What is assist (ast) in basketball?
An assist is credited to the player who passes the ball to a teammate in a way that directly leads to a made field goal.
How assist is recorded
The scorer judges whether the pass created the scoring opportunity. One assist maximum per made basket, and only made shots count — a perfect pass to a missed layup earns nothing.
Worked example from a box score
A guard with 6 AST and 22 minutes played created roughly 13 points for teammates, assuming most of those passes led to two-point finishes.
What a good assist looks like at youth level
Three to five assists a game is a strong youth guard. Any player reaching 5+ is running an offence, not just handling the ball.
Why it matters for a youth athlete
Assists show decision-making and vision, the two things hardest to see on a stat sheet otherwise. A rising assist rate usually means an athlete is reading defences faster.
PROSCORE logs assist inside the basketball season record and keeps it attached to your athlete — free for families.
Related terms
PROSCORE tracks every one of these automatically and keeps them attached to your athlete's season — free for families.