9 - "Make the game better" - Dave McAndrew 🏀 - college and professional basketball official

In this episode we talk with Dave McAndrew, who has been officiating for 25 years and lives by the mantra 'Make the game better'. He dedicates his time as an official to his dad, who loved the game and encouraged Dave to get into officiating after he suffered a knee injury in high school. Dave offers a tremendous perspective on interactions with coaches, players, parents, and fellow officials. He has officiated women's college basketball since 2001 and spent this past summer officiating the Big 3 Tournament across the US. In this episode we talk about: The time and effort that officials take in improving themselves and their skills, including reading and re-reading the rules and case book, and watching and analyzing their own game film How every play is like a snowflake, and managing a game and all 10 players is as much an art as it is a science The importance of COMMUNICATING with coaches, players, and the officiating crew throughout a game in order to best 'get back to basketball' The excitement throughout the season, how officials hustle to get to games, remain professional, and get called to continue their seasons, just like teams competing in post-season play Officials don't care who wins or loses, they care about the 10 players on the floor at any given time How it improves everyone's experience if players can control their emotions and play the game the right way Parental involvement, and the importance of asking questions in order to understand a rule or a whistle Dave is a tremendous resource, mentor and friend, and is always available to answer questions or clarify rules. He can be reached via e mail at [email protected].