RULE NO. 11-BASKETBALL INTERFERENCE-GOALTENDING
Section I-A Player Shall Not:
a. Touch the ball or the basket ring when the ball is using the basket ring as its lower base.
EXCEPTION: If a player near his own basket has his hand legally in contact with the ball, it is not a violation if his contact with the ball continues after the ball enters the cylinder, or if, in such action, he touches the basket.
b. Touch the ball when it is above the basket ring and within the imaginary cylinder.
c. For goaltending to occur, the ball, in the judgment of the official, must have a chance to score.
d. During a field goal attempt, touch a ball after it has touched any part of the backboard above ring level, whether the ball is considered on its upward or downward flight.
e. During a field goal attempt, touch a ball after it has touched the backboard below the ring level and while the ball is on its upward flight.
f. Trap the ball against the face of the backboard. (To be a trapped ball, three elements must exist simultaneously. The hand, the ball and the backboard must all occur at the same time. A batted ball against the backboard is not a trapped ball.)
g. Touch any live ball from within the playing area that is on its downward flight with an opportunity to touch the basket ring. This is considered to be a "field goal attempt" or trying for a goal.
h. Touch the ball at any time with a hand which is through the basket ring.
i. Vibrate the rim or backboard so as to cause the ball to make an unnatural bounce.
PENALTY: If the violation is at the opponent's basket, the offended team is awarded two points, if the attempt is from the two point zone and three points if it is from the three point zone. The crediting of the score and subsequent procedure is the same as if the awarded score has resulted from the ball having gone through the basket, except that the official shall hand the ball to a player of the team entitled to the throw-in. If the violation is at a team's own basket, no points can be scored and the ball is awarded to the offended team at the free throw line extended on either sideline. If there is a violation by both teams, play shall be resumed by a jump ball between any two opponents at the center circle.
so the NBA, seeing as they like to overturn calls and all, will rule that Gasol clearly comitted goaltending and the series is tied at 1-1 right? right?
Gasol cleary made contact with both the net and the rim on Lee's shot, while it was still in question. Would the ball have gone in if Gasol hadn't hit the rim? probably not, but that's not the point. if the ball hits the rim, it is considered to still have a chance to go in. a ref can't be a judge of angels off the rim. that was a clear and obvious goaltending.
that said, lee still should have made the shot, and orlando could have still won in overtime. but they should have won the game before it even got to overtime if the refs had some nuts.
as to why howard isn't getting touches, that's pretty simple... he's being double teamed before he even touches the ball. the lakers are forcing them to go somewhere else. he has a man and a half on him at all times... the man who's guarding him, be it pao or bynum, and usually lamar odom, who sags down onto howard whenever he's on the strong side. it's probably why they went to Lee on the last play anyways... to use howard as a decoy.
i agree they need to find a way to get him open more, or at the very least do more to take advantage of how the lakers are playing them... more plays using him as a decoy, more screen/roll clearouts... i'd use howard more on the weak side, set up some screen/rolls and screen/pops with alston and either turkoglu or lewis... forcing the lakers to either help off of howard to defend the roll and/or drive, opening it up for him to get some dump offs or put backs.
i also think lewis and turkoglu need to crash the offensive glass more... howard gets his hands on almost every offensive rebound but the lakers are keeping 3 bigs back to make sure he doesn't come down with it... meanwhile the magic are already halfway down the court while the posession is still at hand. i know the magic's bigs, other than howard, are more outside players... but they need to mix it up and get a little dirtier if they want to have a chance.
if the lakers are going to continue to play this way, denying howard the ball, then the magic are going to be in deep shit unless they make some serious adjustments.
can they still win? yes... will they? maybe, but they're getting massively out coached right now by big cheif triangle (or more likely by tex winters and the rest of the staff while the big cheif sooths ego's)
