Calculator
Definition – What is Assist to Turnover Ratio?
Assist to turnover ratio puts a player’s assists in context with their turnovers.
A higher AST/TO can mean more ball control. A lower number can mean less ball control.
Some consider it an indicator of ball control. A player who creates more assists (passes that make a point) and fewer turnovers (the number of times they lose the ball) may have better ball control.
A player who scores a lot may have a low number of assists (points scored do not affect the ratio). They would also have a higher number of turnovers (they may also take the ball closer to the net). This player would have a lower ratio than a player who focuses on assists.
Where:
- An “assist” goes to the player who passes the ball to a teammate who then scores a basket. The NBA does not record assists that result in points from free throws. FIBA (International Basketball Federation) matches do record assists in points from free throws.
- A “turnover” is when a player loses possession of the ball to the opposite team. Examples of turnovers include: stepping out of bounds, passing the ball out of bounds, creating an offensive foul (resulting in the ball changing possession), being called for a violation, or having the ball stolen.
Formula – How to calculate AST/TO
AST/TO = Assists ÷ Turnovers
Example
A player has 42 assists and 7 turnovers recorded towards them.
AST/TO = 42 ÷ 7
AST/TO = 6
Therefore, this player’s Assist to Turnover Ratio is 6
Sources & more resources
- Wikipedia – Basketball Statistics, Assist (Basketball), and Turnover (Basketball) – Wikipedia entries for the topics on this page.
- Glossary Entries on Assist to Turnover Ratio from Sporting Charts and the NBA.
- AST/TO statistics from ESPN, the NCAA (Individual/Team), and Team Rankings.
- Comparing the different versions of “assist rate” by Basketball Reference.