What is the basketball regulation | Relief

Basketball is a sport in which two teams formed for five players each one tries to put a ball into a hoop located 3.05 meters from the groundfor which they can only use their hands. Roughly speakingthis could be a fairly basic but tight definition of the sport of basket. However, although everything that is said in it is true, it would still be insufficient to capture all the nuances that the game has. A complexity that, precisely, has made it one of the most popular disciplines in the world.

Not in vain, it is often said that Basketball is the only American-created sport that has acquired global status. For this, yes, he had to pay a small toll. When addressing basketball regulations, it is important to keep in mind that, in reality, there are several regulations. Or rather, There is a global regulation, stipulated by the FIBA and which, for example, is used in international competitions like the Olympic Games or the Basketball World Cup. But there are also adjacent regulations that work for certain competitions, the most notable exception being the NBA rules.

For this article we are going to use the FIBA ​​regulations as a basis, as it is the one used in European basketball (ACB y Euroleague). Although we will point out some of the most notable differences.

How long does a basketball game last?

The main difference between regulations lies, in fact, in the duration of a match. Under FIBA ​​regulations, a basketball game lasts 40 minutes divided into four equal halves of 10 minutes each.. Between the first and second quarters, as well as between the third and fourth quarters, there is a two-minute rest period, while between the second and third quarter the teams have 15 minutes of rest.

Furthermore, there is a possession clock by which a team has 24 seconds to make a shot for a field goal That at least touches the rim. The idea is to speed up the game and avoid speculation. If a basket is scored, the defending team recovers the ball or it touches the rim, then the count starts again.

In the NBA, games last 48 minutes, divided into four quarters of 12 minutes each.with a 2:30 minute break between quarters and a 15 minute break halfway through the match. In both FIBA ​​and NBA, in the event of a tie at the end of the game, as much extra time as necessary until a winner is determined. These extensions will always last five minutes.

On the other hand, we must take into account the existence of downtimes within the matches. In FIBA ​​a total of 4 timeouts are established plus an extra one if there is overtime, with a duration of 60 seconds each, while in the NBA the rule changes a little and They go to 7 time-outs with a duration of 75 seconds each.

How much does a basket cost?

We said that the objective of basketball is to score in the opponent’s basket. However, not all baskets are worth the same. In today’s basketball there are one-point, two-point and three-point baskets..

As a general rule, most baskets that occur in play are worth two points. However, those achieved beyond the 6.7 meter arc are worth three pointswhich is what is called triple. Finally, if a player is awarded one or more free throws after being fouled, these unopposed throws made from the goal line, located 5.8 meters from the baseline, have one value point.

In the NBA the distance of the triple line is 7.2 meters from the basket in frontwhile on the sides it is located at 6.75 meters, the same as in FIBA ​​basketball.

Dribbling the ball: doubles and steps

In basketball, the ball can only be manipulated with your hands.. The ball can be thrown in any direction, but it cannot advance with the ball held. In order to move with the ball, the player must dribble it. Currently, the regulations speak of dribbling as the action of manipulating the ball and use the term fumble (loss) to delimit the actions that cannot be performed when the ball is dribbled. These fouls have traditionally been called doubles (which originally derived from the so-called double dribble foul).

As we said, the general rule is that you cannot advance with the ball held. However, there is one exception. If a player receives the ball while in motion, or if he has performed a dribbling action (dribbling the ball), he can take up to two steps with the ball in his hands whether to stop, pass the ball or shoot a basket.

Application of the step rule in the NBA tends to be much more lax than in Europe, which generates a recurring conflict when players in the American competition must adapt to the FIBA ​​regulations. Famous was Juan Carlos Navarro’s complaint during the Beijing 2008 final, when he ostensibly took four steps with the ball in his hands as a complaint about the refereeing he received during the match between Spain and the United States.

To facilitate the adaptation of American players to European competitions, In 2017 the FIBA ​​created the zero step rule. According to this standard, When a player controls the ball in motion and has one foot on the ground, the first touch does not count as part of the two steps allowed. That is to say, in practice, three steps are currently also allowed in Europe. However, it is important to keep in mind that If a player starts statically there is no step zero.

back field

Each team has a maximum of 8 seconds to go from their own field to the opponent’s field. Once the ball has crossed the boundary line, it cannot go back. If a team returns to its field with the ball, it will incur a backfield foul and must give possession to the opponent.. It is important to keep in mind that the center line of the field is considered part of the opponent’s field, so if a player steps on the line while dribbling the ball, he incurs backfield.

The lack of backfield has an important nuance that can make it difficult to understand at times. For there to be a field behind, it is necessary that the ball is considered to be under the control of the attacking team. That is, if the ball is out of control, there has been a shot at a basket or a rival has touched it, there is no back field.

Furthermore, in the NBA this rule changes slightly because Returning the ball to the backcourt is allowed on throw-ins if the game is in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter or in overtime. Something that is not allowed in FIBA ​​basketball.

Fouls in basketball

In FIBA ​​basketball, A player can commit a maximum of five personal fouls during a match.. If he commits a sixth, he is expelled. Basketball is a contact sport, so determining what is a foul is sometimes a tricky business. To do this, the official FIBA ​​regulations include the cylinder principle. According to this stipulation, Every player projects an imaginary cylinder from the ground to the sky around his contour that cannot be invaded by the defender.

With this in mind, the regulation defines as personal foul “an illegal contact with the player” whether the ball is in play or not. Specifically, “a player shall not grab, block, push, charge, trip or impede the progress of an opponent by extending his hands, arms, elbows, shoulders, hips, legs, knees or feet, nor bend his body in an abnormal position (outside of its cylinder), nor will it engage in rough or violent play”.

In addition to the personal foul, there are also technical fouls and unsportsmanlike fouls. The technical foul is one that a player commits without resorting to contact. That is, technical fouls are, for example: disobeying the referees, insulting the opponent, provoking the public, pretending to have received a foul… Since technical fouls are behavioral, these can also be noted to the coach or to members of a team’s bench. The technical foul is punishable with a free throw. Subsequently, the ball is returned to the team in control of it, which will throw in the throw in the position closest to where it was when play was stopped.

For its part, Unsportsmanlike fouls are those contacts that, in the opinion of the referee, go beyond a regular personal foul.. Unsportsmanlike fouls are punishable with two free throws plus possession of the ball for the attacking team.