Defense

University of Maine Men’s Assistant Coach Zak Boisvert has assembled some notes from Brad Stevens at the 2016 Brayden Carr Coaches Clinic. The Brayden Carr Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization that works to raise money for children with seizure conditions. The charity was established by Rhode Island assistant coach Jim Carr and his wife Natalie after their son died tragically in May 2011. You can find out more about the charity at this link.

He has an outstanding site with posts on various coaching topics at www.pickandpop.net

His You Tube channel has several videos with various types of man to man plays, zone sets, and inbounds plays. You can subscribe to receive an update when he posts a new video Zak Boisvert You Tube Channel

You can follow him on Twitter at this link: @ZakBoisvert

Brad Stevens, Boston Celtics

-All coaches are bound together. It’s a brotherhood and we should always be looking to help one another.

-I spent 13 years at Butler University in Indianapolis and it was the greatest learning experience I could have ever asked for.

-I went to Butler as a volunteer support staffer and quickly learned that I knew nothing. They taught me so much more than I thought there was to know.

-Look at the things you do and ask why you do it. Is it the best way or the way you’re used to doing it? Are we doing it because it’s the right way or because we think we’re supposed to be doing it that way?

• Adjusted shoot around time because his players liked it more later in the day.

-I learned the importance of running a condensed, efficient practice. He worked so hard to create a practice plan that covered what needed to be covered, but was as concise as possible to be respectful of his players’ time.

• Abraham Lincoln: “I apologize for the length of this letter. I did not have time to write a short one.”
• The importance of rest & recovery: clear mind, fresh legs.

-As a coach, you are what you emphasize.

-Your first meeting with the team is incredibly important.
• What is important to winning?
• Dominate effort plays.
• Get good shots.

-You will make tweaks to your systems. You will run different stuff from year-to year, but there should be a certain amount of absolutes built into your philosophy that you won’t/can’t budge on.

-Vitally important as a coach: Perspective and balance. Your health/family/wellbeing is more important than the next game. I encourage all coaches to read the Urban Meyer piece on Bleacher Report entitled, “I’m Not the Lone Wolf.”

-I love watching football coaches. Their ability to get 100 people on the same page with tempo is astounding.

-Books I recommend:
1. Grit (Angela Duckworth)
2. Legacy (James Kerr)
3. Mindset (Carol Dweck)

-James Kerr (Legacy): Successful leaders look beyond their own field to discover new approaches, learn best practices and push the margins.

-Don’t focus on trophies, focus on getting better.
• Get rid of the emotional roller-coaster that comes with fixating on results.
• Fall in love with the pursuit.

-Our goal is a championship. Anything less would be disrespectful to the organization we represent. While that’s our goal, we’re focused on the process and getting better.

-We crafted our entire defense (& recruiting philosophy) over how we hedged pick & rolls.
• Hard hedged all ball screens.
• The way we taught defense started with the hedge.
• We recruited to the way we defended. We wouldn’t recruit bigs that couldn’t move.

-By the way…If you’re more athletic and can switch everything, throw everything else out. Switch everything and enjoy winning.

-We created chaos with the athleticism of our bigs’ hedging. We were elite defensively when our guards were athletic too (Shawn Vanzant, Ronald Nored) and could get into the ball and direct/impact it.

-The science of the hedge:
• Hand on screener’s back.
• Parallel with the sideline / perpendicular with half court line.
• 2 hard steps up the court.
• Listening for guard’s “Back” call as he moved underneath you.

• Running back to the lane and being directed by the guys positioned in help.

-As we hedge that side pick & roll, the other 3 defenders move into a zone—no longer matched to a person.
• We’re “Muhammad Ali-Ready.” On our toes, ready to pounce.
• Ready to fly out.
• Know who the player you’re closing-out to and what they do. That’s the importance of personnel awareness in scouting. Because of how often we’re zoned up on the weak side, you need to know the strengths of everyone on the other team, not just your match up.

Diagrams created with FastDraw

-Versus a spread pick & roll, our “Ultimate Helper” on the roll is the weak side corner defender (rather than the single-side bump guy).

If the single-side bump (x3) gets pulled in on 5’s roll, it’s too easy of a play for the offense to throwback to 3 on a lift.

 “Ultimate Helper” meets the roll in front of the charge circle. In this scenario, x4 would start inching out as the ball is being dribbled at him and would take the first pass to the weakside (either to 2 or 4).

 

-Will rotate to a great pick & pop on a middle pick & roll

 

-Versus the shooting 4-man on a side ball screen: “X Switch.”

 

-Drill: defense x’s the first side ball screen. Offense skips it to the corner off the second ball screen. X1 takes the first pass out.

-“Contain Blitz” concept:
• Guard: don’t get beat corner.
• Both: don’t get split middle.
• On pass, big can leave.
• Make sure the pass out has to be made over outstretched arms.

-At Butler, we wanted to be absolutely chaotic on the ball. We wanted to utilize the athleticism of our bigs.

-Every time in which I thought we were really bad defending the pick & roll at Butler, I would go back and watch the tape and I’d always end with the same conclusion, the two guys on the basketball weren’t good enough/didn’t create enough chaos.

-Weakside nail defender: we don’t want you on the nail (we’re pulled too far over that way). We just want them thinking you’re at the nail.

-The first aspect of a closeout is to do so knowing the tendency of the man you’re closing out to. Is he a shooter? Non-shooter? Baseline rip & go guy?

-We ideally want to hear the pick & roll coverage 3 times by our bigs, but we know it doesn’t always work that way.

-4-on-4 Drill: The four offensive players stationed around the perimeter swing the ball around. The coach calls out one of the defensive players’ names and he sprints to touch half court and sprints to come back into the play. As soon as the coach calls the defensive player’s name, the drill becomes live (offense trying to get a layup).

-In disadvantage situations, what are our priorities?
1. Basket
2. Ball
3. Great Shooter

-Think about who is in your area (that you might be closing out on) in a disadvantage situation. We’re taking away layups and we’re stopping the ball. Ultimately what we want is a jump shot taken by the worst shooter on the court.

-A game great plan can do the job for all 40 minutes in the college game. In the NBA, the great players will expose your game plan, no matter how good it is. You have to have your adjustments and contingency plans.

-Good players will beat good pick & roll defense.

-I cannot stress how important it is to know the opposing team’s personnel. If guys want to call that analytics, sure, I’m into analytics.

-Whose call on “Veer” (late switch)? Out of convenience, it’s the guard’s call. He knows when he’s beat.

ICEing the Pick & Roll

-Because of the extra space inside the 3-point line in the NBA (compared to college), the onus really falls on the guards in your ICE.

-Guards:
• Straddle leg
• Win foot race with the ball
• On dribble pick-up, 2 hands high to deflect or delay the pass.

-Bigs:
• The higher you can be, the better (but only to an accurate level of your mobility).
• BIG inside hand low taking away the pocket pass to the screener rolling versus the ICE.
• Dropping appropriately and returning when pass is made or the guard squares the ball up.

You can read the remainder of the notes and also download a pdf at this link: Pick and Pop Brad Stevens Clinic Notes

This post was written by Micah Hayes and posted with permission from PGCBasketball.

Micah is the owner of ‘The Sweatbox Decatur’ and serves athletes through intense individual & group athletic performance training. Micah is also the strength & conditioning coach at Decatur High School.

It has been said that the cornerstone of defense is not just effort but multiple effort.

I argue that if defense was just about effort then we could pick up anyone off the street, offer the right motivation and they could get the job done. Defense is so much more than that. You have to know how to guard multiple actions and understand angles, assignments and rotations. That being said, every part of the game involves effort. In fact, that is a baseline for participation at any level of play. If you don’t bring your multiple efforts, you won’t be great at defense, and your game won’t be complete.

Knowing that defense isn’t that easy, I want to offer 10 defensive commandments to help sure up that part of your game.

1. BE COMMITTED

Everyone wants to put the ball in the hoop, but few basketball players find that same joy in getting a big stop, holding a great offensive player below their season average or snagging a pivotal rebound that gives their team an extra possession.

The game truly becomes easier when you can experience equal joy on both ends of the court.

2. DON’T TALK, COMMUNICATE

Too often, I hear players call out a term like “help,” “ball,” “dead,” etc. In a vacuum, those terms mean nothing. You could be helping from anywhere, the ball could be doing anything, and what is exactly is “dead?” Instead, I believe players should communicate their position or exactly what they believe the opposing player is going to do on that possession. It would sound more like, “I got your help on the left!” “Shooter right corner!” “Right hand driver, send her my way!”

Don’t waste energy saying the same thing over and over again. Communicate your message loud and clear once or twice. The game happens fast and you need to be ready to communicate your new position and your player’s next move.

3. GUARD YOUR YARD

Your help should typically be about one to two steps away, which is about a yard in either direction. If you can guard your yard, send the ball into your help and keep the ball in front of you. The offense will be forced to take tough, out-of-rhythm, contested shots. Many of those which will be off the bounce (the worst shot in basketball).

Over the course of a game and a season, the percentages will favor your defense and the offense will make fewer shots which will hopefully result in you winning more games.

Sometimes a better player having a great night will hit a tough shot and all you can do is tip your hat and move on to the next play. Keep doing your job, the odds will end up in your favor.

4. HELP THE HELPER

I will guarantee you one thing: you will get beat. An offense player will have an incredible peek fake, explosive first step or dribble move that will beat you, and you will need help. You can’t quit on your play; you have to be ready to assume the next help responsibility.

If someone helps you, it is your job to get your head on a swivel and recognize how you can help them and then get on your horse and make a play. One easy way to remember that is to “see a need and fill the need.”

Special defenders will help as many times as needed whether it is their responsibility or not. They show up BIG with their voice, body language and mentality and get the job done.

5. ANTICIPATE

Basketball is a game of chess, and the ones who get caught playing checkers are routinely beat over and over again. You have to be thinking one step ahead at all times. Is there a screen coming? What kind of screen is it? Is he about to drive or shoot – and from where? Where is my next help responsibility?

Anticipation is a key ingredient to success on either end of the floor. If you can couple anticipation with advanced preparation (you know your player’s tendencies), you will have success guarding them. It will look like you are in two places, but you know that you are just thinking a step ahead.

6. COVER TWO

One of the easiest ways the offense can score is in transition. It’s your job to get back and stop the offense in its tracks. The two things you need to cover are 1) the ball and  2) the streaking offensive player running to the open lane or rim, trying to gain an advantage in the open court before the help is set.

You and one other teammate need to communicate and decide who is going to stop the ball or get their head in the rim and make a stand until the rest of your teammates get matched up.

It’s not enough to just get back. You have to be ready to make a play and turn sometimes what might be a bad situation into a good one by getting a deflection or funneling the offense away from an open lane.

7. GET F.A.T.

When you are on the court, you want to find yourself constantly faking and threatening the offense.  Make them think you are playing the drive when you are really anticipating a jumper; jab at the ball handler, help early and bait the offense into a bad pass.

Offense isn’t the only place where fakes are useful. If you can use fakes on the defensive end, you will take your game to another level. Threaten the defense by showing up big with your body language and your voice. We all know that noise can be used as a distraction, and you can’t distract anyone showing up small. (If you’ve ever been to a haunted house before, you know it’s always the demonstrative and screaming actor that comes out of nowhere that gets you.)

8. HIT FIRST

When you are boxing out, it’s not enough to hit the offensive player. You have to hit first and get them off balance so you can go and grab a board.

I don’t believe in the idea of holding a box out and letting it hit the floor. There is only so long you can maintain a box out without getting a holding foul called or just getting beat. A good offensive player wants the ball just as bad as you do so hit them first and then attack the rebound with everything you’ve got.

9. RUN OPPOSITE

Seventy percent of rebounds come off on the opposite side of the rim. That means more than half of the rebounds you go after will have to be run down.

After you hit your box out, get to the opposite side of where the ball was shot and start attacking the glass. You will turn yourself into a rebounding machine and gain extra possessions for your team just by playing the numbers on this one.

10. SOLVE PROBLEMS

Every time the offense comes down the court they are presenting a new problem for you to solve. Which player is going to shoot it? What set are they going to run? Who might get beat?

Each of these is an opportunity for you to show up like one of three players. You can be a Preventer and solve the problem early by making a play on the ball or in help. You can be a Fixer and show up like a repairman and start plugging holes like a teammate getting beat off the bounce or a smaller teammate getting posted up. Or lastly, you can be an Eraser and at the last second take a charge, show up on a rotation and get a steal, or come out of “nowhere” and block a wide open shot or lay-up.

No matter where you are in a defensive possession, there is always a problem to be solved, and you need to be ready to solve it.

I am going to offer up one bonus commandment for defense and that is, “Have Fun.” The best competitors look forward to this end of the floor. They relish the opportunity to beat the offense at their own game of deception, timing and anticipation. It is an opportunity to be disruptive, earn easy possessions and show off your toughness. Take pride in your ability to not only give someone a bucket but also take one away.

To learn more about PGC Basketball, including additional training tips and videos, you can visit their YouTube Channel

These defensive concepts from 3 highly successful college basketball coaches were posted on Bob Starkey’s Basketball Coaching Blog, hoopthoughts.blogspot.com.

Even if you don’t play a pack style defense, I hope this might get you thinking about terminology and philosophy that can be applied to improving your system.

Jim Boone, Head Coach Delta State Men

Here’s a few concepts and teaching points from Jim Boone in regard to the way he plays Pack Line defense.

Keys in Teaching:
1. Position players in such a way to already be in help.
2. Build a wall to stop the ball.
3. Five players working together.
4. Communication

Coach Boone: “We are zoning the ball.”

Five Things to Work on Daily:
1. Conversion defense
2. Low post defense
3. Pressure on the ball
4. Help/recover
5. Blockout

Coach Boone: “You can’t play transition defense while you’re in transition.”

Coach Boone: “Low post defense dictates how you set your entire defense up.”

Five Defensive Goals:
1. Pressure the ball
2. Contest all shots
3. Keep the ball out of the lane
4. No second shots
5. Do not foul

Coach Boone: “We want to determine what shots you get.”

Conversion Defense:
1. No fast break lay-ups
2. Out number the offense
3. Build from the lane out

Chris Mack, Head Coach Xavier Men

Pack Line defense helps give you a “system” to play defense.

1) Gives players answers and accountability

Certain things players can/can’t do do

They are given specific rules ex. “You can’t play behind the post” vs “Play hard”

2) Simplifies Scouting

Their coaches watch a ton of film but do not give it all to the

players. Instead they play certain actions in very specific ways and practice these

every day.

Example:  Practice defending staggered screens so when they play a team they already know how they will defend this and get better at it through out the year.

3) Creates a culture your players can believe in.

Varsity players “pass” down the defense by teaching your younger players without a lot of involvement from coaches.

GOLDEN RULE: When your man does not have the ball YOU MUST HAVE 2 FEET IN

THE PACK LINE.

Exceptions: If your man is cutting you must chase the cutter.

1) On the Ball: Have extreme ball pressure — do not get beat to the outside NEVER GIVE UP BASELINE

Keep your butt to the basket

Don’t get beat baseline

If your man goes towards the middle do not get beat through the elbow, they can’t attack you on a straight line.

2) You must have two feet inside the pack line when your man does not have the ball and you are trying to form triangles

Defining Your Team

1. How do you close out?
2. Close out with two high hands to discourage rhythm shots
3. Play in then out

KEY: Your positioning is your help

Discourage shots, play the drive, call shot when the shot goes up.

Mike Neighbors, Head Coach Washington Women

When your man has the ball on the perimeter:
1. You were there on the catch.

2. You were the to take away the quick shot or quick pass

3. You were close enough to pressure without getting beat off the bounce.
 a. Don’t get beat to the outside
 b. Don’t get beat in a straight line

When your player does not have the ball on the perimeter:
1. You are about half way between the ball and your player

2. You are a step off the line that would connect the ball to your man

3. You are actively able to see both ball and man

Ball being passed to their player:
1. Move on the air time of the pass

2. Start with sprint and end with chops

3. High hands to active hands

Ball being passed but NOT their player:
1. Move on air time of the pass

2. Sprint to gap.

Teaching Points
1. Players must begin in proper position

2. Players must be vocal in communication of their responsibilities

“Ball” = this means I have the ball

“Gap” = this call means my player does not have the ball but I am in your dribble gap

“Help” = this call means my player does not have the ball but is on the opposite half of the court than the ball is.

These notes are from Bob Starkey’s Basketball Coaching Blog, hoopthoughts.blogspot.com. He has been posting for several years and there are hundreds of posts with ideas to make your program better.

Transition Defense:

Post Rule: “Get your butt ahead of your opponent’s butt.”

Goal: Force at least 2 passes when offense has numbers

Don’t allow a skip for a 3

Rule: Deep man never leaves paint until post comes to release.

Dribble Penetration:

Toughest thing to defend in basketball

Rule on Closeouts: “We don’t force the ball anywhere- we tell them don’t get beat.”

Coach Matta: “if you give up catch and shoot too much, you’ll lose your scholarship.”

TP: Don’t allow ball to get to the shot pocket when defending a shooter.

On non-driver, we will defend the passing hand (scouting)

Post Play:

OSU fronts the post

TP: Want quick feet like a boxer

Ball up top: up the line, on the line

Will front LP always, even if the low post takes a step off the lane

Show hands… sit down.. push him under basket

TP: if you are late fronting, don’t front.

Off Ball Screens:

TP: Jump to the ball- OSU wants jumper to extend far enough to swipe at the ball

Objective: get S guarding the ball

Down Screen: Trail all cutters- no sliding them

1st Rule: don’t get screened

“If you are constantly getting screened you are not going to be able to play for us.”

TP: Must start when the ball is in the air.

TP: “If my man is screening, play to help.”

On Ball Screens:

TP: On ball screen you don’t have a man.

Ball Defender Rule: Must make him use the screen (no rejection)

Ball defender must go once the screen (not behind)

Want defender on screener to recover (through to ally) between the ball defender and screener.

Basket Cuts:

Jump hard to the ball- stay in stance

No face cuts

Offensive Rebounding:

You can’t spend too much time blocking out

OSU likes bubble to work on rebounding

Screen the Screener:

Flex Cut

Jump low and take away low cut

Screen defender will bump high cut

On 6-to-6 pass, jump to the ball and swipe

Thru on down screen (swipe creates lane to cut thru)

Shooters with Great Range:

Vs. Shooter, OSU exaggerates denial- force back out.

In transition defense, OSU teaches to run the lane- vs. shooter, run to the shooter.

3 Pointers in Late Game Situations:

Contact switch on dribble hand. Offs vs. Shooter on late game shot

TP: player switching on shooter should have high hands

5th Defender Principle: Defender whose man is out of the play-your goal is to mess up the play.

During walk thru, Matta makes sure player knows- “you are the 5th defender on this play.”

Four Basic Guidelines to Switching

And a few more defensive notes from Coach Starkey’s Blog. These are from retired NBA Head Coach Del Harris:

Switch with teammates of equal or near-equal size on screens and crosses.

Switch to keep big players inside and small players outside on screens. Do this on changes and crosses away from the ball when possible, and on matching up in transition defense, as well as in recovering on rotations. Any communication that can allow a switch to accommodate the big in-little out concept is usually worthwhile.

Switch within fifteen feet of the goal.

Use the “emergency switch rule.” That is, switch whenever a situation arises in which a switch will challenge an open shot, regardless of the mismatch as X2 does for X5 in D-60.

These notes are from Bob Starkey’s Basketball Coaching Blog, hoopthoughts.blogspot.com. He has been posting for several years and there are hundreds of posts with ideas to make your program better.

The following are notes from Jim Boone’s lecture on Pack Line Pressure Defense at the TABC Coaching Clinic in San Antonio.

Don Meyer: Write it all down
Get all the good ideas but know you can’t use them all
Fortune 500 Companies — note takers

Pete Newell: “Basketball is the most over-coached, under-taught game.”

3 anchors of your program
◄Sureness – take care of the ball
◄Shot Selection
◄Team Defense

Why Pack Line
1. Can you beat the best with your defense?
2. Does your defense allow you to win on the road?
Rick Majerus: “Winning on the road is about the paint.”
3. Does your defense improve as the season progresses
4. Does your defense progress in post season

Knight: “You get what your tolerate.”

“Know Your No’s” — non-negotiables
1) No Fast-break Lay-ups
2) No Baseline, Nothing to the Outside
3) No Paint (911)
4) No Direct Drives
5) No Rhythm Threes
6) No Second Shots
7) No Fouls

There must be Consequences if the Ball gets to Paint:
1) Take the Charge Foul – Take the Hit and protect the Basket
2) Block the Shot – Best shot block opportunities come from Help
3) Get a Deflection – Help the Helper – Force the Next Pass
4) Hard Foul, we do not want to foul but we are not giving up lay-ups

Rick Majerus: “Those to whom defense is not important will have the best seat in the game.”

The following are Part II of my notes from Jim Boone’s lecture on Pack Line Pressure Defense at last week’s TABC Coaching Clinic in San Antonio. Jim has been a life-long friend and a special member of my coaching circle. He is absolutely one of the best teachers around and an excellent clinician.

3 PACK LINE KEYS:

1. Pressure on the Basketball (based on ability/athleticism)

CLOSEOUTS
“Kobe” – (Driver/Shooter) — elbows bent…finger touch closeness
“Rondo” – (Driver) — “Sometimes not to guard is to guard.”
“Curry” – (Dead 3)

Closeouts are about seeking leverage

Doesn’t like to switch — wants to maintain the integrity of the match-up

JB: “We are an eye-to-eye” program.”

Utilize echo yells

2. Already in Help

Chuck Daly: “Defense can’t guard two things in a row.”

Guarding non-ball defender
◄2 feet in Pack
◄Closer to the ball than your man
◄See ‘em both
TP: Defend with near arm, near leg (no open stance)

2/2 Full Court — Seal the gap
TP: Get off and get ahead

Tates Locke “Rule of Two”
◄2 minutes to Teach a Drill
◄2 days to Learn the Skill
◄2 months to make it a Habit.

JB doesn’t use a whistle in practice…wants player to be able to lock into his voice.

3. Can’t keep them from getting shots but can influence where those shots come from.

Things we can control:
◄Conversion Defense
◄Defensive Rebounding
◄Low Post Defense

JB likes to “Red” the post — double big to big

All players are denied pass inside of 16’
JB: “We don’t get to the mid-line on help because we don’t deny.”

Don’t concede post feed.

Side Ball Screen (Outer Third)
“Body Up” – make ball use screen
“Body In”
Screen Defender: Hand on hip
2 Steps Thru

High Ball Screen—Level/Show

JB: “If I was a high school coach I’d have an alternate defense for playing from behind.”

Al McGuire: Greatest emotion is winning
2nd Greatest emotion is losing
Winning goes to the head
Losing goes to the heart
Must learn to move forward