Introduction
At first glance, one might think that the sport of basketball doesn’t offer much physical contact between players at all. However, there is a shocking amount of contact that happens between the players, some that get called for fouls and some that are subtle enough to not get caught. This type of contact brings up the question on whether or not you are allowed to shoulder barge in basketball.
The answer to this question is yes and no. In the NBA rulebook, you aren’t allowed to forcibly push or move somebody with your shoulder, as it usually gets whistled for an offensive foul. That rule usually gets enforced by the official’s judgement on that particular play. It’s not uncommon for basketball players to use their shoulders to generate a small bit of space without drawing enough contact for a foul. They just aren’t able to run full speed and slam their shoulder into their opponent, either offensively or defensively.
Referees will know the difference between an unintentional shoulder push as you drive down the lane and a barge that knocks an opponent a few feet backwards.
Getting Hit With A Charge Or Personal Foul
Let’s talk about the two types of shoulder charges that usually get whistled for fouls. The first type is, well, a charge. A charge is when an offensive player uses extensive force on a defensive player, and it is most commonly seen when an attacker runs into a defender and knocks them onto the ground. This type of foul can be called if you utilize your shoulder to push into somebody. Whether you put a lot of force into it or not, the defender can sell the contact and try to bait a foul out of the physicality.
The second type of shoulder charge that isn’t allowed is quite obvious, and it’s the one that comes when you don’t have the ball in your hands. On defense, you can’t slam your shoulder into the offensive player whenever you want to. You also can’t shoulder barge opposing players when you are on offense without the ball and trying to help your teammate get free from their matchup.
The Art Of Subtlety
You can actually get away with a lot of shoulder contact in basketball if you don’t overdo it. Of course, you aren’t able to just obscenely barge through people without any thought of what consequences might come of it. What you can do is utilize your shoulder as a barrier of space. You don’t have to push or shove somebody with it, but you can absolutely use it to keep your opponent’s away from the basketball if you’re driving towards the rim. They’d have extra space to try and reach over and grab the ball, which increases the chances that they get called for a foul.
Those little nudges with the shoulder or any type of small shoulder contact in general can go a really far way when it comes to putting the ball in the basket. Referees wouldn’t call you on anything that doesn’t really stand out, and you’d be able to do all the things you want without having to barrel through people.
No Barging In General
In basketball, there really isn’t any type of barging allowed. Even if you aren’t utilizing your shoulder, you can’t go over to another player and use extensive force to push them in the opposite direction. You can’t run through people or brute force your way to your destination. Smaller and more consistent physical contact is usually allowed but be very careful when it comes to barging in this sport.
Not to mention that barging through somebody, with your shoulder or not, can cause severe consequences to you that aren’t involving the referees. For example, maybe the officials missed you running through somebody and don’t call you for the foul. You think that you’re in the clear and got away with it, but your opponent took it as a cheap shot and is now planning to start a scuffle on the court. Most players don’t like getting barged into on the court, and for good reason. Even if you don’t think it’ll have official consequences, your opponents aren’t going to like it.
Don’t Push Or Barge At All
If you’re playing basketball cleanly, there’s no instance where you need to extend your arms outwards and push another player outright. The only reason that a player would openly shove another is because they feel offended by something they did and are looking to start a fight. When it comes to just basketball, pushing somebody wouldn’t help you at all. Plus, you’d be hit with a number of fouls in a professional setting.
Just because you are technically allowed to use your shoulders to create space from your opponent, doesn’t mean that you get a green light to just throw your body around and push people left and right. The referees won’t stand for it and the other players won’t either. We’ve already talked about what your opponents might be thinking when you get physical like this, which is why it’s best to stay away from pushing and barging through people entirely.
In The Post
When you are backing down an opponent in the post, you can be sideways or going backwards. If you happen to be backing somebody down sideways, then your shoulder will be slamming into them to try and push them back. This is one of the few instances that using your shoulder as a means of force is completely allowed. The reason being is because it’s just a way of backing down an opponent, which is a clean and legal move that’s been around for years. It’s the same as if you backed them down backwards, which means that you are, well, backing them down.
There is a downside here as well, and we touched on it earlier. That involves an opponent selling the contact. If you are taking a step and using your shoulder while backing down, your opponent might quickly get onto your rhythm. This could help them time your bump, and they can sell the contact immediately and fall onto the ground, attempting to bait the referees into a foul, even if there wasn’t one. So, the bottom line is that even in instances where shoulder pushing is allowed, there’s a lot of risks associated with it.