Areas of the court...
alternating-possesion rule In youth, high school and college basketball, a jump ball situation is handled by alternating possession between the two teams. Usually the scorekeeper will keep track of possession with an arrow indicator on the scoreboard.
backcourt The opposite half of the court for the offense. Also, a term used to categorize the guard position.
back screen An offensive term to describe when a player comes from the low post to set a screen for a player on the perimeter.
backdoor cut Used to define a cut to the basket behind a defender and to the hoop.
ball fake A sudden movement by the player with the ball intended to cause the defender to move in one direction, allowing the passer to pass in another direction. Also called "pass fake."
ball reversal Passing the ball from one side of the court to the other with one or more quick passes.
ball-side Often used when describing plays or defensive position. Means the relative side of the court where the player with the ball currently is.
ball screen A screen set directly for the player with the ball.
banana cut A wide, curving cut, as opposed to a cut that is a straight line.
baseball pass A one-handed pass thrown like a baseball. Usually made when the pass must be thrown a long distance.
baseline The court boundary line extending from corner to corner behind each basket. Also referred to as the end line.
B.E.E.F Acronym that helps remember the principles of good shooting form: Balance - Eyes - Elbow - Follow Through.
block When used to describe an area on the court, this term defines the two painted rectangles on either side of the lane under the basket. Many coaches use this term when explaining where a post player should be positioned.
bonus An advantage given a team when the opponent has accumalated seven or more team fouls in a half. After the seventh foul, the team in the bonus is awarded a foul shot on non-shooting fouls. It is a one-and-one situation up to ten team fouls at which time it becomes the "double bonus" and two fould shots are awarded.
bounce pass An effective pass to get the ball under the outstretched arms of defenders. This pass is bounced off the floor a little more than halfway from the passer to the target.
box-and-one A combination defense in which four defenders play zone in a box formation, and the fifth defender guards one player man-to-man.
box-out A rebounding stance where the defender pivots into the opposing player so that their back is to them and they are facong the basket in position for the rebound. A good box-out is with feet wide, knees and elbows bent, and not too far under the basket.
brick A deragatory slang term used to describe a bad shot that clanks off the backboard or rim.
bump the cutter To use physical contact to impede the progress of a cutter who is trying to cut to the ball for a pass.
cager A basketball player; derived from the days when a wire mesh barrier surrounded the court to protect the fans from the players and vice versa.
carrying violation A dribbling violation where the offending player places their palm under the ball resulting in a carrying motion while they dribble. Seems to apply everywhere but the NBA ;)
center The position on the team usually filled by the tallest players. The center is usually required to play the post on offense and defend the low post on defense.
center circle The circle in the middle of the court where the opening jump-ball occurs.
charge An offensive violation where a player with the ball runs into a defender who has established their position on the court.
chest pass A pass originated from the passer's chest level to the chest level of a teammate. This pass does not bounce on it's way to the target and should be used when the passing lane is open.
close out The action of a defensive player sprinting to a shooter. As the defender approaches the shooter's location, she should take short, choppy steps and end in a balanced defensive stance ready to contest the oppen shot or a dribble penetration attempt.
continuity offense A type of offense based on a pattern of movements among the players that continue until an open shot is created. The "flex" and "motion" offenses are examples of this.
crossover dribble A dribble move where the player quickly changes dirction by changing the ball from one hand to the other via a dribble.
dead Used to refer to an offensive player when they have picked up their dribble. Whenever an offensive player is "dead", the defender should closeout on them and smother any shot or pass.
dead-ball foul A foul which occurs while the ball is not in play and the game clock is stopped.
defensive rebound A rebound made by the team that is defending the goal.
defensive slide The fundamental "step-and-slide" footwork a player uses when defending a player who has the ball. The feet are not crossed while moving.
delay ofense An offensive set designed to spread the defense and create passing lanes with the intention of using as much game clock as possible per possession.
double-bonus Where applicable by rules, when a team accumulates 10 or more fouls in a half, the other team is "in the double bonus", earning two free-throws on each subsequent non-shooting foul by the defense.
double dribble A violation defined as dribbling the ball with two hands at the same time or dribbling, stopping, and then beginning to dribble again.
double foul The situation in which opponents commit simultaneous fouls against one another. A jump ball is held between the two players, or the alternating-possession rule is enforced.
dribble-drive motion An offense based on its players ability to spread the floor and penetrate the defense with dribbling.
drop-step An offensive footwork move usually used in the low post. The player, whose back is to the basket, "drops" their leg around a defender's inside leg and then pivots off of that foot turning towards the basket.
deny A defensive position where the defender blocks the passing lane to the player they are guarding.
elbow Each of the two top corners of the key area in front of each goal. Sometimes referred to as the "high post".
end line The boundary line at the end of each end of the court under the basket.
entry pass Generally used to describe any pass from the perimeter into a post player.
fade cut A cut made away from the ball.
field goal Any score made during live play. In other words, any score besides a score made from a free-throw.
flash A term used to describe a quick movement by a player during an offensive play.
fill the lane Used to descibe a fastbreak situation where participating players run up the court filling the imaginary left, center, and right vertical lanes of the court.
flagrant foul Generally used to describe a foul of excessive aggression and severity. Usually results in two foul shots and possesion for the team that was fouled.
forward A position on a team usually requiring a combination of height and athleticism.
free throw Term used to define when a player is given an uncontested shot from the foul line as the result of a foul. This shot counts as one point if made.
front A defensive tactic where the defender guards the opponent by positioning themself in front of the player. Usually this requires backside help to protect against a lob pass.
frontcourt Has two meanings: 1) a team's offensive half of the court 2) a term referring to a team's center and two forwards.
foul-line extended Describes the imaginary line created by extending the foul line to both sides of the court. Many times coaches will use this term when positioning their players.
foul shot Same as "free throw"
front-court The half of the court including the offense's basket. Once the offense crosses into this area, they cannot freely retreat into the backcourt during a live play.
give-and-go An offensive move where the player passes to a teammate and then cuts sharply to the goal, looking for the return pass. Often times effective against agressive man-to-man defense.
goaltending A defensive violation occurring when a shot is interfered with after it has begun it's downward arc toward the goal or when it is within the imaginary cylinder extending above the goal. When this happens, the offense is awarded the points for that attempted shot. There are no personal fouls resulting from this violation.
guard A general basketball position describing a player who normally is located on the perimeter and is required to have strong ball-handling and shooting skills.
halfcourt The line dividing the court in half.
hand-check A defensive tactic where the hands are used to against an offensive player to push them, direct them, or slow them down. If used too aggressively, this will be called as a violation.
hedge Method of defending a pick-and-roll situation where the screener's defender steps into the path of the dribbler so the dribbler has to hesitate, giving their defender time to recover from being screened.
held ball A situation when two opposing players have hold of the ball simultaneously. At most levels, this situation is resolved by the alternation possession rule.
help and recover A defensive scenario where the defender momentarily leaves their man to help stop ball penetration. When their teammate recovers, the defender "recovers" to their original man.
help side A defensive term used to describe to area on the court realtively farther away from the ball's current location. Help-side defenders will generally sink into the paint area to guard against dribble penetration.
hesitation dribble An offensive move where a player intentionally slows down their dribble in order to get the defender to momentarily relax their defense. If the defender does, the dribbler quickly explodes by the defense at full speeed.
high post A general term used to describe the area in the key and up around the free-throw line
hook shot An shot variation where the shooter is turned sideways to the basket with their shooting hand away from the goal thus forcing them to shoot the ball over their head and opposite shoulder.
inbounds Used to describe the practice of putting the ball into play after a dead ball situation.
inside-out dribble A dribble move where the ball-handler will feign a crossover dribble but instead move their dribble hand over the top of the ball and around to the inside. By doing this they can fake the crossover dribble and puch the ball from the inside back out to the outside and attempt to go by the defender who has hopefully been put out of position by the fake.
jump-stop A footwork fundamental where a player comes to a sudden, balanced stop by jumping with both feet and landing simultaneously with both feet.
jab step An offensive move where the non-pivot foot "jabs" at the defensive player.
kicked ball A violation that occurs when the ball strikes or is struck by a player's moving foot, which often happens accidentally when the player has extended a leg to stop a pass.
lane The area bordered by the baseline, freethrow line with 2 "lane lines" on either side this area.
lob pass A type of pass where the ball over the defense to a teammate. Usually used when feeding a pass into the low post or on an inbounds play under the offense's basket where the pass is inbounded out to the perimeter.
man-to-man defense A type of team defense where each defender is responsible for guarding one player on the other team.
motion offense Offense created through a series of cuts and screens to create the best possible shot, with most or all offensive players moving simultaneously.
moving pick A violation that occurs when aplayer is in motion while setting a screen and, as a result, comes into contact with an opponent.
outlet pass The pass directly from the defensive rebounder and out to the guard. Usually a quick outlet pass is a good start to a team's fast break.
paint Slang used to refer to the inside area of the free-throw lane.
passing lane The area between two offensive players where a pass can be made from one to the other.
perimeter General term used to describe the area inside the offense's halfcourt and outside of the key.
pick A screen set by an offensive player.
pick-and-roll An offensive play where a player sets a screen for another player, then pivots and "rolls" to the basket looking for a return pass from the player they screened for.
player-control foul An offensive foul that is committed not when a player is shooting, but just when his team is in control of the ball.
point guard The guard position on the court whose responsibility is to initiate the team's offense.
post player The position, usually played by taller players, where the player plays and defends the low and high post areas.
post-up When an offensive player takes aposition close to, and facing away from the basket in preparation to receive a pass.
power forward Usually the bigger, stronger forward who plays close to the basket and is responsible for rebounding and inside scoring.
press A type of pressure defense designed to defend the opponent the entire length of the court.
pull-back crossover An effective dribble move to change direction when closely guarded. The dribbler turns halfway against the defender with the dribble on their back hand and then quickly takes two dribbles pulling back away from the defender. The third dribble is the crossover to change direction.
pump fake A fake in which a player motions as if he is going to shoot the ball but holds back, hoping his defender will jump out of position.
reverse dribble A dribble move used to change directions by planting and spinning in the reverse direction 180 degrees.
rub off Describes when an offensive player uses another players screen cutting so close around it that they actually make slight physical contact.
sag A defensive tactic in which a player drops off his man to help double-team a player in the pivot.
screen When a player sets their position on the court so that a teammate can cut closely around them with the purpose of interfering with their defenders ability to cover them. A player setting a screen must not be moving for the screen to be legal.
screen-and-roll A common basketball play where the player setting a screen reverse pivots or "rolls" to the basket after their teammate with the ball uses their screen. Many times the defense will neglect to cover the screener and they will be open for the pass and shot.
slide The movement of a defensive player as they are actively guarding an opponent. The defender is low to the ground with a wide stance and will move with a step-and-slide action rather than crossing their feet.
speed dribble A dribble move used in the open court where the dribbler is attempting to advance upcourt as fast as possible. This dribble is very high and out in front so that the player can take several strides per dribble.
strong side The side of the floor where the ball is located.
stutter step An offensive move similar to a jab step where a player extends his foot to get the defense to react and once the defense is off balance the player pushes the ball and his lead foot past the defender.
switch Defensive maneuver where teammates exchange defensive assignments during play.
technical foul The penalty for a violation of conduct, such as abusive language or fighting. Each technical foul awards a dead-ball free throw to the opposing team and subsequent possession of the ball.
three-second violation An offensive player may not stand in the lane for three seconds. In many levels of youth basketball, this may be increased to five seconds.
transition When a team goes from offense to defense or defense to offense as the ball moves quickly upcourt.
trap A situation where two or more defenders has stopped an offensive player's dribble and is attempting to create a turnover by applying pressure. The classic trap areas on the court are the corners, baseline, and the sideline near the halfcourt line.
triple-threat position An offensive position from which the ball handler can either shoot, pass or dribble.
traveling Taking more than one and a half steps without dribbling while you have the ball. Also when a player picks up their dribble and then moves or changes their pivot foot.
v-cut An offensive move designed to get a player open for a pass. The player drives their defender one way with tow or three steps, then cuts sharply in the opposite direction. The path of the cut is generally in the shape of a "V".
wing (1) The area on the court where the 3-point arc meets the free throw line extended. (2) The offensive player who plays in that area.
zone A type of team defense where the defenders guard an area of the court as opposed to a specific player. There are many variations of the zone defense, many of them covered on this site.