Basketball: Quality Actions in Crunch Time, Develop Winning Options

Keywords: Late game situations, Iverson cut, Corner rip, Separation

Purposeful play gets quality shots in crunch time. Imagine a situation such as tie score, ten seconds, advancing the ball, no timeouts. 

Tailor the plan to team strengths and exploitable weakness of opponents. Show your club film of model execution. 

Have a specific plan to get a quality shot by whom you want, where you want, and when you want. You probably don't want the shot taken "early" giving your opponent another opportunity. Perhaps you favor a drive to setup a foul, a spread ball screen ball screen, or a back door cut against pressure defense. Our team needs an automatic or default action. 

Fall back to "great offense is multiple actions." Why not use an "early offense" that has multiple options? If we practice a "default" regularly, we should perform it at a higher level than freelance. 

Think of 1-4 high as "horns like" with good spacing and no default help side. Entry to either post sets up cutting, screening, and isolation. 

• Give-and-go with the point guard
• Helpside screening 
• Back cut from the ball side
• Isolation for the post

Locate your point guard at the post if she is the best driver, passer, finisher. The coach knows the strengths and preferences of her team. 

When we've prepared to do our best, we have less room for regrets. "We got the look we wanted." 

Have an "ace in the hole" set you haven't shown. 

The Iverson action scored five points (one three-point play) in two possessions. 

Iverson too obvious? Apply corner rip action in search of a layup. Hat tip to Zak Boisvert. 

Lagniappe: "Let the hype begin." Payton Pritchard. 

Adam Spinella informs viewers about the guard's strengths, weaknesses, and potential opportunities with second unit teammates. 

Lagniappe 2: "Hype squared...more Celtics' eye candy. 

Aaron Nesmith, sniper, screener, side-step compensation, and the gravity of a shooter.