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Basketball · Official Basketball Rules

Law 15: Player in the Act of Shooting

2 parts · 3 tests · 30 facts · updated 22 October 2026 · markdown

Shots, taps and dunks, when the act of shooting starts and ends on jump shots and drives (redefined in 2026), what ends it after a foul, and the frontcourt rule with its exceptions.

15.151Shots and the Jump Shot

Shot, tap and dunk, the jump shot's act of shooting, and what ends it after a foul.

Test 1Shots, taps, dunks and the jump shotTake a test

  1. A shot occurs when the ball is held in a player's hands and then thrown into the air towards the opponents' basket.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.1 · recall

  2. A tap for a goal occurs when the ball is directed with the hand(s) towards the opponents' basket.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.1 · recall

  3. A dunk occurs when the ball is forced downwards into the opponents' basket with one or both hands.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.1 · recall

  4. Free throws are thrown from the hands at the basket, just like shots from play.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.1 · recall

  5. It ends when the ball has left the player's hands and, for an airborne shooter, both feet have returned to the floor.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · recall

  6. On a jump shot the act starts when the player begins to move the shoulders and the ball upwards towards the basket.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · applied

  7. The act of shooting ends if an entirely new act of shooting is made.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · applied

  8. The act runs from the upward motion to the release and, for an airborne shooter, the landing.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · applied

  9. The foul falls inside the act of shooting, which ends on the landing after the release.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · applied

  10. Catching, looking and stepping come before; the upward move of shoulders and ball is the start.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2 · applied

Test 2After the foulTake a test

  1. After being fouled, a jump shooter who passes the ball off is no longer considered to have been in the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.7 · applied

  2. Moving the ball upwards away from the basket ends the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.7 · applied

  3. A player not facing the basket as the ball moves up is not considered to have been in the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.7 · applied

  4. There is no relationship between the number of legal steps taken and the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.5 · recall

  5. If the arms are held and the player is prevented from scoring, it is not essential that the ball leaves the hands.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.6 · applied

  6. FIBA's changes summary cites players increasingly manipulating situations to create shooting fouls.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15; FIBA OBR 2026 changes · recall

  7. Article 15.1.2 covers jump shots and other moving shots alike; drives have their own rule in 15.1.3.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2, 15.1.3 · applied

  8. The pass after the foul takes him out of the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.7 · applied

  9. Being held can stop the release without ending the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.6 · applied

  10. Passing off, lifting the ball away from the basket or moving it up while facing away end the act; carrying on towards the basket does not.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.7 · applied

15.152Drives and the Frontcourt Rule

The act of shooting on a drive, and shots from the backcourt.

Test 1Drives and backcourt shotsTake a test

  1. It starts when the player has gathered the ball and it comes to rest in his hands, after a dribble or a catch in the air.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.3 · recall

  2. The rule describes it as an action in the frontcourt, typically starting between the offensive 3-point line and the basket.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.3 · recall

  3. The player continues the shooting motion towards the basket, usually upwards.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.3 · recall

  4. For a player to be in the act of shooting, the player must be in the frontcourt.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · recall

  5. A player may be anywhere on the court during the last action before the game clock expires for the end of a period.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · applied

  6. The exception also covers the last action before the shot clock expires, at any time of the game.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · applied

  7. The exceptions use the gather as the starting point, whatever the shot type.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · recall

  8. The last action before the end of a period may be an act of shooting from anywhere.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · applied

  9. Outside the two exceptions a player in the backcourt cannot be in the act of shooting.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.4 · applied

  10. Dribbling (A, B) comes before; the gather (C) starts it, and the release (D) ends it.

    Source: FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.3 · applied

Sources

FIBA Official Basketball Rules 2026 (v1.1), Article 15 (paraphrased in original wording; original questions authored from the Rules, not reproduced)

  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.26
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.46
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.75
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.14
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.34
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.62
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.51
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15; FIBA OBR 2026 changes1
  • FIBA OBR 2026, Art. 15.1.2, 15.1.31