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Thursday, January 9, 2025

Self-Sabotaging Your Basketball Offense

Some teams have a propensity to "shoot themselves in the foot." A similar expression says, "the first step to getting out of a hole is to stop digging." 

Don't self-sabotage the Four Factors: SPCA

S - shooting

P - protect the ball

C - crash the boards

A - attack the rim (free throws)

Analyze components of possessions:

  • Spacing
  • Player movement
  • Ball movement 
  • "Scoring moment"
Within these frameworks, don't turn features from into bugs. Here are a few: 

Shooting 
  • Poor shot quality
  • Poor passes leading to the shot
  • Poor shot distribution (more shots for non-shooters)
  • Lack of shooting ability (low team shooting percentage)
Note: it doesn't matter how many open threes a team gets that cannot make them

Turnovers (Categorize)
  • Decision-making 
  • Execution (Passing, catching, traveling, time violations)
Note: Turnovers are "zero percent shooting" possessions

Rebounding
  • Lack of toughness and positioning (defensive)
  • Lack of anticipation and aggression (offensive)
Note: Failed blockouts count as much in the first as last quarter

Watched the beginning of a high school game a few days ago, first six possessions:

1, 2 a pair of airballed open three-point shots
3, 4 airball two, next shot hits underside of rim
5, 6 pair of turnovers

Attacking the rim
  • Some teams mostly play east-west, not attacking the basket
  • Some players get "paid by the dribble" - aimless dribbling
  • Failure to cut urgently often promotes perimeter play
Considerations:
  • Disallow three-point shooting by low percentage (e.g. under 25 percent) shooters
  • Emphasize pass quality during shooting drills
  • Prioritize more shots for your best shooters
  • Challenge team to reduce turnovers
  • Film study of selected successful and unsuccessful possessions
  • Practice hard-to-defend actions (PnR, simple and complex screening)
Lagniappe. What important skills and behaviors does your team not do enough? 
Lagniappe 2. Be like Dean Smith. 




 

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