What Is Goaltending In Basketball?

In basketball, goaltending is the act of illegally interfering with a shot attempt. A goaltending call generally results in the basket being automatically counted, regardless of the ball’s original trajectory toward the basket.

Different leagues have different specific standards on what qualifies as goaltending. Generally speaking, though, the following acts are virtually always called at every level of basketball:

• Interfering with the basketball once the ball has already hit the apex of its shot arc and is cresting back down toward the basket
• Interfering with the basketball on a layup attempt once the ball has already bounced off the backboard glass
• Interfering with the basket itself, either by moving the rim or defending through the netting