Let’s Shoot Some Hoops!

Alright basketball stars, let’s get out on the court and score some big points! Use applause to fuel your deck with new cards, and try to block your opponent from scoring as much as you can, while you make shot after shot. Let’s play – your trophy is waiting!

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What Is It?

🥅The Goal of the game is to have the most points
⚙️Variable Set Up – Players can play a pick-up, college, or pro game, which will change the game length (rounds), and determine elements like whether or not players have asymmetric starting decks, or the ability to call time-outs
⚙️Deck-Building – Players start with identical starting cards (plus unique star player cards in college and pro games) and can buy more cards throughout the game to improve their deck

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Who Is It For?

👥2 Players – Strictly head-to-head
👥Ages 8 & Up – The gameplay is pretty simple, not a lot of text on cards, which helps streamline things. I think it’s a good introductory or light deckbuilder
👥Fans of deckbuilding (or those looking to try it), basketball, and 2-player games

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PROS

🟢Aesthetics – Clean graphic design
🟢Turns are snappy
🟢Unique card play – alternating playing one card at a time
🟢Variety of game modes and star player cards
🟢Doesn’t need a large play area
🟢Online scoreboard is very handy to track points, rounds, and timeouts

CONS

🔴Some of the star players seemed a bit stronger than others, based on how many points/applause they start with on their cards, but it’s hard to tell after only some early plays
🔴A bunch of the cards in the store deck are copies of starting cards, so they don’t improve your deck, just expand it
🔴There’s no way to trash cards from your deck (*I was told there is a bonus rule you can add in — CRUNCH TIME: In the second half, the player who is losing may eject the last card in their hand, removing it from the game completely — which I think would help, but it is not part of the normal rules)

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Final Thoughts

I think this is a solid beginner deckbuilder. Being a 2 player game works thematically, and I think it decreases the learning curve, which can be helpful. I can’t say for sure if the star players feel totally balanced, I think, like in most asymmetric games, it takes a lot of plays to determine that, but after trying them out, I definitely know I have my preferences! (Pure Scorer, for the win!) I think if you like basketball and you’re looking to try out a deckbuilding game, definitely check this out!

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Additional Information:
My Final Ratingg – 7/10

Designer – GP Aroldi
Artist – Matty Feric
MSRP – $19.99
Website