And One

And one in basketball is a term used to describe a player who shoots layups or dunks the basketball into the hoop while drawing contact in the process from a defender. The foul is then called by the ref while the ball enters into the basket and is counted. The player will then go to the line to shoot one free-throw.

The And-One can happen on any shot attempt in the game as long as the ball goes into the basket after the foul call and the ref singles it was, in fact, a shot attempt. It is not an And-One when the player shoots the basketball in any way and the ball does not go in.

Basketball Players may still yell “And-One” in the process of shooting a shot, even if they know the ball isn’t going in out of habit or to tell the ref that there is contact without actually telling them, as ref’s hate when players tell them what to do.

Remember the ball needs to go into the basket in order for it be an “And-One and you must be in shooting motion, as sometimes calls are whistled on the ground. Lastly, a basket will not count if it signaled an offensive foul either and no free-throw awarded.

Making any shot in the process of being fouled is no easy task but when you do you’re rewarded with one free throw. This can also be known as a three-point play or four-point play. With the added difficulty to make the shot with the contact in the process.

Taking a shot while being hit is no easy task, it takes physical and mental toughness all while trying to finesse the ball into the basket. On top of that while, you are getting hit while you are avoiding your shot from getting blocked all at once.

It is the toughest shot in the game that has the most reward for how low the percentages of making the basket are. Even if you don’t make the basket you’re awarded free-throws if you do make the basket even better.

A clear example of And-One is a player beating their man off the dribble and going to the basket on a layup while drawing contact as the player jumps to block the layup attempt. In the process, the defender who gets beat or any defender who helps on defense fouls trying to block the layup attempt. The ball makes its way into the basket and the player hears the whistle and heads to the free-throw line for an easy free-throw shot.

A second example is a player in a triple threat position at the three-point line looking to make a move. When the player with the ball is heavily guarded by the defender, the player may choose to swing their arms at the defender’s arms that are reaching in for the ball and lock the players’ arms in the process while shooting, creating the obvious foul.

Many times you will see players trying to kick out their leg at the three-point line to draw contact so much so it was very hard for the refs to really see what was going on during the shot. As players would fall to the ground after releasing the ball, and every shot would not go to review as this would slow down the game considerably.

It ended up being a major concern so the NBA reviewed their rules on players drawing fouls while shooting 3-pointers as the issue was apparent that player shooting the ball was sticking out their legs to draw contact on the defender contesting the shot is now ruled that players who do this will be charged with an offensive foul.

The And-One Is a subtle form of trash-talking your opponent, being able to yell that out without directing it to anyone is going to annoy your opponents, plus you can get away with it. Trash talking in a basketball, in general, is forbidden in the rulebook in basketball as it leads to a technical foul.

Examples of how And One is used in commentary: The shooter puts up a shot, makes contact and makes it for an and one. With that shot and foul, he has a chance to make this a three point play with the free throw.