation play. The WNBA is definitely more team oriented.  In the men’s game the play is above the rim. With the emergence of players in the WNBA like Sylvia Fowles and Candice Parker, the league is destined to evolve in that aspect. 
The WNBA players are extremely crafty at fooling the referee or ‘fool the ref’ plays. I had to get use to how often the player’s flop and clamp. If you’re late in seeing two opponents lock up, more than likely you’ll get the play wrong.
 
What drove you to become a referee?
12 years ago my cousin approached me about refereeing. He worked two sports, basketball and baseball. At the time, I was still playing in a few New York City recreational tournaments. Refereeing was a great opportunity to stay involved in the game without beating my body up on the court.  I had just purchased a home so the extra money came in handy. There was referee class in the Kips Bay, in the Bronx. The program was run by S.U.B.O.A (Sports United Basketball Officials Associations), which lasted about four or five months. You started out learning the High School rules which you where continuously tested on. Later in the program they put you onto the court to referee 10th and 11th graders.  Each game was video taped and you would be critique on your position and appearance.  Back then call selection was the least of my worries.  I had a hard enough time remembering to blow my whistle when someone got fouled. Some will argue that I still don’t. I worked a lot of basketball. In a weekend you could probably work 8 -10 kids games on average.  Seeing plays over and over helped my ability to referee. I also had good people around me who pushed me to get better. Every summer I attended a different basketball camp where I was eventually invited to work Junior College basketball in New Jersey. This led to Division 1 basketball that soon led to the WNBA.

Why should children get into basketball?
Basketball is a classroom for life. It teaches so many valuable lessons. You learn responsibility, selflessness, persistence, integrity, leadership and teamwork. With all of your individual talents, if you don’t trust in your teammates, the team will never reach its full potential. 
 
What's the hardest thing about being a referee? 
Definitely the travel.  Being away from home and fighting through bad weather isn’t glamorous. Most of the time, I’m in a city two maybe three days.  It’s definitely exhausting whether driving or flying. The WNBA is unique in that they have a summer season.  The weather is a little favorable but equally exhausting.
Referees put in a lot of hours of work off the court. Staying in condition, eating right and video tape review. I try to get a tape of all of my games to look at plays. Tape review is the best way officials improve.
  
What's the most difficult foul to call?
For me the toughest calls are out-of-bounds plays. You try to focus on whether a player deflected a ball. If you don’t have the right angle you can’t tell if the ball changed direction because of a deflection. Out-of-bounds plays happen extremely fast and you can be easily fooled.
 Most people assume that Block-charge is the toughest call. Refereeing is about angles. Like every call if you don’t have the same camera angle it will look different depending on where you’re sitting. That’s why videotape review is helpful you can compare what you see to what is seen at live speed.  It’s a great tool. Referees get one shot. The television audience gets 5 or 6 times to see if the play is incorrect.
 
What's your best memory as a WNBA referee?
My best memory in the WNBA is my first game at Madison Square Garden. I was born in Brooklyn New York. I got that priceless feeling standing on the Garden floor. My wife, kids, relatives and close friends where in the audience. I can’t recall ever having that many butterflies before a basketball game. I don’t think I relaxed until after my first call. None of the other WNBA cities made me feel like this. This is without a doubt my biggest highlight.
 
What's it like working with WNBA players?
The players are great. They recognize the responsibility there blessed with. On the court the players want to win. They compete hard and they demand your best. During the game, if something is missed there will definitely be a response.
 
What's the first skill a child should develop to become a good basketball player?
Tough question.  You have to create good practice and work habits. If you start out with poor dribbling or shooting habits it becomes harder to break out of it. If you don’t have a coach, the Internet has so many free resources to help you with the fundamentals of the game. You have to practice, practice, and practice. Yes we’re talking about ‘Practice’. 
 
What's your blog's name and what's it about?
I do a webcomic called ‘Fouls and Violations’, Life of a referee uncovered. It’s the web comic that shows a fresh look at the referee world.  Outside of refereeing, I’m a freelance illustrator/ graphic artist.  I attended the School of Visual Arts in New York and I’ve worked in the creative world for 18 years.  I’ve always wanted to do a comic strip and what could be a better collaboration of two passions in my life, basketball and art.   Log on to www.foulsandviolations.net  four days a week. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.  Friday is the weekend color strip.