Introducing the Pounding the Rock Basketball Terminology Quizzes
The offseason is home to the NBA Draft, free agency, Las Vegas Summer League, and an abundance of trades. All these moving pieces make for an exhilarating couple of months for basketball fans. But the thrill from these concurrent events soon withers into the monotony of worn-out rumors as writers rummage through the bottom of the barrel for content.
The dead period has left me exploring ways to remain engaged within the hoops community. Opinion pieces, podcasts, and Twitter Spaces sufficed for a while. Then YouTube pulled me down a rabbit hole of recommended videos that piqued my interest in improving my Spurs coverage by learning as much as possible about the glorious sport we all love.
I have dedicated the last few weeks to studying professional terminology and watching countless hours of breakdowns on offensive sets, defensive arrangements, and technical minutiae. Emerging with a better grasp of X’s and O’s was the goal, and though that happened, it made me wonder how many people genuinely know what is going on out there.
With a slow news cycle for the San Antonio Spurs and some free time on my hands, I made multiple quizzes and a corresponding crash course for essential basketball vocabulary. Part one should be a breeze as it focuses on specific areas of the court. But each subsequent set of questions will get more challenging, so study up before you give it a whirl.
Poll
The area just outside the lane along the baseline where a player can stand and wait for a catch-and-finish if his man helps on a drive, also known as the short corner.
-
11%
Above the Break
(42 votes)
-
51%
The Dunker’s Spot
(197 votes)
-
30%
The Block
(117 votes)
-
6%
The Paint
(25 votes)
381 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The spots where the lane lines would theoretically intersect with the three point line.
-
6%
The Nail
(22 votes)
-
49%
Top of the Key
(178 votes)
-
27%
The Elbow
(99 votes)
-
16%
The Slot
(59 votes)
358 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The spots on the three-point line between the corner and the top of the key, also known as the wing.
-
10%
Weakside
(35 votes)
-
1%
Restricted Area
(5 votes)
-
25%
The Short Corner
(86 votes)
-
62%
Above the Break
(207 votes)
333 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The middle of the free throw line, also known as the plug.
-
39%
The High Post
(127 votes)
-
34%
The Nail
(110 votes)
-
22%
The Lane
(72 votes)
-
2%
The Tunnel
(9 votes)
318 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The spot on the court at the corners of the free throw line, also known as the high post.
-
11%
Top of the Key
(36 votes)
-
82%
The Elbow
(259 votes)
-
3%
The Corner
(12 votes)
-
2%
The Wing
(8 votes)
315 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The side of the court that has the ball handler.
-
94%
Strongside
(293 votes)
-
0%
Slotside
(1 vote)
-
0%
Weakside
(3 votes)
-
4%
Highside
(13 votes)
310 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The lower arc inside the paint located four feet away from the basket where a defensive player cannot draw a charging foul from a driver.
-
0%
Lower Defensive Box
(3 votes)
-
95%
Restricted Area
(288 votes)
-
2%
Restraining Circle
(8 votes)
-
0%
The Plug
(3 votes)
302 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The side of the court that doesn’t have the ball handler.
-
0%
Highside
(0 votes)
-
0%
Strongside
(1 vote)
-
0%
Slotside
(2 votes)
-
99%
Weakside
(306 votes)
309 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The top of the semi-circle located above the free-throw line but below the three-point line.
-
2%
The Wing
(6 votes)
-
3%
Division Line
(11 votes)
-
87%
Top of the Key
(253 votes)
-
6%
The Hashmark
(19 votes)
289 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The rectangular area near the basket that extends from the baseline to the free-throw line, also know as the lane or the key.
-
94%
The Paint
(272 votes)
-
4%
The Mid Post
(14 votes)
-
0%
Coaching Box
(0 votes)
-
0%
The Dunker’s Spot
(1 vote)
287 votes total Vote Now
Poll
The spot on the court located near the lower-most part of paint, sometimes there are literal rectangular markers to pinpoint the spot, also know as the low post.
-
2%
The Short Corner
(7 votes)
-
84%
The Block
(236 votes)
-
3%
Lane Lines
(11 votes)
-
9%
The Alley
(26 votes)
280 votes total Vote Now
Bonus Question: What do the acronyms BLOB, SLOB, and ATO stand for? (+10 points if you get all three right.)
Let us know how you think you did on part one, and make sure to check in at the end of the week when we reveal all the correct answers.
Special thanks to The Basketball Dictionary, The Basketball Action Dictionary, Unforgiving Hoops, Coach Daniel, Half Court Hoops, hoopvision68, Adam Spinella, and Stephen Noh for providing FREE resources for people with a thirst for basketball knowledge.
