Basketball player on a floor - level 3

21-11-2013 06:00

A Harlem Globetrotter has a lucky escape after dunking a basketball and causing the glass backboard to shatter.

In keeping with his team’s famously theatrical style, William ‘Bull’ Bullard clung to the rim after dunking the ball, causing the hoop to topple over and crash to the ground.

He managed to avoid serious injuries by a matter of inches, falling under the hoop and not in front of it, where the majority of glass landed.

Bullard’s injuries included a cut above his left eye and a dislocated shoulder and after being treated by on-site medics, the player made a triumphant return from the locker room to be greeted by a standing ovation from fans.

Difficult words: Harlem Globetrotter (exhibition basketball team), dunk (shoot the ball down through the basket), shatter (break to peaces), hoop (basket), topple (loose balance and fall).