The Whiteboard: Trick shots we want to see in the NBA HORSE Challenge Finals

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The NBA HORSE Challenge resumes on Thursday, Apr. 16 with Chauncey Billups facing Mike Conley Jr., Zach LaVine shooting against Allie Quigley and then the winners of each matchup moving onto the Finals. The first round was plenty of fun but I have a few ideas for things to try in the next round to take this whole thing to the next level.

The header

If you’ve played HORSE, you’ve almost certainly tried this one yourself — lightly tossing the ball and trying to head it up and in, soccer style. It’s much harder than it looks because even if you play a lot of soccer, a basketball heavier and less forgiving than a soccer ball, which means more force on the neck. But honestly, I’m all for mixing sports. Anything soccer-style with the feet would be fun. Hit the ball in the hoop with a tennis racket, baseball bat or hockey stick.

The Dread Pirate Roberts

This one is a bit convoluted but basically you have to wear a black pirate mask over your eyes and you shoot everything with your off-hand (until you get in a hole). And every time your opponent makes a shot and calls out for you to match, you just whisper, “as you wish.”

The special guest

This is supposed to be a solo tournament but over the past few weeks of quarantining social media, we’ve me Zach LaVine’s dog and his new fiance. And we know Allie Quigley is married to another elite hooper — teammate Courtney Vandersloot. Let’s widen the scope and get some other faces involved as passers or obstacles.

The switch

Flip the switch, Tik Tok style. This one might be difficult to execute outside and in a live broadcast but make sure everyone gets introduced to whoever is filming for you. Then right before you shoot, blackout, switch places, switch clothes (if possible) and have the camera person shooting. This would be especially fun if Chauncey Billups could somehow get Ben Wallace over (taking all necessary quarantine precautions.

The Widening Gyre

Legend has it that CBS approached Evil Knievel about doing a televised special in the late 1970s built around him attempting this complex and incredibly dangerous basketball shot. And even the world’s most famous daredevil thought it wasn’t worth the risk. A relic of basketball’s early days as a barnstorming sport desperate for attention, this shot involves fire, multiple glasses of absinthe, juggled hand axes and a live mountain lion. It is still technically illegal in 11 states and even typing about it could be putting me in legal jeopardy. But if someone in the tournament needs a coup de grâce to secure the win, this would certainly be it.

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