Basketball Abbreviations
52 abbreviations · part of Sports Abbreviations
Positions, box-score statistics, shooting splits, advanced metrics, injury designations and season awards used in the NBA, WNBA, college and international basketball. Box scores compress a game into columns such as PTS, REB, AST and FG%, while analytics sites add rate stats like TS% and PER. Cross-sport awards such as MVP and Rookie of the Year are explained here with their equivalents in other leagues.
| Abbreviation | Stands for | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 3P% | Three-point percentage | Made threes divided by three-point attempts. |
| 3PA | Three-point attempts | Number of shots taken from beyond the arc. |
| 3PM | Three-pointers made | Number of successful three-point shots, shown before attempts in the box score's 3PT column. |
| 3PT | Three-pointer | Field goal made from beyond the three-point arc, worth three points. |
| 6MOY | Sixth Man of the Year | NBA award for the best player who comes off the bench, given to a player who appeared in more games as a reserve than as a starter. |
| APG | Assists per game | Average number of assists a player records per game, the main measure of playmaking. |
| AST | Assists | Pass that leads directly to a teammate's made basket, credited by the official scorer. |
| AST/TO | Assist-to-turnover ratio | Assists divided by turnovers, a common measure of a ball handler's decision-making. |
| BLK | Blocks | Number of opponents' shots a defender deflects in flight, legally, before they can score. |
| BPG | Blocks per game | Blocked shots per game, used to gauge rim protection. |
| BPM | Box Plus/Minus | Box-score-based estimate of a player's contribution in points per 100 possessions relative to an average player, with 0.0 as average. |
| C | Center (American football) | Offensive lineman in the middle of the line who snaps the ball between his legs to the quarterback to start each play and then blocks. |
| COY | Coach of the Year | Award for the season's best head coach, chosen by media voters in the NBA (Red Auerbach Trophy), NFL (Associated Press) and NHL (Jack Adams Award). |
| DHO | Dribble handoff | Action in which a player dribbles toward a teammate and hands the ball off while screening his defender, a guard-to-big or big-to-guard alternative to the pick-and-roll. |
| DNP | Did not play | Box-score note for a player who was dressed and available but did not enter the game. |
| DPOY | Defensive Player of the Year | Annual award for the season's best defender. |
| DREB | Defensive rebounds | Rebounds of an opponent's missed shot, which end that team's possession. |
| DRtg | Defensive rating | Points allowed per 100 possessions, measured for teams or estimated for individual players. |
| DTD | Day-to-day | Injury status for a player whose availability is assessed daily, usually because of a minor sprain or soreness. |
| eFG% | Effective field goal percentage | Shooting percentage adjusted for the extra value of three-pointers: (FGM + 0.5 x 3PM) / FGA. |
| FG | Field goal (American football) | Three-point score made by place-kicking the ball between the uprights and over the crossbar during a scrimmage play. |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | Made field goals divided by attempts, the basic shooting-efficiency figure. |
| FGA | Field goal attempts | Number of shots from the field a player or team takes, excluding free throws. |
| FGM | Field goals made | Number of successful field goals, shown before the attempts in a box score's FG column. |
| FT | Free throw | Unguarded one-point shot taken from the free-throw line, 15 feet from the backboard, after a foul. |
| FT% | Free throw percentage | Made free throws divided by attempts. |
| FTA | Free throw attempts | Number of free throws a player takes, reflecting how often he draws fouls. |
| ISO | Isolation | Offensive play in which teammates clear to one side so a single player can attack his defender one-on-one. |
| MIN | Minutes | Minutes a player was on the court, the first stat column in most box scores. |
| MIP | Most Improved Player | NBA award for the player who made the biggest jump in performance from the previous season, voted by media members. |
| MPG | Minutes per game | Average playing time per game, measured against a regulation length of 48 minutes in the NBA and 40 in college, WNBA and FIBA games. |
| MVP | Most Valuable Player | Award for the best and most important player in a league, season, game or series. |
| OREB | Offensive rebounds | Rebounds of a team's own missed shots, which extend possessions and often lead to easy putbacks. |
| ORtg | Offensive rating | Points produced or scored per 100 possessions. |
| PER | Player efficiency rating | Per-minute rating created by John Hollinger that combines a player's positive and negative box-score contributions and adjusts for pace, with 15.0 set as league average. |
| PF | Personal foul (basketball) | Foul for illegal physical contact with an opponent, such as pushing, holding, blocking or reaching in. |
| PG | Point guard | Primary ball handler who brings the ball up the court, runs the offense and sets up teammates, usually the shortest player in the lineup. |
| PnR | Pick-and-roll | Two-player play in which a teammate sets a screen (the pick) for the ball handler and then cuts to the basket (the roll) for a pass. |
| PPG | Points per game | Average number of points a player scores per game played, the standard measure of scoring. |
| PTS | Points (basketball) | Total points a player or team scores: two for a field goal inside the arc, three from beyond it and one per free throw. |
| REB | Rebounds | Number of missed shots a player or team recovers, combining offensive and defensive rebounds. |
| ROY | Rookie of the Year | Award for the best first-year player in a league. |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | Average number of rebounds a player collects per game, the main measure of rebounding. |
| SF | Small forward | Versatile wing player, the "3" in position numbering, who scores from outside and inside, defends multiple positions and often guards the opponent's best perimeter… |
| SG | Shooting guard | Backcourt player who lines up beside the point guard and is usually the team's best perimeter scorer, shooting from outside and attacking off screens. |
| SPG | Steals per game | Steals averaged per game, a measure of active defense in passing lanes and on the ball. |
| STL | Steals | Number of times a defender takes the ball from an opponent by intercepting a pass or knocking it away, causing a turnover. |
| TO | Turnover | Loss of possession without a shot attempt, through a bad pass, a steal, traveling, an offensive foul or a shot-clock violation. |
| TS% | True shooting percentage | Shooting efficiency stat that counts two-pointers, three-pointers and free throws: points divided by twice the sum of field goal attempts and 0.44 times free throw… |
| USG% | Usage rate | Estimate of the share of a team's possessions a player uses while on the court, ending in his shot, free throws or turnover. |
| VORP | Value over replacement player | Basketball-Reference cumulative stat converting Box Plus/Minus into a total value above a replacement-level player, defined as -2.0 BPM. |
| WS | Win shares | Estimate of the number of team wins a player is responsible for, split into offensive and defensive win shares. |