NBA
How many timeouts does each team have in an NBA game?
A timeout is a brief pause in a regular period of play, called by a coach and a player, or other officials, during which the game clock is stopped.
The timeout is a crucial aspect of the basketball game, serving as a strategic pause that can alter the game’s dynamics physically and tactically.
A timeout can only be initiated by a player on the court or the head coach and must be requested when the ball is in play or under the control of the team making the request. If a timeout is asked for when none remain, the team making the request will be charged with a technical foul.
Each period must have two mandatory timeouts. If neither team has taken a timeout before 6:59 of the period, the Official Scorer will take a mandatory timeout at the next dead ball and charge it to the home team. If no further timeouts are taken before 2:59, the Official Scorer will take another mandatory timeout and charge it to the team that has not been previously charged. The official Scorer will notify the team when assigned a mandatory timeout.
Mandatory timeouts are also known as TV (television) timeouts.
How many timeouts do NBA teams get?
During game time, both teams are allowed seven timeouts in total, except for being entitled to not more than four timeouts in the fourth quarter.
A team can only use a maximum of four timeouts in the fourth quarter, forfeiting unused timeouts. Once three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, a team is limited to only two timeouts. However, if a team has not yet utilized its mandatory timeout, the limit will be enforced after the mandatory timeout is taken.
Suppose there are less than two minutes left in the game or overtime period, and the offensive team calls a timeout before inbounding the ball or after securing a rebound or turnover but before advancing the ball. In that case, the team will have the option to inbound the ball from midcourt.
The NBA rules also add that both teams will be granted two team timeouts in overtime periods.
If a team has spent all their timeouts and a player sustains an injury that prevents them from taking him off the court during a stoppage in play, no additional timeout will be charged. The game will resume once the playing conditions are deemed safe without excessive timeouts added to the team’s count.