BASKETBALL COACHW

EEKLY

Learn • Train • Develop • Enjoy

Retool YouR PlaYbook FResh oFF the season

March 19, 2015 Issue 77

$5.99

Preach Time & SiTuaTion in crucial momenTS

Next Year

< The besT coaches

consTanTly improve Their

sTraTegies

Double-ScreeN DecoY actioN FreeS Shooter

Fake lob oFF inbound collaPSeS deFenSe

StartS Now

eNgage FacultY With honoRaRY CoaCh PRogRam

4v4 trap Drill FlusteR the oFFense, engage the DeFense

2

she also asks players who their favorite faculty members are and has gone out of her way to ensure all female faculty members have been included.

To keep potential honorary coaches’ minds at ease, Marbut is clear there is no coaching involved and no basketball knowledge necessary. All she wants is someone to wear orange (primary Caltech color), sit on the bench, cheer on the team and slap high-fives.

Marbut says she also utilizes the honorary coach as the person who shakes the hands of the opposing team as they are introduced, which gives her more time with her own squad just before tipoff. Plus, honorary coaches are invited to the locker room at halftime and after the game.

It also provides an opportunity for faculty members, who are rightfully focused on their academic work, to see the detailed attention coaches put into their craft and to witness their students outside the classroom or lab.

“Athletics gives our students more dimensions and (this honorary coach program) reminds our faculty what it

When Sandra Marbut arrived on the Caltech campus in 2003 to take over the Beavers’ women’s hoops program, she understood the challenges.

As one of the premier academic institutions in the country, Caltech’s focus is on preparing and molding the nation’s best minds for their important future endeavors.

Of course, as basketball coaches, we know a complete person is well rounded in mind and body. Marbut knows this too, and needed to find a way to breathe some campus life into a forgotten program.

Among the many initiatives Marbut took more than a decade ago was instituting an honorary coaches program at Caltech. The goal was simple: show faculty and staff that students’ athletics pursuits are critical in their overall well-being, which is a message sometimes lost when you are dealing with the top 1% of gifted minds.

“What surprised a lot of folks was how serious students were about their athletic pursuits,” Marbut said.

Marbut says she has included donors to the program and campus-community personnel as honorary coaches, but

Create Excitement With Honorary Coaches

Basketball Coach Weekly Issue 77

Basketball Coach Weekly9325 SW Iowa DriveTualatin, OR 97062

Editor-in-chiefMichael Austinmichael.austin@basketballcoachweekly.com

ContributorsSandra Marbut, Pat Coons, Dan Murphy

IllustrationsMike Renwick

PicturesAction Images

DesignJamie Leeson

PublisherKevin Barrowkevin.barrow@greenstarmedia.net

Customer ServicesDuncan Heardduncanh@ basketballcoachweekly.com

Managing DirectorAndrew Griffiths

Contents

“It also provides an opportunity for faculty members … to see the detailed attention coaches put into their craft …”

A couple weeks ago the LA Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers were knotted at 87 with 2.8 seconds remaining in the contest. Both teams are fighting for potential home-court advantage in a first-round playoff matchup, so this was a huge game.

The Clippers were inbounding the ball but only had 1.7 seconds left on

the shot clock. The designed play worked perfectly but Chris Paul’s shot rimmed out … and right into the hands of teammate DeAndre Jordan.

Only needing a put-back dunk, Jordan instead just held the ball over his head. Why? He heard the shot-clock horn and thought it was the final buzzer. Check out this video

if you haven’t seen it already. Remember, these are professionals

and Jordan still forgot about the time and situation, which makes staying in your players’ ears in crucial times even more critical.

You’d rather go over the top with reminders than not doing it enough.

— Michael Austin

To subscribe to Basketball Coach Weekly please contact Duncan Heard at Green Star Media Ltd, Meadow View, Tannery Lane, Bramley, Guildford GU5 0AB, UK.

You can contact Duncan via Skype at basketballcoachweekly or via email at duncanh@ basketballcoachweekly.com

BASKETBALL COACH

WEEKLY

Learn • Train • Develop • Enjoy

Retool YouR PlaYbook FResh oFF the season

March 19, 2015 Issue 77

$5.99

Preach Time & SiTuaTion in crucial momenTS

Next Year

< The besT coaches

consTanTly improve Their

sTraTegies

Double-ScreeN DecoY actioN FreeS Shooter

Fake lob oFF inbound collaPSeS deFenSe

StartS Now

eNgage FacultY With honoRaRY CoaCh PRogRam

4v4 trap Drill FlusteR the oFFense, engage the DeFense

(c) Green Star Media Ltd. All rights reserved.

Click here to read the full disclaimer.

Michael Austin Editor-in-chief

www.basketballcoachweekly.com Issue 77 BASKETBALL COACH WEEKLY

Use an honorary coach to increase faculty involvement

In this issue...

3 Start PrEParIng noW For nExt SEaSon

With memories of last season’s highs and lows fresh in your mind, start building next year’s playbook

4 SCrEEn-thE-SCrEEnEr SEtS UP JUMPEr

The shooter screens high setting up decoy lob action at the rim, then curls off a screen for a mid-range jumper

5 4-aCroSS DoUBlE SCrEEn oPEnS SPaCE

The posts align on the ball side and execute a pair of double screens, first to free a decoy, then for the real shooter

6 4v4 traP DrIll CrEatES ChaoS

Defenders trap on every pass as this drill starts at mid-court, then moves into a full-court 4-on-4

Remind Time & SiTuaTionQuiCK HiTTeR

feels like to be out of your element,” Marbut says. “They are brilliant in their fields, and they come to us usually very humble, and get to see coaching and sport participation is an expertise as well.”

Marbut says she plans to expand the program next year to include away games so honorary coaches can ride the bus, see the prep time and witness how students interact after the game. “They will see what time we get back too … knowing our students still have to get their homework done,” Marbut explains.

The pain of a playoff loss or the joy of a state title still is fresh, but now is the perfect time to assess, push forward and add to your playbook

Take advantage of an aggressive defense by running decoy action first to set up your shooter

www.basketballcoachweekly.com Issue 77 BASKETBALL COACH WEEKLY 3

Words by: Michael Austin

Plays by: Pat Coons, head boys coach, Westview High School, Beaverton, Ore.

It’s smart, from a mental and physical standpoint, to take a break from hoops for a bit when your season ends. But,

come on, does that truly happen? First of all, it’s March. This is a perfect

learning month with the NCAA Tournament upon us. With so many televised games, many of which come down to the final, pressure-packed seconds, high school and youth coaches are well served to pick up some pointers, plays or ideas from their college-coaching peers.

And, with the end of your season fresh in your memory, it makes sense to assess the season, parse out the positives and negatives, and make some additions and subtractions to your playbook.

For those of you still competing in your

state tournament — congratulations! The plays on the following two pages certainly can help a tournament team looking to shake up its out-of-bounds sets.

That’s why I’ve dedicated space this week to a couple of easy-to-install, effective, baseline out-of-bounds plays. You never can have too many of these plays at your disposal and utilizing a couple new ones next season may help liven up your baseline out-of-bounds strategy.

Both sets come from Pat Coons, the head boys coach at Westview High School (Beaverton, Ore.). Coons allowed Basketball Coach Weekly access to one of his team’s practices near the end of the regular season. His squad ran through

these two out-of-bounds plays toward the end of the session.

The first starts in a standard box set and forces defenders to guard against a potential lob at the rim, as the initial screen curls off another screen to come open for a mid-range jumper.

The second starts in a 4-across formation with your posts on the ball side and ready to set a double screen for a decoy shooter, then a second double screen for the real shooter.

Sure, you may not get to these plays for some time with your players, but you know as well as I do, coaching is a year-long commitment and just as much is gained by increasing your knowledge in the spring as there is in the fall.

Baseline Out-Of-BOunds Plays

Start Preparing Now For Next Season

WHY USE ITRunning action toward the rim forces defenders to collapse, which leaves open spots for the offense when inbounding from the baseline.

SET UPStart in a box formation with 1 as one of your better shooters and positioned on the weak-side block.

HOW TO PLAY1 moves up the lane at a diagonal angle to screen for 4. 4 cuts hard toward the hoop and potentially is open for a lob pass at the rim. Even if 4 isn’t open, this action forces the defense to cover the movements toward the rim. 3 spaces to the weak wing. 5 moves up the lane [1]. 5 then screens across for 1 (screen-the-screener action) as 1 curls to the ball-side short corner. 4 clears out of the lane [2]. 2 passes to 1, who catches and shoots if open. 5 and 4 are in rebounding position as 3 moves to the strong side and into a shooting window as a second option [3].

TECHNIQUEIf 4 doesn’t receive the lob, be sure this player gets out of the lane before a 3-second violation is called. If the defenders cheat over the top, 5 can slip to the hoop. Have 3 curl around the 3-point line as another option or simply to have him/her back as a transition defender.

Screen-The-Screener Sets Up JumperStart your shooter on the weak-side block, then have the shooter screen high setting up a potential lob before coming off a second screen for an open jumper

www.basketballcoachweekly.com Issue 77 BASKETBALL COACH WEEKLY 4

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1 is one of your better shooters and comes high to set a diagonal screen for 4 — 1 needs to hold this screen and not release early anticipating later actions

4 clears out of the lane if the lob isn’t thrown to avoid

a 3-second violation call

4 and 5 are in perfect rebounding position after their initial movements, so be sure they are crashing the glass

2 passes to 1 for a catch-and-shoot opportunity from the ball-side short corner before the defense recovers

4 cuts hard at the rim and on the chance he/she is open, 2 looks to

4 at the rim — at the very least this action attracts defenders’ attention

Player movement Ball movement Dribble Shot

Baseline Out-Of-BOunds Plays

WHY USE ITAs defenses jump to stop the initial shooter curling around a double screen, sneak the second shooter around a second double screen and create an open shot.

SET UPStart in a typical 4-across formation with the posts occupying the two spots on the ball side and your shooters on the weak side of the set..

HOW TO PLAY4 and 5 turn toward the shooters, step out and set a double screen as the inside shooter (3) curls around the screen [1]. 2 fakes the pass to 3, who then clears to the opposite side. 4 and 5 take another step out and set a double screen for 1. 1 curls around the double screen and comes free on the right side [2]. 4 and 5 roll to the hoop. 3 boxes out. 1 steps to the ball and receives the pass from 2, then shoots in rhythm [3].

TECHNIQUEThe first option is a pass to 1 for the jumper but 2 keeps an eye on 4 and 5 rolling to the hoop as one of them could be open as the defense attempts to recover. 2 and 3 must sell the pass fake. Have 2 make a hard fake with 3 rushing toward the ball with hands in a ready position.

4-Across Double Screen Sets Up ShotPlace your bigger posts on the ball-side of the 4-across set so they can screen for the two shooters and create an open jumper

www.basketballcoachweekly.com Issue 77 BASKETBALL COACH WEEKLY 5

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The posts step out and combine to set a solid double screen for 3 to come free as the decoy

3 clears through the lane to create ball-side space and to pull a defender with him/her

Both posts then step out again and set a double screen, this time for 1 to curl around and

come free on the ball side

4 and 5 roll to the hoop ready for a pass if 1 isn’t open but also to establish rebounding

position for a potential put-back opportunity

1 steps to the ball, catches it and shoots in rhythm before

the defense recovers

3 flashes hard to the ball as if he’s the main option,

which draws the defense’s attention — sell this fake!

Player movement Ball movement Dribble Shot

Baseline Out-Of-BOunds Plays

WHY USE ITRamp up the intensity with this passing and trapping drill, which turns into a full-court workout.

SET UPSpread four offensive (white jersey) players wide from the center circle. Four defenders (blue jerseys) cover them. You have a ball off to the side and initiate the action..

HOW TO PLAYPass the ball to an offensive player, then exit the court. The two closest defenders immediately trap the ball handler. The other two defenders now are the “interceptors” [1]. The offense looks to complete five passes without committing a turnover, and without the use of a dribble with limited moving (one step). Defenders must trap every pass [2]. In this instance, consider the defense stole a pass and scored at its predetermined hoop. Now, the offense goes 4-on-4 in the full court trying to score at the opposite end as the defense traps every pass [3].

TECHNIQUEBoth sides trap all ball handlers at all times. Assign who is scoring at which basket prior to the drill starting. If the offense initially completes five passes, it immediately transitions and tries to score at its basket.

4v4 Trap Drill Creates ChaosDefenders trap on every pass as the offense attempts to find the open player before the drill spreads into a 4-on-4 full-court game with required trapping

www.basketballcoachweekly.com Issue 77 BASKETBALL COACH WEEKLY 6

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The ball handler tries to step between the trap and around the trap while also staying strong with the ball and using pass fakes to move defenders

No dribbles and only one step are allowed by offensive

players in this phase of the drillAfter a made basket by the opposing team (in this example, the blue team stole a pass and scored at this end), the inbounder passes and quickly finds open space

The “interceptor” reads the shoulders of the trapped player to anticipate where the next pass may be going

Two defenders trap every ball handler and as the passes move quickly, so too

must the defenders to keep the pressure

Player movement Ball movement Dribble Shot

Defensive Drill

By Dan Murphy, assistant boys coach, St. Anthony High

School, Jersey City, N.J.

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