backcourt

back·court | \ ˈbak-ˈkȯrt

How to pronounce backcourt (audio)

\

Definition of backcourt

1 : the area near or nearest the back boundary lines or back wall of the playing area in a net or court game

2a : a basketball team's defensive half of the court

b : the positions of the guards on a basketball team also : the guards themselves a team with a strong backcourt

Examples of backcourt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Miller may have been a much better fit for the Pacers' backcourt than Alford... — Matthew Glenesk, The Indianapolis Star, "On this date in 1987: Indiana Pacers draft Reggie Miller — and fans boo," 23 June 2020 How the pick fits: Haliburton can slide in at the point, alongside Zach LaVine and give the Bulls a solid backcourt for years to come. — Matt Goul, cleveland, "NBA Mock Draft 2020: Where LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman could land in October," 15 June 2020 Will a backcourt featuring White, Walker and Dejounte Murray push the pace and run wild without a high-usage post player slowing things down? — Mike Finger, ExpressNews.com, "As Spurs return, there’s more than one option for victory," 9 June 2020 Stanford guard Bryce Wills made the five-man All-Defensive team and his backcourt mate, Tyrell Terry, received a spot on the five-man All-Freshman team. — Steve Kroner, SFChronicle.com, "Stanford’s Oscar da Silva named to All-Pac-12 first team," 9 Mar. 2020 Junior guard Chris Felix kept the Wildcats in the game with a 20-point performance, while his sophomore backcourt mate Joseph Cormier finished with nine points and five assists. — Josh Criswell, Houston Chronicle, "Westbury Christian falls short in TAPPS 5A final against Frisco Legacy Christian," 29 Feb. 2020 Paul, Gilgeous-Alexander’s backcourt mate, is shooting 54.3% on midrange shots and averaging 3.9 attempts. — Cameron Fields, cleveland, "Collin Sexton flashes midrange game as he scores 28 points in Cavs win against Philadelphia 76ers," 27 Feb. 2020 Freshman forward Kofi Cockburn is averaging 13.8 points and nine rebounds, nd Dosunmu’s backcourt mates Andres Feliz and Trent Frazier combine for 20.9 points and 6.9 rebounds. — Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan State basketball at Illinois: Scouting report, prediction," 11 Feb. 2020 Fellow backcourt mate Isaiah Joe scored 20 points and hit three of his first four 3-point attempts to help the Razorbacks grab an early double-digit lead that swelled to as much as 16 points with a little over 12 minutes remaining in the first half. — Scottie Bordelon, Arkansas Online, "Jones scores 41, leads Hogs past Tulsa," 14 Dec. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'backcourt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about backcourt

Dictionary Entries near backcourt

Statistics for backcourt

Last Updated

4 Jul 2020

Cite this Entry

“Backcourt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/backcourt. Accessed 13 Jul. 2020.

WORD OF THE DAY

parsimonious

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

Words for Summer: A Quiz

Which of the following words means “of or relating to summer”?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.