ow to Play Basketball in Facebook Messenger, By David Murphy

We'll give Facebook credit; it's very creative with the Easter Eggs it packs into Facebook Messenger. If you're not really a chess fanatic, or even very good at the game, then you probably felt a bit bummed about Facebook's recent inclusion of a little chess mini-game into Messenger. Thankfully, that wasn't Facebook's first and only foray into Messenger-based mini-games.
Now, it's been revealed that Facebook has also snuck a little basketball game into its messaging app—perfectly timed for the start of all the March Madness craziness. To access it, all you have to do it send a basketball emoji to one of your friends (or a group of people you're talking to). And once you've done that, just tap the basketball to start the game.
The game isn't NBA Jam—sadly—but it is a fun little way to compete against your friends. Just flick your finger on your screen to get the ball in the hoop. That's it. Miss, and you'll get a random "way to go" emoji as a reaction to your poor shooting skills. Make the bucket, and you'll be rewarded with a happier and/or more-encouraging emoji. You'll need the encouragement, too, as the game doesn't stay easy for very long. Make more shots, and the basketball rim will start moving around. Make even more, and it'll move even faster.
Facebook hasn't commented about the mini-game, nor has it offered up any suggestion as to future mini-games it might launch within Messenger. We're also assuming that you have to have the most recent version of Messenger installed to play the game. Some of this writer's friends have reported issues getting it to work, but they also haven't updated their app recently. Do that, lest you find yourself just tapping on a tiny basketball icon for no reason.
Once you get tired of playing basketball, you can try typing "@fbchess" into your chat with a friend (no quotes) to engage them in some Messenger-based chess. Or, if you're done with gaming for the day, you could just send @dailycute back and forth, too.