If you have ever watched basketball on TV, you've probably heard the announcers repeatedly comment on the number of turnovers by each team. A turnover is the lost possession of the ball because of an error or rule violation. Basketball commentators often point to a high number of turnovers as the reason for a team's loss.
Forced Turnovers
When the defensive team forces the offensive team to lose the ball because of the defensive team's smart maneuvering, the turnover is "forced." The defensive team can force a turnover by stepping in and stealing a pass, for example. If the defensive team double-teams the ball-handler by putting two defenders on him instead of just one, he may be trapped, make a bad decision and turn over the ball.
Unforced Turnovers
Turnovers that result from a ball handling error by the offensive team are unforced turnovers. In this case, the offensive player's sloppiness, and not the defensive player's savvy, caused the turnover. The player with the ball turns it over when she attempts to pass the ball to a teammate, but throws the ball to the opposition or throws the ball out of bounds. The last person to touch the ball before it goes out of bounds always is credited with turning the ball over to the other team. If a player double dribbles, or bounces the ball off her shoe, she turns over the ball.
Offensive and Technical Fouls
When a member of the offensive team fouls a member of the defensive team, the referee calls an offensive foul and the offensive team loses the ball. A common offensive foul occurs when an offensive player drives to the basket and charges a defensive player who has established position in front of the hoop.
When a coach or player argues excessively with the referee, has inappropriate words with someone on the other team, or uses foul language -- a big no-no for games broadcast live on TV -- the referee can hit the offending person with a technical foul. After a technical foul, the other team shoots free throws and gets possession of the ball.
Considerations
Every time a team turns over the ball, that team turns the opportunity to score over to its opponent. In this way, a turnover is a major error; however, some of the best players have a high number of turnovers. A star player has the ball in his hands more than the other players do so his chances of turning over the ball becomes higher. Additionally, the star must take chances by creating plays in difficult situations, sometimes succeeding, sometimes failing. You have to judge a player's turnovers in relation to his overall statistics. In the 2009-10 NBA season, top scorers such as Steve Nash, LeBron James and Dwight Howard also landed in the top five spots for highest number of turnovers.
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