Technical foul

In basketball, a technical foul (also colloquially known as a “T” or a “Tech”) is any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between opposing players on the court, or is a foul by a non-player.

The most common technical foul is for unsportsmanlike conduct. Technical fouls can be assessed against players, bench personnel, the entire team (often called a bench technical), or even the crowd. These fouls, and their penalties, are more serious than a personal foul, but not necessarily as serious as a flagrant foul (an ejectable offense in leagues below the National Basketball Association (NBA), and potentially so in the NBA).

Technical fouls are handled slightly differently under international rules than under the rules used by the various competitions in the United States. First, illegal contact between players on the court is always a personal foul under international rules, whereas in the United States, such contact is, with some exceptions, a technical foul when the game clock is not running and/or when the ball is dead.

Second, in International Basketball Federation (FIBA) play (except for the half-court 3×3 variant, in which individual personal foul counts are not kept), players foul out after five total fouls, technical and personal combined (one technical can be included towards the total; committing another risks immediate ejection).

The latter rule is similar to that in college, high school, and middle school basketball in the United States. However, in leagues that play 48-minute games such as the NBA, and in some leagues such as the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), players are allowed six personal fouls before being disqualified, and technical fouls assessed against them do not count toward this total.

However, unsportsmanlike technicals in the (W)NBA carry a fine, its severity depending on the number of technicals the player has already obtained, and players are suspended for varying amounts of time after accumulating sixteen technicals in the regular season or seven in the playoffs.

In most American competitions, ejection of the offender, that of the player, coach, or otherwise, is the penalty for being assessed two technical fouls in a game, if charged directly to them (some technicals committed by a player are charged to the team only). In addition, any single flagrant technical foul, or a disqualifying foul in FIBA, incurs ejection. FIBA rules do not provide for ejection for any number of non-flagrant technicals (known as unsportsmanlike fouls under that body’s rules) against a player, except in 3×3, in which two unsportsmanlike fouls result in ejection. FIBA rules call for ejection when a coach draws two technicals, or a third is called on the bench.

Many infractions can result in the calling of a technical foul. One of the most common is the use of profane language toward an official or another player. This can be called on either players who are currently active in the play of the game, or seated on a team’s bench. It can also be assessed to a coach or another person associated with the team in an official capacity such as a trainer or an equipment manager. Additionally, coaches or players can be assessed a technical foul for disputing an official’s call too vehemently, with or without the use of profanity. This verbal unsporting technical foul may be assessed regardless of whether the ball is dead or alive.

Other offenses can result in technical fouls, such as:

• allowing players to lock arms in order to restrict the movement of an opponent (usually a team technical);
• baiting or taunting an opponent;
• disrespectfully addressing or contacting an official or gesturing in such a manner as to indicate resentment;
• faking being fouled (flopping);
• fighting or threatening to fight;
• goaltending a free throw;
• grasping either basket during pre-game or halftime warm-ups during the time of the officials’ jurisdiction, including attempting to dunk or stuff a dead ball (whether successful or not) prior to or during the game or during any intermission of the game (dunking is permitted during warmup periods in NCAA play, although hanging on the rim remains illegal);
• illegal substitution or entering the game at an impermissible time;
• intentionally hanging on the basket at any time (except to prevent an injury);
• kicking or striking the basketball at any time using the foot (in an unsportsmanlike manner; unintentional kicking is a violation only);
• knowingly attempting a free throw or accepting a foul to which the player was not entitled;
• lifting or jumping onto a teammate to gain a height advantage;
• remaining out of bounds to gain an advantage;
• removing the jersey or pants within the visual confines of the playing area;
• shattering the backboard or rim of a goal;
• use of television monitoring or replay equipment, computers, or electronics such as megaphones for coaching purposes during the game;
• using tobacco or smokeless tobacco.

Violations of the rules for delaying the game (in the NBA, NCAA, and NFHS) usually incur a team warning for a first offense, followed by a team technical, or sometimes a player technical, if the same team delays a second time, to include:

• going out of bounds during an opponent’s throw-in without contact (warning, then a technical foul), or touching an opposing thrower-in (intentional foul on the violator in NFHS, and is the warning for being out-of-bounds) or the ball (a technical on the offender in NFHS, and is the warning for being out-of-bounds) as it is held entirely in out-of-bounds;
• huddling at the foul line for an excessive time (warning, then a technical in NFHS);
• not being ready to start play after a time-out, or to begin a quarter or half, or to shoot a free throw(s) at such times (a special protocol, known as the “resumption-of-play procedure”, is used in NFHS, where violations instead of technicals are initially called in some such situations);
• refusing to immediately pass the ball to the nearer official when a whistle blows;
• failing as the free thrower to be in the free-throw semicircle when the official is ready to administer the free throw (unless the resumption-of-play procedure is in effect in NFHS, supra);
• throwing the ball into the stands or otherwise preventing a ball from being made live promptly after a made goal to allow one’s team to set up on defense (if a blatantly unsportsmanlike act, a technical foul against the player; otherwise, a warning to that team and team technicals thereafter).

and more technical issues, such as:

• beginning the game with a starting player not so designated;
• failure to supply the scorer with names and numbers of team players prior to the start of the scheduled contest, or at least 10 minutes prior to the contest in some jurisdictions;
• having too many players on the court, or too few (NBA; NCAA and NFHS if intentional);
• if the coach leaves their box, especially to argue (there are times when a coach may go to the scorer’s table to correct a game error);
• failing, as the coach, to replace a disqualified player within the allotted time (charged to the coach);
• (NBA only) playing a “scratched” player (up to two “scratches” are permissible on a 14-man roster);
• refusing to occupy the proper bench;
• remaining in or returning to the game after being disqualified;
• requesting an excess time-out;
• uniform violations, including illegal insignia or numbers (having 2 or more players with the same number; or having the wrong number for a player in the official scorebook).

The NBA has a “Defensive Three Seconds” rule. The rule prohibits a defender from being in the shooting lane for three seconds, unless guarding an opponent within arm’s reach (or the player with the ball, regardless of distance). The penalty is a technical foul charged to the offending team and one shot for the offense.

Additionally, home teams can be assessed technical fouls resulting from their partisans’ misconduct for excessive use of artificial noise, the playing of music by their band, or for dangerous offenses such as throwing items (particularly ice or coins) onto the court.

Usually a fight or lesser altercation between players results in a “double technical”, in which a technical foul is issued to both players involved. If any player leaves the team bench during a fight, they can be charged with a technical foul and ejected, as can any coach that does so without the beckoning of an official. Rules against fighting vary from high school to college to the (W)NBA, but all levels penalize severely for such conduct, to include suspensions and (in the (W)NBA) heavy fines. NFHS and NCAA require the automatic ejection of bench personnel leaving the team area during a fight, whether or not these players actually participate in the fight.

The NBA also began to crack down on general complaining. Technical fouls can now be issued for the following:

• making aggressive gestures anywhere on the court;
• disagreement in which a player demonstrates how they were fouled;
• running toward an official to complain about a call;
• excessive inquiries about a call.

The penalty for such a foul is possession and one free throw. In the NBA, any player who commits 15 or more technical fouls is automatically suspended for one game.