Offense – this is the team that has possession of the ball.
It is also a term used to describe a structured pattern of play that any team uses in attempting to shoot a basket. Essentially, your team is on offense if you are in possession of the ball. The opposing team is therefore on defense.
Most coaches will have a number of different offensive plays at their disposal. It is also common to have more than one offensive play during a game.
The goal of offense in basketball is to score while the goal of defense is to keep the other team from scoring.