HomeThe playbook
HOW TO PLAY
Shootout is a basketball trivia draft. Every correct answer becomes budget, every budget becomes a player, and your five picks play a whole season. Here is every rule on the court.
The flow
A game is 5 rounds - one per position: Point Guard, Shooting Guard, Small Forward, Power Forward and Center. Each round has three beats:
Answer
One NBA question against the shot clock.
Watch the shot
Your answer becomes a shot at the hoop - sink it and the money counts.
Draft
Spend what you earned on one player for that position.
The shot clock
You get 15 seconds per question. Answer correctly within 10 seconds and you keep the question's full value - hesitate past that and a correct answer is worth one point less. Wrong or too late? Zero. No bucket, no money.
Layups, mid-ranges & threes
Every question is a shot type. Layups are the easy ones (worth $2), Mid-ranges test real fans ($3), and Three-pointers are deep NBA knowledge ($4). Keep hitting and the next question gets harder - bigger risk, bigger budget. Miss one and you're back at the rim with a layup.
Layup
$2
Mid-range
$3
Three-pointer
$4
Your answer streak decides the next shot
Heat check
Back-to-back makes get you cooking: +$1 bonus on your second straight correct answer, +$2 every round once you hit three in a row. Staying hot also raises the odds of a gold Legend card showing up in your draft.
The rebound
Brick a question and you get ONE rebound per game: 5 seconds to crash the glass and retake the same question. A putback is worth at most $1 - hustle points, but they count.
The draft
After every shot you draft one player from that position's five-card lottery. Prices track quality - and your unspent money banks to the next round, so passing on a pick is a strategy, not a waste.
- The position's Superstar costs $4 - one perfect fast three, or patient banking.
- Gold Legend cards (Jordan, Magic, Shaq…) surface at $5 - hot streaks make them appear more often, and one round per game always hides one.
- There's always a $0 free agent, so you can never go broke.
- Unspent budget carries over. Bank early, splurge late.
The season
Your five picks become a starting five and we simulate a 82-game season. Team strength blends your average talent with your weakest starter - one hole in the lineup drags everyone down. Win 60+ games to reach the Finals and unlock the gold recap; win 70+ and you're a World BBAL Champion.
The leaderboard
Best simulated record in the room wins. Ties break by trivia points earned, then by who posted it first - so answer fast and answer right.