A professional basketball player dribbling down the court describes _________ motor movements.

The term that best describes a professional basketball player dribbling down the court is "automatic" motor movements. Automatic motor movements refer to actions that a player performs without conscious thought, a result of extensive practice and repetition. In sports like basketball, skilled athletes develop the ability to perform complex actions with a high degree of coordination and efficiency, allowing them to focus on other aspects of the game, such as strategy or positioning.

While deliberate and conscious motor movements involve active control and awareness, a player dribbling down the court has typically practiced this skill to the point where it becomes second nature. This means the action of dribbling is executed smoothly and swiftly, freeing up cognitive resources to respond to other game dynamics. Reactive movements, on the other hand, are typically responses to external stimuli, such as a defender’s actions, rather than the execution of a learned skill like dribbling. This context reinforces why "automatic" is the most fitting descriptor for the motor movements involved in this scenario.