I don't believe there to be too many competitors for the best named play-type in global sports because Alley-Oop is just head and shoulders (pardon the pun) above the rest.
We have brought you many examples of the glorious Oop from the past few seasons with Blake Griffin seemingly using it every other shot. Over the course of the weekend Dwight Howard announced his arrival at the Staples centre with this finishing touch. Sublime.
Wikipedia describes it as
An alley-oop in basketball is an offensive play in which one player throws the ball near the basket to a teammate who jumps, catches the ball in mid air and immediately scores a basket, usually with a slam dunk. The alley-oop combines elements of teamwork, pinpoint passing, and timing.
And declares a gent by the name of Al Tucker as the creator of the move, dating back to the mid 60s.
The phrase itself originates from the French for take a fecking look at this used by acrobats on tightropes and whatnot. It was also used to describe the move that led to "The Catch", one of the most important and revered plays in NFL history, when 49ers QB Joe Montana found tight end Dwight Clark in the endzone, and sent San Francisco to their first Super Bowl.
