Editorial guide · Rules Explained
Understanding NBA Game Flow: Quarters, Overtime and Shot Clock
How a pro basketball game is divided, how the clocks work and what happens when the score is tied at the buzzer.
An NBA game feels continuous, but it runs on a precise set of clocks and periods. Knowing them makes live scores easier to read.
Four quarters of twelve minutes
A regulation NBA game has four 12-minute quarters, for 48 minutes of game time. There is a short break between the first and second quarters and between the third and fourth, and a longer halftime of about 15 minutes in the middle.
The shot clock
The offense has 24 seconds to attempt a shot that hits the rim. If the ball hits the rim, the clock resets to 14 seconds after an offensive rebound. If the clock expires without a shot reaching the rim, the other team gets the ball.
Overtime
If the score is tied when the fourth quarter ends, teams play a five-minute overtime period. If it is still tied, they play another, and keep going until one team leads at the end of an extra period. Overtime counts toward player stats and appears as OT, 2OT and so on on the scoreboard.
Timeouts and the late game
- Each team has seven timeouts per game, with limits on how many can be used in the fourth quarter.
- In the last two minutes the game slows because of replay reviews and strategic timeouts.
- Teams that are behind often foul on purpose to stop the clock and get the ball back.
Regular season versus playoffs
The regular season has 82 games per team. The playoffs follow a best-of-seven format in every round, so one game's score is part of a longer story told over a series.