alley-oop

[ al-ee-oop ]

interjection

1. (used as a shout of encouragement, exhortation, or the like, especially when coordinating efforts to lift a heavy object.)

noun

1. Basketball. a quick-score play in which a high, arching pass is made to a teammate close to the basket, who leaps to catch the ball and in midair drops or stuffs it through the basket.

Word History and Origins

Origin of alley-oop¹

First recorded in 1915–20; from French allez-hop; allez, imperative of aller “to go” + hop, variant of houp, an interjection of expressive origin; alley ¹( def ), hoopla ( def )

Example Sentences

James capped the scoring streak with a no-look, alley-oop pass to Jayson Tatum on an out-of-bounds play, zipping the ball toward the rim where the Boston Celtics star slammed it with two hands.

From Los Angeles Times

Ballo supplied one of Arizona’s rare highlights late in the first half with a one-handed dunk on an alley-oop.

From Seattle Times

Boswell added a 3 from near the “A” logo and Love brought the crowd to its feet with an alley-oop to Johnson that put Arizona up 48-25.

From Seattle Times

Towns even threw an alley-oop to Stephen Curry; the Warriors star is much more of a shooter than a dunker, so he simply laid it in instead.

From Seattle Times

Amir Coffey lobbed to Russell Westbrook for an alley-oop dunk to pull the Clippers within eight early in the second quarter.

From Los Angeles Times