Forward–center is a basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 position

Basketball position

The three basketball positions normally employed by organized basketball teams are guard, forward, and center. More specifically, they can be classified into the five positions: point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center. The rules of basketball do not mandate them, and...

 for players who play or have played both forward and center

Center (basketball)

The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...

 on a consistent basis. Typically, this means power forward

Power forward (basketball)

Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...

 and center, since these are usually the two biggest player positions on any basketball team, and therefore more often overlap each other.

Forward–center came into the basketball jargon as the game evolved and became more specialized in the 1960s. In fact, the five positions on court were originally known only as guard, forward and center, but it is now generally accepted that the five primary positions are point guard

Point guard

Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...

, shooting guard

Shooting guard

The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

, small forward

Small forward

The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...

, power forward and center.

Typically, a forward–center is a talented forward who also came to play minutes at center on teams that needed help at that position. Or the player could be a somewhat floor-bound center, under seven feet tall at the NBA

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 level, whose skills also suit him to a power forward position, especially if that team has a better center. One such player is Marcus Camby

Marcus Camby

Marcus D. Camby is an American professional basketball player, who currently plays for the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA. He is a former Defensive Player of the Year during the 2006–07 NBA season, leading the league in blocked shots per game...

 of the Portland Trail Blazers

Portland Trail Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...

. At 6'11" in height, he generally plays the position of center, but when he played for the New York Knicks

New York Knicks

The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...

 earlier in his career, he mostly played power forward due to his team having one of the better pure centers in the league in Patrick Ewing

Patrick Ewing

Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. is a Jamaican-American retired Hall of Fame basketball player and current assistant coach for the National Basketball Association's Orlando Magic. He played most of his career with the NBA's New York Knicks as their starting center and played briefly with the Seattle...

. Ewing himself was used as a forward–center early in his career to use his offensive game to complement the then-incumbent Knicks center Bill Cartwright. Ralph Sampson

Ralph Sampson

Ralph Lee Sampson, Jr. is a retired American college and professional basketball player.A 7-foot-4 phenom, three-time College Player of the Year, and No...

 was another notable forward–center during that time who played center his rookie year in 1983. In 1984, at 7 feet 4 inches, he moved to power forward when Hakeem Olajuwon

Hakeem Olajuwon

Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association for the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008,...

was drafted that year.