Definition

Noun: A scoop shot is a basketball shot made with an underhand scooping motion, typically executed by the player extending their arm and hand low to the ground and then lifting the ball upward in a sweeping arc towards the basket, often to avoid a defender's block.

Usage

The term is used specifically in the context of basketball to describe this particular shooting technique. It is a compound noun where "scoop" describes the characteristic motion.

Examples

• The guard drove to the basket and finished with a difficult scoop shot over the taller center.
• Her signature move is a left-handed scoop shot that seems impossible to defend.
• He practiced his scoop shot repeatedly to use it effectively in traffic under the hoop.

Advanced Usage

• The shot is often described with adjectives indicating its style or difficulty, e.g., a scoop shot, a scoop shot.
• It can be part of a larger play description: "He faked the pass and then went for the scoop shot."

Variants and Related Words

• Scoop (verb): To perform the action of making this shot. "He managed to scoop the ball into the net as he fell."
• Floater (noun): A related but distinct type of basketball shot, a soft, arcing shot taken in the lane. While both are used near the basket to avoid shot-blockers, a floater is typically a push shot released higher, whereas a scoop shot is a true underhand sweeping motion.
• Layup (noun): A more fundamental shot made close to the basket, usually off the backboard. A scoop shot is a specific, often more creative, variation of a layup.

Synonyms

• Underhand shot
• Sweeping layup

Antonyms

• Jump shot
• Dunk
• Overhead shot

Related Phrases

• To execute a scoop shot: To successfully perform the shot.
• A scoop shot attempt: An effort to make this type of shot.

Noun

1. a basketball shot made with an underhand scooping motion