NOVA SCOTIA BASKETBALL OFFICIALS

SPRING MEETING – June 6, 2010

Provincial Supervisor’s Report

CABO UPDATE

·         The relationship between Canada Basketball and CABO continues to be constructive and supportive.  The CB and CABO contract is negotiated annually.  Canada Basketball works closely with CABO on the National Certification Program.  More recently, James Walsh, CABO President, has indicated Canada Basketball is planning to organize a basketball summit which would address the state of the game and would involve officials. 

·         The CABO camp has been reinstated and will be taking place in Montreal in July.   All available seats have already been filled and a wait list has been established.   Roger Caulfield will be one of the lead clinicians. 

·         Reg Jewkes will be Assignor/Evaluator at the Under 17 Men’s Tournament in Winnipeg this summer.

·         The contract for the CCAA has one year remaining.  Next year’s championships will be held in Ontario with assignments allocated to the Atlantic Provinces via neighboring provinces clause.

·         CIS contract has expired and we can expect some changes. 

·         Given Canada Games’ requirement for criminal background checks for all officials, it will be important to include this item in future contract negotiations. 

·         The most significant issue this past year was addressing the future of Ontario’s membership in CABO.   There were ten areas of concern identified by the Ontario Executive.  OABO’s main point of concern is that CABO membership be voluntary, not mandatory.  A meeting was held between CABO and OABO to address all issues raised.  CABO could not support any structure changes to the governance of CABO.  Ontario would have to propose and lobby for change if it wanted to pursue those issues.  CABO would consider accommodating 7 of the 10 issues without any problem; subject to approval by National Council.  CABO also talked in depth about the importance of CABO to Ontario and vis versa.   James Walsh also clearly enunciated the consequences if Ontario was not a member of good standing.   The situation will be reviewed at the upcoming CABO AGM.

·         To assist the CABO Executive and the National Council with timelines with regard to national tournaments a “National Tournament Protocol” was prepared. The document serves as a guideline so all tasks can be completed in a timely manner.

·         Congratulations to Jon Hunt who has accepted an international assignment to France to officiate the Under 17 Women’s World Championship.

NATIONAL CERTIFICATION PROGRAM

All five levels have been adopted.  NSBO will eventually commence the process of certifying officials based on the new format.  Each province will determine how they will administer Levels 1, 2 and 3.   Level 4 will require the approval of the national body based on the approved criteria.  To acquire Level 5, officials must obtain a FIBA license.   The National Certification Program will likely see some modifications which will be announced later on this year.  NSBO members receiving their certifications this year are:  Level III - Brian States, Chris Ross and Level II – Terry Baker.

NSSAF

In my most recent conversation with Tom Fahie, he praised the quality service rendered by NSBO members.  He informed me that the new Executive Director would be Darrell Dempster.   One area that he asked us to review was the value of having 3-person officiating for the Division I Championships.  This issue will need to be renegotiated.  The Canada Games will be taking place in Halifax, Nova Scotia next year and will impact on dates for the provincial championships.  Officials are encouraged to visit the NSSAF website to keep informed of all changes. 

AUS CONTRACT

Our present contract has expired and Roger Caulfield, along with other Atlantic Representatives is working with the AUS to finalize a new proposal.   Any suggestions should be submitted to Roger Caulfield.

ACAA

The ACAA continues to be a strong supporter of NSBO.  There have been a number of issues to resolve during the season which required meetings, conference calls, etc.   Officials must remember that the ACAA is not a developmental league and it requires our best effort every night.  We are being paid to offer a quality service and must meet the expectations in all areas.  The ACAA play-off selection process involves three provinces (NB, NS & PEI) and negotiations can be problematic.  Neil Hooper is presently finalizing contracts with all three provinces to facilitate the process.  The NSBO  contract is already in place.

GRASS ROOT DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE

Provincial Interpreter, Roger Caulfield will be conducting yet another “Camp of Excellence” for officials who were seeking to enhance their officiating skills. 

AWARDS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

In order to take advantage of these programs, we need to ensure names are submitted in a timely fashion.   We have missed some opportunities in the past.  I recommend we make this one of our priorities.  

ASSIGNMENTS

Congratulations to the following officials on their selection to provincial and national tournaments.  The officials selected to represent Nova Scotia at these tournaments have performed very well.  These positive results can be directly attributed to the work done by the Commissioners, Evaluators and the officials themselves.   I would like to remind officials that their performance is being evaluated throughout the entire year; therefore, they must ensure they maintain a high performance level at all times. 

CLOSING REMARKS

I would like to recognize the hard work of all executive members and thank them for their continued cooperation and support.  

Reg Caulfield

Provincial Supervisor