Reviewed practice puzzle
Journeymen as grid insurance
This original practice board pairs three columns with three independent basketball clues. It is designed as a study exercise: read the full clue, choose an answer, then compare your reasoning with the documented answer set below.
Lesson: Count franchises consistently
Team totals should count franchises, not city-name changes, and should use regular-season appearances rather than preseason contracts. That definition keeps journeyman clues from changing based on the source.
Answer walkthrough
Guard
Played for 5–7 teams: George Hill. Played for 8–10 teams: Ish Smith. Played for 11 or more teams: Chucky Brown. Each name is one defensible answer, not an exhaustive list; alternative answers may work when they meet the published clue definition.
Wing
Played for 5–7 teams: Vince Carter. Played for 8–10 teams: Trevor Ariza. Played for 11 or more teams: Tony Massenburg. Each name is one defensible answer, not an exhaustive list; alternative answers may work when they meet the published clue definition.
Big
Played for 5–7 teams: Jeff Green. Played for 8–10 teams: Drew Gooden. Played for 11 or more teams: Joe Smith. Each name is one defensible answer, not an exhaustive list; alternative answers may work when they meet the published clue definition.
How this puzzle was checked
Team history, awards, draft information, season statistics, and playoff results were checked against the source hierarchy described on the sources and editorial standards page. Ambiguous labels are explained on this page instead of being silently treated as facts. The board was manually reviewed before publication.
Practice a second time by covering the green cells and finding a different valid name for every square. That exercise builds a flexible player pool and exposes the columns where your memory is too dependent on one star.