Rule 16
The Punishments
Warning
16:1 A warning can be given for :
a) fouls and similar infractions against an opponent (5:5 and 8:2),
which do not fall under the category of punished progressively
in Rule 8:3;
A warning shall be given for :
b) such fouls which are to be punished progressively (8:3);
c) unsportsmanlike conduct by a player or team official (8:4;
Clarification No. 5 :1-2).
Comment :
An individual player should not be given more than one warning,
and a team should not be given more than 3 warnings; thereafter, the
punishment should be at least a 2-minute suspension;
A player who has already had a 2-minute suspension should not
subsequently be given a warning.
No more than one warning in total should be given to the officials of a
team.
16:2 The referee shall indicate the warning to the guilty player or
official and to the timekeeper/scorekeeper by holding up a yellow
card. (hand signal no. 13).
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Rule 16
Suspension
16:3 A suspension (2 minutes) shall be given :
a) for a faulty substitution, if an additional player enters the court,
or if a player illegally interferes with the game from the substitution
area (4:5-6);
b) for repeated fouls of the type that they are to be punished
progressively (see 8:3; 16:1 Comment);
c) for repeated unsportsmanlike conduct by a player, on the court
or outside the court (see 8:4; 16:1 Comment);
d) for unsportsmanlike conduct by any one of the officials of a
team, after one of them has previously received a warning in
accordance with 8:4 and 16:1c; see Rule 16:1 Comment;
e) for unsportsmanlike conduct of a type that is judged to warrant
a 2-minute suspension on each occasion (8:4; Clarification No.
5:3); see also Rule 16:3 Comments;
f) as a consequence of a disqualification of a player or team
official (16:8, 2nd paragraph; see, however, 16:14b);
g) for unsportsmanlike conduct by a player before the game has
been restarted, after he has just been given a 2-minute suspension
(16:12a).
Comments :
It is indicated in b), c) and d), that the suspension in those cases is generally
intended for cases of repeated fouls or unsportsmanlike conduct. However,
the referees have the right to determine that a particular violation warrants
an immediate suspension, even if the player did not previously have a
warning and the team did not yet have a total of three warnings.
Similarly, a team official may be given a suspension even if the officials of
that team did not previously have a warning. It is not possible, however, to
give the officials of a team more than one 2-minute suspension in total.
When a 2-minute suspension is called against a team official in accordance
with 16:3d, the official is allowed to remain in the substitution area and
carry out his functions, however, the team’s strength on the court is reduced
for 2 minutes.
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Rule 16
16:4 After calling time-out the referee shall clearly indicate the suspension
to the guilty player and to the timekeeper/scorekeeper through the
prescribed hand signal, i.e. one arm raised with two fingers
extended (hand signal no. 14).
16:5 A suspension is always for a playing time of 2 minutes; the third
suspension for the same player also always leads to a disqualification
(16:6f).
The suspended player is not allowed to participate in the game
during his suspension time, and the team is not allowed to replace
him on the court.
The suspension period begins when play is restarted with a
whistle signal.
A 2-minute suspension carries over to the second half of the game if it
has not been completed by the end of the first half. The same applies
from the normal playing time to overtime and during overtime. An
unexpired 2-minute suspension at the end of overtime means that the
player is not entitled to participate in a subsequent tie-breaker, such
as 7-meter-throws in accordance with 2:2 Comment.
Disqualification
16:6 A disqualification shall be given :
a) for unsportsmanlike conduct by any one of the officials of a
team, after they have previously received both a warning and a
2-minute suspension in accordance with 8:4, 16:1c and 16:3d;
b) for fouls which endanger the opponent’s health (8:5);