Trapping defense has multiple intents - leverages pressure against poor ball handlers and weak passers, energizes, and elevates tempo. It can force turnovers, psychologically damage opponents, and generate offense from defense. When it works it excites fans. Great pressure teams intimidate. If your team excels applying pressure, you force your opponent to overprepare for that and underprepare generally.
So-called primary trap zones (yellow) ensnare offensive players with the ball against two boundaries (sidelines, endlines, midcourt line). They are not necessary but ideal.
I teach forcing opponents into bad decisions (bad passes, violations) and poor execution (traveling, fumbles) not necessarily stealing from the ball handler. "Allow your opponent to make mistakes." Too many teams end up fouling by playing out of control. Find balance between aggressiveness and discipline.
The ideal pressure lineup brings size, athleticism, discipline, intelligent decision-making, and relentlessness.
We have a plethora of decisions to make. It's a gray area with answers that fit our team. One size doesn't fit all.
What areas do we attack...full, three-quarter, half court?
Do we prefer a "safer trap" with two players back (e.g. 1-2-2)?
Do we pressure the inbound passer or not? Or mix it up?
Do we trap on the catch or on the dribble? Better on the dribble in my opinion.
Do we trap the 'best' ballhandler, weaker, out-of-control, or 'turned' dribblers?
Do we pressure and trap only after made baskets or consistently?
Do we trap with man-to-man, zone, or both?
Do we have a preferred trapping team? Not every player excels defensively.
Do we trap and leave (e.g. run-and-jump) or stay?
Where do we deploy our personnel? Do we put both guards up front or something else?
Do we have a safety/goalie or take more risk? What's our risk/reward?
As of now, we only extend full court individual assignment defense although I favor opportunistic trapping. With relatively equal playing time, we do not have players well-suited to trap in every lineup.
We've had only four 90 minute practices so far, so we have vanilla defense and no offensive or defensive delay game yet. Live with reality.
I grew up in a system of multiple defenses - full court man (14), run-and-jump (red), UCLA (or USF if you prefer) 3/4 court 2-2-1 (83), 1-2-1-1 (54), and so on. The first digit identified the defense and the second the extent of court covered. That violates simplicity for middle school players.
What rules might apply?
1. Fly around. Conditioning is paramount.
2. If pressure is broken, sprint back, communicate and find your player. "Basketball is not a running game, it's a sprinting game."
3. If pressure is broken, build the defense from the basket out. Shape up...tandem to triangle. Force the offense to make the extra pass until help arrives.
4. Don't get split. Trappers can't get split by the dribble.
5. No gut passes (through the trap).
6. Never get beat up the sideline on the trap. If you have to have a foot out of bounds, then whatever it takes.
7. "Put 'em in a glass box." As trappers, imagine you've built a glass box.
8. No stupid fouls.
My rules aren't "the rules", more like guidelines. Find what works for you.
Lagniappe 1. Via Tom Peters...
Lagniappe 2.
Remember Quin Snyder's admonition that in the NBA, the inability to defend the pick-and-roll means the inability to keep your job.
Starts with icing the side ball screen and adds a breakdown drill. Progresses into dribble handoff with defensive options.
Moves into high ball screen with first option weak (forces left)...big focus on the actions (tagging) on the help side...and NOT leaving the corner 3.
