NTA: LaMelo's extra steps and the Giannis control question

LaMelo: four after the gather

LaMelo Ball's sidestep three against Miami gets the first entry in our opening-week NTA file. The National Basketball Referees Association identified four steps after the gather, when the rule allowed two. This is an assessment of this specific play, and we attribute it to the association.

The shot counted in the game. The rewind does not make the footwork legal. Great shooting, generous mileage: a travel with three points as a souvenir.

Giannis: when does control return?

One small step for Giannis, one giant debate for basketball. In the transition dunk from the same October 21 game, the ball comes loose as LaMelo reaches in. Before counting the footfalls, watch when Giannis has control again.

The dunk counted. We found no official play-specific assessment confirming a travel on this sequence. The general rules explain why control matters; they do not provide a verdict on this clip. We show the replay and keep the call open.

Count the steps. Keep the context.

A player gathering while progressing may take two steps to stop, pass or shoot. The first step is the first foot contact after gaining control. A foot already on the floor at the gather is not automatically step one. That is why the useful replay begins with the ball.

Watch the full action, locate control and then follow the contacts. A slower replay can make the timing easier to inspect, but it cannot resolve an obscured angle or replace a play-specific assessment. In our episode, 0.5× means half the source video's speed; the source may already contain broadcaster slow motion.

NTA starts at 2:10 in Weekly Rewind 001. For the fuller rule explanation, read our guide to the gather.