The first half the N.B.A. season has demonstrated the progression of offensive basketball at the highest level. Young players can develop their own game by playing with focus and patience and applying some of these elements. When young teams run discipline sets, the ball moves, everyone looks good and the team takes advantage of good looks. If that same team rushes, disjointed basketball unfolds and teams look their age. Any team can play hard, play smart and play together on offense. Coaches should study the best teams in the league because they are applying concepts that work against the most …
Spain Early Offense
When coaches design actions that involve everyone on the court and allow them to play, there is the potential for a very dynamic offense. By developing the skills utilized by the sets and teaching players how to read the defense, teams can generate many effective options out of the same play. Out of transition, Spain gets everyone moving and puts the defense on its heels. Sergio Llull brings the ball up the court, passes to Pau Ribas and cuts of Nikola Mirotić as he fills the corner. Ribas reverses through the trail Pau Gasol and uses a back screen from …
Cost Effective Ball Movement
In Real Life: Atul Gawande speculates that one of the key drivers behind rising health care cost is overtreatment: excessive and gratuitous procedures which give the impression of thorough treatment without actually improving results. Patients may suffer complications from needless operations or doctors may neglect a low cost preventative measure in favour a more expensive and risky procedure. Certain “anchor tenants” influence the culture of particular hospitals and communities. The key to better health care lies in prescribing the appropriate care for each patient and treating the cause instead of all of the symptoms. Western countries agree that health care costs …
Game 1: Hopes for the Remainder of the Series
Since the Toronto Raptors have made the playoffs after a six year drought, fans want them to do well so a lacklustre fourth quarter and a copious moments that can be most optimistically linked to inexperience was frustrating. It’s not that beating the Brooklyn Nets in a playoff series is an impossible dream but that there is a way the series must unfold for Toronto to win whereas other storylines may better suit Brooklyn.
Utah Jazz Basketball Lessons
The John Stockton-Karl Malone era of the Utah Jazz, which began when Stockton was drafted in 1984, took shape when Malone was selected in 1985, picked up speed when Stockton became the starting point guard in 1987 and was consolidated when Jerry Sloan became coach in 1988 ended in 2003, providing many lessons relevant to today’s coaches and players. Some might argue that the team’s peak – back-to-back losses in the N.B.A. Finals – exemplified how the two players were ultimately unsuccessful but they still illustrated a number of concepts that any youth coach or player. The team definitely made …
Brooklyn Nets Ball Movement
Brooklyn Nets Ball Movement: In the fourth quarter of a tied game, the Nets went with a small line-up against the Raptors. Andray Blatched played inside and four guards spaced the floor. Earlier in the position, Paul Pierce had driven into the middle of the court and kicked the ball out. As Deron Williams begins his drive, Pierce is in the way so he must exit cut to the wing so Williams can attack. Amir Johnson leaves Pierce to stop Williams. Brooklyn has the ball in the free throw circle with one player on the weak-side block and three shooters …
Skill Development Needed for Ball Movement
The Play Since the Rudy Gay trade, the Toronto Raptors have improved their offensive efficiency to 107 and – according to Zach Lowe – pass the ball thirty more times per game. In their most recent outing, a win versus the Indiana Pacers, Terrence Ross and DeMar DeRozan converted several quick hitters off BLOBs and pindown screens. There were several plays involving multiple ball reversals, secondary assists and more passes than dribbles. This High Ball Screen / Pin-down combination gashed the Pacers throughout the game.
Denver Nuggets Ball Movement Leads to Dunk
Denver Nuggets Ball Movement Leads to Dunk: Since the Miami Heat are known for aggressively trapping ball screens in order to force the action away from the basket, the Nuggets set multiple screens during the same play. On one occasion, J.J. Hickson slips the screen and rolls to the hoop. Ty Lawson passes the ball to Darrell Arthur, a reliable jump shooter from that spot, which causes a chain reaction of bad rotations. Miami is confused as to who will cover Arthur, Hickson and Randy Foye in the corner. LeBron James feels that he cannot leave Wilson Chandler, Ray Allen …
Don’t Stop the Ball
Chris Bosh shot-fakes repeatedly instead of attacking the hoop or moving the ball. As the twenty-four second clock is about to expire, Bosh moves the ball to Joey Graham in the corner (who is hardly a threat to shoot from that area). Passing off this late in the shot clock is not a good decision and it puts teammates under a lot of pressure. It’s selfish because one is avoiding a turnover or missed shot and giving it to a teammate who must rush instead. However, this time, Graham takes the ball strong and finishes at the rim, and Raptors …
Game 7: Miami and Indiana
Over the course of a seven game series lasting two weeks, both changes make numerous adjustments and counters. For the final game of their series versus the Indiana Pacers, the Miami Heat chose to pressure the basketball along the perimtere and play physically in the paint. The Pacers were unable to counter to the Heat won handily. When a team is determined to pressure the ball and deny high percentage shots, individual players have little chance to overcome the odds. This adversity demands teamwork As a result, the seventh game of the 2013 Eastern Conference Finals shone a spotlight in …
Little Things in the League
In the N.B.A., the small details make a difference in whether a play is successful or not. Offensive Rebounding Amar’e Stoudamire gets to the weak-side of the rim and grabs the offensive rebound in traffic. He chins the ball, takes a front pivot and goes up for the putback. Post Defense Tyson Chandler uses his size to move the offensive player away from the hoop and towards the hash mark on the baseline. He remains balanced and uses his hands on contest the shot. Pick & Roll Defense Kevin Garnett hedges the screen and roll and recovers to his man. …
Zen and the Art of the Playoffs
Playoff reality is fleeting: one moment a team is poised for Linsane success defined by fluid ball movement and excitement, before they have realized what has happened, a broken fire extinguisher case symbolizes the lost promise of another failure defined by selfish play and ball-stopping. One moment a team is first overall, the next last season’s Most Valuable Player is felled by another step in a series of unfortunate injuries. Teams which win – especially those who win consistently over the long-term – are those who remain true to their philosophies and rise above the fray. Acting without Thinking: Some …
Outwork, Outthink
Competition matches up teams against players who may be very skilled and those who need to work on their game. Every game is unique: a team which has a clear physical advantage in the first game of a tournament might only be evenly matched with their second round opponent. Certainly, practice and training can improve physical performance factors. Another way to generate an advantage on the court is to establish a mental edge. Teams that get into the heads of opposing players benefit from errors due to frustration, aggressiveness and resignation. Move Constantly: Fitness is a physical performance factor but …
The Dangers of Coaching, Part I: Teaching a Motion Offence
Introducing a motion offence provides many benefits to a basketball team. Offensive efficiency relies primarily on precise execution of individual skills and team systems and it is easier to master a small number of concepts than a wide array of plays. Instead of memorizing a pattern for every possible defence, players apply the same principles and take advantage of opportunities as they arise. Individual abilities are free to shine and the entire exercise will improve performance under pressure. However, coaches must be mindful of a number of issues while instructing such an organic system. Above all, it requires the support …
Movement
When a squad is outmatched, they need to play the game better than the opponent. The simplest way to do so is to create continuous movement: not only the ball but the people on the court as well. When C.S.K.A. Moscow led the Toronto Raptors at halftime during a 2008 exhibition game, it was not entirely due to the Raptors’ poor skill level; the Euroleague Champions Cup holders never stopped moving. The patterns were simple but ceaseless (flex, pass/screen away, and other basic sets). C.S.K.A. ran their offence throughout the shot clock until Toronto committed an error. On the pick-up …
Blame the Coach
Blame the coach. If it’s not directly the coach’s fault, they likely could have prevented it by exercising more team control. In the short-term, it may be the responsibility of individual players but in the long-term, the burden falls out the coach’s shoulders. Whether it is minor issue like high school players who come late to class after practice or serious case such as professional teams that blow 3-0 series leads, the root cause is usually something that the coach could have resolved. Likewise, give the coaches credit when credit is due. José Mourinho proved to be an expert coach …
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