GlossaryBasketball (NBA)
How to read an NBA box score
An NBA box score lists each player's key totals — points (PTS), rebounds (REB), assists (AST), plus minutes and shooting — so you can see who did what without watching.
The core columns are PTS, REB and AST, often quoted together as a stat line (e.g. '28-11-9'). You'll also see MIN (minutes), FG (field goals made/attempted), 3P (three-pointers), FT (free throws), STL (steals), BLK (blocks) and TO (turnovers). A 'triple-double' is double figures in three of those categories.
Worked example: A line of 28 PTS, 11 REB, 9 AST is one assist short of a triple-double.
See it in the numbers
Open the spreadsheet and watch this appear in live scores and standings — disguised as work.
Related terms
Plus/minus (+/−)
Plus/minus is how many points a team outscored the opponent by while a given player was on the court — +12 means the team was 12 points better with them playing.
The NBA play-in tournament
The play-in is a mini-tournament for the 7th–10th seeds in each conference that decides the final two playoff spots.
How to read a league table
A league table ranks teams by points; the columns to its right show how those points were earned — games played, wins, draws, losses, goals for and against, and goal difference.
How points work (3-1-0)
In most football leagues a win is worth 3 points, a draw 1 and a loss 0; the team with the most points at the end of the season wins the title.