World Trick Shot Day Date in the current year: December 3, 2024

The term “trick shot” is commonly associated with billiards; it refers to a shot that seems highly unlikely or even impossible to perform or requires significant skill. Over time, some other sports have adopted the term, including basketball.

Shooting in basketball is the process of throwing the ball through the basket in order to score points. There are many different kinds of shots, varying in difficulty depending on the player’s skill and situation. Some are pretty easy and therefore not particularly impressive for spectators, while others are guaranteed crowd-pleasers. For example, the slam dunk – a shot in which a player jumps very high in the air and shoves the ball directly through the basket from above – is probably the most spectacular basketball shot.

Trick shots in basketball are shots that seem to defy the laws of physics. They can be performed during regular games in an attempt to score points or as a form of entertainment. For example, the world-famous exhibition basketball team the Harlem Globetrotters regularly make trick shot videos and share them online to entertain basketball fans and encourage others to hone their basketball skills.

The Harlem Globetrotters are famous for combining athleticism with elements of comedy and theater in their style of play. They originated as the Savoy Big Five, an all-Black basketball team that were one of the main attractions of the Savoy Ballroom in Chicago. After a dispute, several players led by Tommy Brookins left the Savoy Big Five and formed a new team called the Globetrotters. The team adopted the name New York Harlem Globetrotters in 1928 to emphasize its ties to the African-American community, of which Harlem was the heart at the time. The next year, the team dropped “New York” from its name.

Over the years, the Harlem Globetrotters have played over 26,000 exhibition games in more than 120 countries and territories. They usually play against deliberately ineffective opponents that act as stooges; while the Globetrotters display their skill and demonstrate impressive tricks, the opposing team plays regular basketball. That’s not to say that their opponents are objectively bad; their seeming ineffectiveness is part of the show, a backdrop for the Globetrotters’ trick shots.

The Globetrotters created World Trick Shot Day to show how creative and entertaining basketball can be. How can you observe the holiday? If you play basketball and can perform a trick shot, record it and share the video on social media with the hashtags #WorldTrickShotDay and #TrickShotDay to show off your skills and spread the word about the holiday.

Other ways to celebrate include learning a new trick shot and practicing it, watching entertaining trick shot videos on YouTube and TikTok, attending an exhibition or regular game of basketball, watching a movie that features basketball, and learning fun facts about this amazing sport.