Shaking hands with officials: Is it good or not?

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I’ve noticed increasing numbers of basketball players are shaking hands with the officials after they are introduced in pregame warmups. Is that appropriate or just showing off?

One official told me he doesn’t mind. It’s showing sportsmanship. Another official said it makes him a little uncomfortable.

Obviously, players want to set a positive tone with the officials, but if they think shaking hands with somebody before going into battle is going to lead to better treatment, it’s not going to happen.

One reason for the increasing number of handshakes could be that everyone knows each other. Officials and players are participating in so many games outside of high school that they do recognize each other.

Everyone must remember, however, that the officials are supposed to be the neutral participants. The best ones are invisible. When the game ends and we don’t remember who the official was, that means the officials did their job well.

-- Eric Sondheimer