Did you know that an assist is one of the most disputed statistics in basketball? Assists are pretty controversial, so much that some basketball players have been denied recognition for their assists on multiple occasions. With that in mind, you can only wonder if John Stockton truly holds the highest number of assists at 15,806.
You may be wondering how an assist can be controversial; at the end of the day, does it not just mean an aiding pass that leads to a goal? Well, the answer is more complex than you may think, and that is what we will get into in this article.
When it comes to basketball, we usually focus on two organizations that govern the rules – the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). These two organizations have nearly similar laws and regulations, with a few exceptions here and there.
Note that rules from these two organizations can vary from the regulation used in other levels of play. College basketball rules may differ from those at professional levels. The same can get said for American basketball rules and international rules.
We will focus on what precisely an assist is, what constitutes an assist and how to determine an assist in basketball. We will also take a peep into what is not considered an assist to help you differentiate fakes from legit ones.
Basketball Assist Definition
According to the NCAA statistician’s manual, an assist is an attribute assigned to a player who made a pass that directly led to a goal. Not only that, the player who receives the ball from making the goal must show an instant, intentional reaction towards the basket.
That is the most widely accepted definition and classification of an assist. From a glance, it may seem simple enough. The disputes and struggles come when the rule gets applied in combination with other regulations such as time-lapse.
The assist has been labeled several times as NBA’s most misleading number. These mockeries and disappointments are because of the ambiguity of an assist’s definition in the manual.
The ambiguity has left the assist to be a matter of interpretation, with the rules getting looser as the generations grow older. Several NBA alumni have been quoted to say that the fresh players on the block are credited with too many assists than they deserve.
At its bare bones, you may conclude that an assist is a pass from a player made to a teammate shooter who ends up scoring. However, in the field, an assist boils down to subjectivity and the statistician recording the assists. The subjectivity of the statistician is evident in how teams have more assists when they play at home rather than when they are on the road.
According to the regulations, the assist statistics for both teams are recorded by the home team’s statisticians. Needless to say, when a team is at home, they may be awarded more assists per field goal than the average team. The difference between home assists and road assists for several teams in the NBA reaches up to 8%. Other groups, such as Denver, have even surpassed the 8% difference to a worrisome 15%.
How is an Assist Determined in Basketball?
So how do statisticians combat this ambiguity to produce reliable statistics? As earlier stated, it all boils down to the statistician team’s judgment, which is to say that the assist can only be awarded if the statistician declares that the last player’s pass aided in making the basket.
Apart from the judgment of the statistician, the NBA has other ground rules to help determine the assist. The NBA declares that the pass can assist if it is passed to the low post before leading to a score or a long pass for a layup. A pass can also become an assist if there is a fast break pass to a player for a layup. Or if the pass leads to an open perimeter shot for a teammate.
The NCAA takes it down a notch by being more ambiguous with just two ground rules:
- The pass should find the shooter free after they intentionally looked for a positional advantage to take the shot.
- The pass should provide a position advantage for the shooter, who would have otherwise not received such an opportunity.
In short terms, the NCAA will count a pass as an assist only if the passer created the shot for the shooter with no regard to the number of dribbles before the assist.
The teams hire a statistician crew, usually made of five to eight people, to keep an eye on the scores, operate the game clock and the 24-second clock. Others get tasked with inputting the stats into computer software.
Other Types of Assists in Basketball
Apart from the standard assist we have been talking about, we also have illegal assists, secondary assists, and free throw assists in basketball.
- Illegal assists – An illegal assist is when a teammate deliberately reaches up to a ball spinning on the rim and taps it into the basket. It is unlawful to make contact with a ball when it is touching the rim. The opponents will be given the ball as a penalty for such a violation.
- Secondary assist/hockey assists – A secondary assist is added assistance to the standard assist we have been discussing. It involves a pass that gets passed to a teammate who goes on to make the standard assist. A secondary assist can only get awarded if the goal gets made within two seconds and one dribble after the second last pass.
Other underlying rules will vary depending on the organizations (such as NCAA or NBA) and the judgment of the statistician.
- Free throw assists – It is a rare form of assist that is widely debatable. It gets awarded to a player who passes the ball to a shooter who gets fouled by an opponent. The shooter must then be awarded a free throw and make the basket before the last pass gets awarded an assist.
How Vital an Assist is in Basketball?
An assist is one of the many statistics used to gauge a player’s agility and versatility. The other factors include turnovers, the pace of play, and usage rate. Players with high assist scores will create a more significant offensive threat than those with no assistive attributes. Additionally, the opponents tend to focus more on players with high assist scores since they are the ones who can make or break a run.
At face value, we can conclude that the more assists a team has, the more points they have, which is to say that the number of assists does reflect the group’s overall performance. Apart from the points, another significant value of an assist is its indication of cooperation among the team players. More assists indicate that the players are sharing the ball more often and passing more frequently before shooting.
More quality assists also mean that the passers are dishing out quality passes, and the team is taking amazing shots. It also showcases the versatility, accuracy, and character of a player. A player with more assists is likely to be a selfless teammate who values the general gameplay over his scores. This type of player will be highly valued since he will create more offensive chances for his team.
Let’s checkout the beautiful basketball assist highlights:
Critics do not care for the assists, not because they are useless, but because they are not black and white. They are no precise definitions of how many steps a shooter should take after getting the pass or how much time is allowed between the pass and basket.
With lots of interpretation left to the statisticians, many may choose not to care since the team analysis can be done better with factors such as wins and losses.
NBA All-Time Assists Leaders
Most assists are awarded to point guards since they have the sole responsibility of passing and ballhandling. The point guards normally score an average of four assists in a single game. Other players such as the one playing in the center positions will also get more chances but not more than point guards.
Other players including the shooting guards tend to get less assist opportunities due to their duties and positions. However, shooting guards such as LeBron James have proven otherwise with 9,696 assists. Other active players on the NBA’s All-Time Assists Leaderboard include Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and Rajon Rondo
The NBA’s All-Time Assists Leaderboard is led by John Stockton, Utah Jazz point guard, who accumulated 15,806 assists from 1984-2003 (19 seasons). Let’s take a look at the top ten (2021 updated):
| No: | NBA player | Number of Assists |
| 1. | John Stockton | 15,806 |
| 2. | Jason Kidd | 12,091 |
| 3. | Steve Nash | 10.335 |
| 4. | Mark Jackson | 10,334 |
| 5. | Chris Paul | 10275 |
| 6. | Magic Johnson | 10,141 |
| 7. | Oscar Robertson | 9,887 |
| 8. | LeBron James | 9,696 |
| 9. | Isaiah Thomas | 9,061 |
| 10. | Gary Payton | 8,966 |
Milwaukee Bucks hold the team record for NBA’s single-game assists at 53 assists. The individual record for the same single-game assist is 30, held by Scott Skiles from a 1990 match. Finally, the highest assists per game in NBA history is recorded at 11.2, a title that Magic Johnson holds.
Assist in Basketball: FAQ
1. What is the Difference Between an Assist in NBA and NCAA?
In NBA, the definition is more accessible and more understandable than in NCAA. NBA basically credits the assist to the last player to pass the ball to another player who ends up the scoring by instantly reacting to the pass. On the other hand, NCAA credits an assist only if the statistician views a given pass as the main pass that led to a basket or points being awarded.
Clearly, the NBA rules are more transparent than NCAA rules. Regardless of that fact, the rules are still subjective to the statisticians’ decision on each level; it’s just that they are more pronounced in the NBA.
2. How Many Dribbles are Allowed in an Assist?
The NCAA and other organizations can limit the number of dribbles to either two or three. However, technically speaking, there are no limitations. The number of dribbles is added subjectively since for an assist to be credited; the scorer must instantly react with an intent to score. In case the intent to score takes too long with multiple dribbles, then the assist won’t be awarded.
3. Can an Inbound Pass Count as an Assist?
If the statistician deems the inbound pass as an integral pass to the score for the NCAA, then the inbound pass will count as an assist. If the inbound pass is the last pass before the field goal, then the NBA will credit it as an assist.
The exception to this rule is if the receiver has to maneuver through the opponents to make the shot. A significant hustle and struggle to make the basket after an inbound pass will lead to the inbound pass being discredited as an assist.
Final Thoughts
Steve Nash, one of NBA’s best passers and a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, remarked that assists are just an indicator of what a player is contributing to the team. He continued to say that he doesn’t care about the assists since you never honestly know when you are going to be credited or not.
Moreover, there are no definitive descriptions of pivot moves, head-fakes, or shot-fakes. To add salt to injury, you can’t obtain hard evidence for an assist. A point is judged when the ball goes through the net and a rebound when a player gets the ball of the backboard; such hard evidence is absent in assists.
Despite all of its flaws, an assist can gauge a player’s versatility and the team’s cooperation. Many assists under one individual player will highly reflect on his or her values and discipline, which will translate to excellent overall team performance. You can confidently bet on a team with more assists than one with few, since statistically speaking, they are more likely to win.