Joanna

“GTD” stands for Game-Time Decision in the NBA. When it appears beside a player’s name, it means that the player’s health condition is in question. Usually, the player has been injured, and the acronym refers to their availability to play. 

The player listed as GTD is not participating in the game unless it is determined otherwise prior to the game’s tip-off.

A specific player’s unavailability to play means a change in strategy and subsequent rearrangement in the lineup, which can impact the game’s outcome. Besides the obvious reasons, strategically, it is not desirable for both the coach and the team to have players who are unable to participate in the game.

For players listed as GTD, the likelihood of appearing and participating in the next game is 50%. They typically cannot participate in training for the game, only in warm-ups before it, provided their injury allows them to do so. Before the game, these injured players undergo a thorough evaluation by medical professionals, who determine whether they are fit to play or should remain on the bench.

Read next: What Is Positionless Basketball?

Positionless basketball is a type of play in which players change their range of positions instead of playing their usual one. Any player can play any position; they are not constrained to a certain position or its boundaries on the court.

Coaches strategically employ positionless basketball as a training tool, challenging players to develop a comprehensive understanding of the game and adapt to various roles on the court. This approach also brings players with similar skill sets closer together. It reveals which players go best together and how players read and see each other on the floor.

This exercise is also essential for the coach to see and spot what certain players bring to the table and where they are best suited, assuming they haven’t already found their position, especially if they are at the youth level. 

Although this form of team-building exercise is usually seen in pro basketball, such as college basketball training camps, it helps young players understand the role of all positions, so what better way than going through them themselves? Especially since that is the age at which they should not focus on trophies and wins but on skills and focus on other players.

At other, higher levels, we think this is the best way for players to use this routine to keep themselves in check, to find themselves playing with and against different types of players, to search for weaknesses in their technique, and to work on them.

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