Although basketball is typically a five-on-five sport, you don't need a full complement of 10 players to get your game on. Three-on-three is a popular variation of the sport, played on playgrounds and in gyms year-round, coast-to-coast. The primary objective -- to outscore the opponent -- remains the same, but there are some tweaks to this minimalist version of roundball.
Playing Area
A typical five-on-five basketball game is played on a 94-foot long court, but three-on-three is usually played using only on half of the court. You can try to play three-on-three in a full-court setting, but the result will likely be a non-stop spree of fast-break layups as players become too winded to run back on defense. The sidelines and baseline are still the out-of-bounds lines, with the only modification being that the half-court line is considered another boundary.
Scoring
Scoring varies depending upon your locale, but many three-on-three games use a different scoring system than that used in organized, five-on-five basketball. In this modified scoring system, a normal basket is worth one point rather than two, and a three-pointer counts for two points instead of three. Because there's a larger percentage margin between one point and two points than there is between two and three, this puts a premium on the ability to stroke the jumper from downtown.
Fouls
Three-on-three games rarely have referees, with the only exception being some organized tournaments; players must call their own fouls. This includes not only making a call when you're fouled, but also being a good sportsman and calling them on yourself when you've fouled an opponent. Rather than take free throws, though, your team simply gets the ball back and restarts the play when a foul is called. With no impartial official there to make calls, there's plenty of room for interpretation, and at times players will be accused of hacking on defense or calling phantom fouls on offense. Try to find a good group of players who won't take advantage of this. The exception to this is that in some organized tournaments, free throws are awarded.
Starting the Play
In full-court basketball, after a team makes a basket, the other team in-bounds the ball from beneath its basket. But in three-on-three, both teams are shooting on the same hoop, so they instead "check" the ball into play at the free-throw line. A check is simple: the in-bounding player bounces the ball to the player guarding her, and she then bounces it back to make the play live. The player checking the ball in usually must pass the ball before being allowed to take a shot.
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