Puzzle #344 · May 11, 2026
shot clock
Featured
Every day one two-word expression or compound word used in American English.
The shot clock is a countdown timer in basketball that forces the offense to attempt a shot within a set time, or lose possession. The NBA uses 24 seconds; men's college basketball uses 30; FIBA uses 24.
Before the clock, the NBA was dying. Teams with a lead could stall indefinitely, and games turned into fouling contests. The lowest-scoring NBA game in history — a 19–18 Fort Wayne Pistons win over the Minneapolis Lakers in 1950 — was the kind of slog that emptied arenas.
Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone introduced the 24-second clock in 1954. He arrived at the number by dividing the 48-minute game (2,880 seconds) by the 120 shots an average game saw, giving each possession 24 seconds. Scoring jumped, the league survived, and the NBA itself credits Biasone with saving pro basketball.
Before the clock, the NBA was dying. Teams with a lead could stall indefinitely, and games turned into fouling contests. The lowest-scoring NBA game in history — a 19–18 Fort Wayne Pistons win over the Minneapolis Lakers in 1950 — was the kind of slog that emptied arenas.
Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone introduced the 24-second clock in 1954. He arrived at the number by dividing the 48-minute game (2,880 seconds) by the 120 shots an average game saw, giving each possession 24 seconds. Scoring jumped, the league survived, and the NBA itself credits Biasone with saving pro basketball.
Puzzle Appearances
The expression shot clock has appeared in 1 puzzle:
- Puzzle #344 on May 11, 2026
Rate of Appearance in English Language Print
Google's Ngram project shows how often a pair of words has appeared in print every year since the 1800's.
Data from Google Books Ngram Viewer. Licensed under CC BY 3.0.
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