Tributes flowed on Basketball Ballarat's Facebook page on Tuesday, with many paying homage to Short, who served as a coach, referee and score table official for many years.

Basketball Ballarat referee manager Chloe Dunmore said he will be greatly missed by the Ballarat basketball community.

"He was not only a referee but a referee coach and would mentor other juniors," she said.

"His wealth of knowledge and the experience he brought to our referee program is something that you can't really replace. He will be greatly missed."

Short served as an elite referee on the association's A-Grade panel and was a two-time recipient of the Gary Ebbels senior referee of the year award.

He umpired at an elite representative level, and served as a scoring official for the Ballarat Miners and Rush in the Big-V and NBL1 up until 2019.

"He always helped out when we were short, he would come in on weekends to help with our juniors," Dunmore said.

"He was always there to help out and an all-around unreal person."

Short's experience and ability as a game manager made him a favorite among players and coaches.

His in-depth knowledge of the rules allowed him to educate players, and often prevented tempers from spilling over on the court.

Dunmore said he was able to explain and communicate with players very well.

"He was patient, he was definitely one of the most well-respected referees," she said.

"He knew everybody's name and was not quick to penalise or hand out technical fouls."

In a social media post, Basketball Ballarat said he was a valuable part of the association.

"Kelvin kept himself busy across all aspects of basketball, being involved in refereeing, referee coaching, and score table duties," it read.

"He was a well respected mentor across all levels of referees."