Scott Butler

Scott Butler commenced playing basketball in Rockhampton with the Falcons Club and later played with the Toledo Club. Scott represented Rockhampton at Queensland State Classics but soon realised that his basketball passion was for refereeing.

Following outstanding performances refereeing Queensland State Classics and in the Queensland State League, in 1993 Scott moved to Brisbane to further his education and his refereeing career. He made his debut as a National Basketball League referee in 1993.

In 1997 Scott was awarded his FIBA (international) certification, was selected to referee at the Women’s International Invitational Tournament in Brazil and was named the Continental Basketball Association referee of the year. The following year he accompanied the Australian Junior men’s team on their tour of Germany.

With his appointment to the Junior Men’s FIBA World Championships in Portugal in 1999, Scott was the first Queensland referee to be appointed to a FIBA World Championship.

The late 1990s and the early 2000s saw Scott appointed to several international series of games, including the Australian Junior Men’s team tours of Germany in 1999 and of Spain in 2001, and the FIBA Asian Games in Korea in 2002.

Because of his outstanding performances at these international events, as well as his refereeing excellence in the NBL, Scott was appointed to two FIBA Men’s World Championships and two Olympic Games. In the 2006 World Championships in Japan he refereed the bronze medal game and in the 2010 event in Türkiye he refereed the 5th/6th playoff game.

The highlight of Scott’s refereeing career was his appointment to two Olympic Games – Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008. At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games he refereed the Women’s bronze medal game and was reserve official for the gold medal game.

Scott’s career as an NBL referee continued until 2012 when he was forced out through injury. During his glittering NBL career he refereed 502 games including 12 consecutive finals series. In these finals series he refereed 28 grand final games, many as crew chief. He was named as NBL Referee of the Year four times, being first named for the 2004/2005 season.

Scott’s contribution to basketball as a referee educator has been exceptional. He brings to the task a rare depth of knowledge and insight into the game and into the intent of teams and players that can only be gained from participating on the court with them at the highest levels.

Since 2016 Scott has been Head of Referees for the National Basketball League. In this dual education and administration role he has directly influenced the basketball referee education paradigm and he has enhanced the standard of refereeing in Australia and internationally.

Scott Butler’s more than three decades of exceptional service to basketball in Queensland and Australia as a referee and referee educator have encompassed all aspects of our game. A proud member of Central Queensland’s Barada people, Scott is a most worthy inductee into the Queensland Basketball Hall of Fame in the Class of 2024.