Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To guard or cover (an offensive player) with two defensive players simultaneously.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive, sports In sports involving offensive and defensive teams, to use two defensive players to guard against the movements of a single offensive player.
  • verb transitive, by extension To deal with or handle a task or individual person by using a team of two people.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb cover with two defensive players

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Initially overplaying Jordan to keep the ball from him, sometimes they allowed guard Joe Dumars to play him straight up, or run a double-team at him the minute he touched the ball, forcing him to pass to an ineffective teammate.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Under double-team pressure, Worthy attempted a foolish cross-court pass.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Instinctively, Magic Johnson rushed over to double-team him, and just as instinctively, Bird shoveled the ball back over to DJ.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Then she accepted the offer from a fan to double-team a beer bong.

    Shore Thing Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi 2011

  • But if they double-team him, which is very likely, he’s in a better position to find the open man for an open three-pointer or find someone cutting to the basket for the easy layup.

    Shaking things up offensively: part one Rick Nelligan 2011

  • But more importantly, he forced Los Angeles out of its double-team tactics on Kevin McHale.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Initially overplaying Jordan to keep the ball from him, sometimes they allowed guard Joe Dumars to play him straight up, or run a double-team at him the minute he touched the ball, forcing him to pass to an ineffective teammate.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Problem was, Lewis wasn't hitting shots this season and teams no longer worried about leaving him to double-team Howard.

    Rashard Lewis ready for reunion with Orlando Michael Lee 2011

  • Under double-team pressure, Worthy attempted a foolish cross-court pass.

    One Season William Fredrick Cooper 2011

  • Then she accepted the offer from a fan to double-team a beer bong.

    Shore Thing Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi 2011

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