Basketball Glossary
Definitions of some of the terms, team names, rules and sayings associated with basketball.

Amortization
In business accounting terms, amortization is the deduction of a capital expense over a period of time. In an NBA context, amortization is how the price paid for a team is reflected in that team's balance sheets.
AAU
AAU stands for "Amateur Athletic Union" -- a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to promoting athletics and fitness programs. Unfortunately, AAU boys' basketball programs are often linked to many of the less-savory aspects basketball.
Airball
An airball is a shot that misses... everything. The hoop, the rim, the backboard... the shot clock.
Alley Oop
An acrobatic play that ends in a mid-air slam dunk.
Amnesty Clause
The NBA's next CBA may contain an "amnesty clause," allowing teams to periodically remove player contracts from their salary cap numbers.
Assist
Assist is a statistic in basketball used to give credit to the player who "sets up" a basket with a pass.
Basketball Related Income (BRI)
Basketball Related Income (BRI) is a term that covers most of the income generated by NBA games. The NBA's salary cap is based on a percentage of BRI generated by all NBA teams in a given year.
Bird Rights
Under certain circumstances, NBA teams have the option to exceed the salary cap to re-sign their own players. This exception came to be known as the "Larry Bird" clause.
Brick
Brick -- basketball slang for a particularly grace-less jump shot.
Bruin
"Bruin" is an archaic term for a brown bear -- or any bear, really.
Contact Period
A contact period is a date range on the NCAA's official college basketball recruiting calendar during which coaches can make "in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations.
Dead Period
A Dead Period, as the name implies, is a date range on the official NCAA recruiting calendar in which little-to-no recruiting activity is permitted.
Depreciation
In business accounting terms, depreciation is the method used to track the cost of an asset over its useful life span.
Double-Double
A "double-double" is a statistical achievement in basketball -- reaching ten or more in more than one category.
Elite Camp
Elite camps are invitation-only events that allow colleges to host top recruits for extended in-person summer workouts. They're also one of the least-regulated areas of recruiting and a major "gray area" when it comes to NCAA compliance.
Elite Eight
The "Elite Eight" refers to either the last eight teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament's field, or the fourth round of the tournament, in which those final eight teams meet.
Evaluation Period
An evaluation period is a date range on the NCAA's official college basketball recruiting calendar during which coaches and athletic department staff can assess prospects' abilities and academic qualifications, but cannot make in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts.
Flex Cap
The NBA owners have proposed what they are calling a "flex" cap to solve the league's financial problems. The players union says the flex cap is just a hard cap with a new name.
FIBA
FIBA is the federation that governs international basketball competition -- from the Olympics on down.
First Four
The "First Four" refers to the four games of the NCAA Tournament's new opening round, added when March Madness expanded to 68 teams for the 2011 tourney.
Hard Cap
A "hard cap" is a salary cap that cannot be exceeded for any reason.
Hoosier
"Hoosier" is a nickname for any person from Indiana -- and by extension, the Indiana University athletic teams. What does it mean? No one's really sure...
Juco
Short for "junior college," juco typically refers to players who play at a two-year school initially, earn an associate's degree, and then transfer into a four-year college with two seasons' eligibility remaining.
Krzyzewskiville
Krzyzewskiville is an area of the Duke campus where students camp out to wait for basketball tickets.
Letter of Intent
A letter of intent is a formal agreement that binds a given player to a given school.
Medical Redshirt
A college player who misses a year or more due to injury can apply to have his or her scholarship extended. This is called a "medical redshirt," which makes more sense once you know the background.
Memorandum of Understanding
A memorandum of understanding is a formal agreement between two or more parties, but not quite as binding as a contract.
Midnight Madness
"Midnight Madness" refers to a massive pep rally that many schools hold on the first day of basketball practice in mid-October.
Official Visit
An official visit is a formal visit by a potential recruit to a college or university. Student-athletes are limited to five official visits.
One and Done
The NBA's rule prohibiting high school seniors from entering the draft -- a la Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and LeBron James -- has given rise to a new class of college player: the "one and done."
Package Deal
In basketball recruiting, "package deal" often refers to a situation where a college program offers a job to the high school or AAU coach of a top recruit in order to get that recruit to commit.
Play-in Game
In the 1990s, the NCAA Tournament included so-called play-in games, which would feature teams playing for the right to advance to the field of 64.
Point Shaving
Point Shaving is the (highly illegal) act of purposefully holding down the score of a sporting event, in order to impact who will win bets against a point spread.
Point Spread
Given that a matchup of real equals in any sporting event is exceedingly rare, sports books create a point spread to handicap the superior team.
Quiet Period
A quiet period is a date range on the NCAA's official college basketball recruiting calendar during which coaches can only make in-person recruiting contacts on their program's campus.
Redshirt
A redshirt is a player who sits out an entire season of his or her sport in order to preserve a year's worth of eligibility.
Roster Depreciation Allowance
Invented by then-Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck, the "roster depreciation allowance" is an obscure section of tax law that allows professional sports teams to "write off" the declining value of player contracts.
Runner
Runners -- sometimes called "street agents" -- work to befriend basketball players with pro potential in the hopes of later signing those players to lucrative representation deals.
Show Cause
"Show Cause" is the harshest penalty the NCAA can levy against an individual.
Soft Cap
A "soft cap" is a salary cap that can be exceeded for a variety of reasons. The NBA's current salary cap structure is "soft".
Sweet Sixteen
The "Sweet Sixteen" refers to the last sixteen teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament's field of 65, or to the third round of NCAA Tournament play.
Transfer
Like all college students, college basketball players have the option of transferring from one school to another. But because the NCAA is involved, transferring is far more complicated than simply making sure credits will be accepted at the new school.
Unofficial Visit
An unofficial visit is an informal visit by a potential recruit to a college or university.
Walk-On
"Walk On" is a term generally used to refer to a non-scholarship player.
What is a "Bourre?"
What is "Bourre?"
What is a "Trade Kicker?"
What is a "Trade Kicker?"
What is the Trent Tucker Rule?
Most NBA fans know it takes minimum .3 seconds to catch and shoot off an inbounds play. They might not know why.
Wingspan
In basketball, the term "wingspan" is used to describe a player's measurement from fingertips to fingertips when both arms are extended fully.