Best Xs and Os from the River Falls Tournament

Photo courtesy of wikipedia

At Tartan we always go to the UW-River Falls team camp. It's well run, the high school facilities are unbelievable, and the competition is pretty good. Both the varsity and jv groups did well and improved over the weekend. Now summer high school tournaments aren't normally somewhere that you would expect to pick up a lot of great Xs and Os. Most guys have a new team because the seniors graduated and don't have in a lot of their stuff. This weekend at River Falls was an exception to that rule however. I saw several good things that I wanted to share.






Back Screen BLOB Play
I can't even remember who ran this set, but I thought it was really slick. It's not one with multiple options that will work 2,3,4 times against an opponent. But it's a simple one that I would keep in my back pocket for a situation where you need a basket in a tight game - it's really a great last second blob if you tweaked it for a second option - maybe 2 screens 4 to the corner for a shot in a screen the screener action.

The set starts in a box with guards on the bottom and posts on the top. All for players start to cut toward the ball.

 As the backside players reach the lane line the bottom players (2,3) keep cutting, The back side elbow (5) sets a back screen for the ball side elbow player (4) who cuts to the rim for a score.

Line BLOB Set
Forest Lake ran this classic against us several times and ended up with two easy baskets, one on the initial dive and one on the screener's roll. It's a pretty solid play if you have a few other line plays. Also a good one to only bring out when you need a basket at the end of a game.

It starts in a pretty simple line stack with the guards low and the post or big wing players high. The bottom 2 players cut to the corners and the third player in line faces the ball and butt screens the top player's (5) defender.

The top player (5) cuts hard off the butt screen to the rim and the third player (4) spaces out to the opposite side. 4 will be open if they cheat off him to cover 5 or switch it.

Michigan
Our JV team got a good test playing Mounds Park Academy's varsity. They ran this play several times and I liked the looks they got out of it. I think it could be a play that you add some counters to and make really good.

The set is a 2-3 high look. The point reverses to the opposite wing.

The high post back screens the point who cuts to the rim.

 The point then fills out the ball side off his cut. As this is happening, the opposite guard (2) comes off a double flair screen by the post (5) and backside wing (3). The wing with the ball (4) dribbles up at the flair. The post dives after setting the first flair which really can create mismatch issues if they switch.

They would often throw to the 2 coming off the flair and he would attack and dump to the post or kick to the pg. Once the 3 flashed middle go the ball and attacked as well.

Toughness as a Coach

Lots of good stuff on Twitter today about being tough as a coach and the need for toughness in coaching. Dean Benton (@athletico_dev) tweeted a link to this Huffington Post article defending the toughness of the ousted Canadian rowing coach. Then, Greg White (@GregWhite32) had a string of great tweets about how players need toughness from their coaches. My favorite was this one:














All this talk gets me thinking, what are tough coaches really about? And that brings me to the man in the picture. This is Coach Reinhardt, Hall-of-Fame football coach from Rushford-Peterson (MN). I played for R-P my freshmen and sophomore years, so I didn't play much varsity, but I got to be around Coach Reinhardt a lot. The thing that made Coach Reinhardt great was that he was a tough SOB, but at the same time, you knew he cared. He would be the first one to tell you that you screwed up, but also the first one to pat you on the back when you did something right. That philosophy stuck with me and is what makes a truly great tough-guy coach. You can't be a yeller and a screamer all the time and expect consistent results. Would he yell when he needed to? Of course, but he also developed meaningful relationships with his players. And because of this, his players would run through a wall if he wanted, with no questions asked.

We do need more toughness and honesty in coaching. I truly believe that every player really does desire to be coached, pushed, and held to a high standard. But being Bobby Knight is not productive either. Today's players don't respond to that. Today's tough-guy coach has to be a lot like Coach Reinhardt - have a high standard, don't compromise, be brutally honest, but also work on relationships and give positive feedback when deserved.

Silver Stars and Shock Notes

Not having cable is hard, but having ESPN 3 makes it a little bit more bearable. Tonight I was watching a re-peat of the WNBA's San Antonio Silver Stars and Tulsa Shock. I've said it before on here and I will say it again, if you are an average high school boys coach and you want to watch basketball to pick up Xs and Os the WNBA is far superior to the NBA. There are a lot less iso plays, straight pick and roll, backing guys down, and throwing alley-oops. The coaches in the WNBA run some really great team oriented stuff. Below are a few simple things I grabbed while watching the first half tonight.





Silver Starts SLOB
Quick hitting SLOB set that I really liked as a different take on a classic. The set starts with the offense lined up in a box, big post on the ball side elbow and the point guard on the ball side block. Your shooter should be on the backside block (3). The point upscreens for the big. If you can't get the big going to the basket, or there isn't a big on small mismatch, the point pops out and gets the ball.

Right on the catch the back side block shooter (3) cuts toward 5 like he's coming off a baseline screen - which is a pretty typical SLOB. Instead of coming off the baseline screen, the shooter changes course and comes off a down screen by the back side elbow player (4).

Silver Stars Side PnR to Post Entry
I always like inventive ways to get the ball into the high and low post and put pressure on the defense. The silver stars ran a nice side pick and roll set to do just that. It starts with the point on the wing with the ball, the big post on the elbow and the power forward/big wing (4) on the ball side block with two shooters spotted up on the backside. The point comes off the ball screen set by the post on the elbow. As the point clears the ball screen the block player stepps up and sets the back screen for the screener to go to the rim.

If the post isn't open off the screen, the ball is immediately thrown back to the screener (4) popping out to the wing. The screener then entered the ball to the post player. This is gold because it's almost impossible for a defender, even a good one, to be in the lane to defend the cut off the screen AND also get around front to deny the entry pass. You may have to teach your post to seal and leg whip on the pass to the wing but if they get a good deal it's going to be a very hard cover.

Shock Take on the Iverson Set
Everyone has run, or seen run, the Iverson set out of the 1-4 high where one wing goes under, the other goes over across the posts and then gets the ball on the move to attack the rim. This set was a nice variation off of that.

The point has the ball on a laneline. The wing on the ball side is on the free throw line extended and the back side wing is in the corner. In this set the 2 should be your best shooter and the 3 should be a guy who can drive the ball, at least ideally. The set starts in normal Iverson fashion, the ball side wing comes across the top of the two post players.

As he gets over the top, the backside wing (3) goes under but also loops around and over the top of the two posts. Once he clears the posts he receives the pass. The other wing (2) should finish the cut at the block opposite the point at be on the block as the 3 catches. 

As the 3 catches the ball, the posts (4, 5) and point (1) go and set a triple screen away for the wing (2) on the block who comes up the lane line looking for a shot. The 3 can also go baseline if the defense overplays the triple screen and doesn't pay attention.

Again, I think the WNBA is a great resource to find coaching material. I would urge the male high school coaches who read this to watch more than you did last summer. You'll find that you'll be surprised at how much you will get from it! 

What Don Meyer Taught Me

Photo courtesy of NSU Sports Information

I was very sad to hear about the passing of Coach Don Meyer last week. I've never met Coach Meyer in person, only talked to him on the phone, but not many coaches have influenced me more than Coach Meyer. A decade ago, the first coaching videos I ever bought were from his collection. More importantly,he is a genuine master at teaching more than basketball to his players. He's been a great example of what a coach should be. The incredible amount of lives he has touched, and the outpouring of support the last week are direct results of teaching about life.

What I wanted to share on this blog is the biggest lesson I learned from Coach Meyer. A few years ago Coach Meyer spoke at the MN Coaches Association Clinic. He had a lot of great insights, as always, but one quote he had stuck with me. He was talking about teaching and coaching as the last frontier for instilling toughness and discipline in young people. At one point, when talking about the toughness needed to teach and coach,  he said "You need to be the last John Wayne." That comment has stuck with me and has influenced my teaching and coaching. I've realized the importance of being tough FOR your students and teaching them how to be tough. That doesn't necessarily mean yelling and screaming, but being uncompromising in your standards and what you are going to accept in terms of effort, attitude, and behavior. It has helped me become a successful coach and teacher. So for that, and many other things, I thank Coach Meyer from the bottom of my heart.

Another Cautionary Tale

The video is a great reminder for players that no matter how much talent you have, you are not guaranteed to make the league. It takes a lot more than talent. It's also a great reminder that taking care of business off the court is far more important than on the court. As a 7th grade teacher I have a lot of young men (and women) who think their athletic talent is going to take them where they want to go - this shows that is just not true. I would encourage you to share this with your team as a cautionary tale. Also important to point out that this was filmed in 2009, Victor Page was just sentenced to ten years in prison this week.

Olympiakos vs. Real Madrid

I'm a big fan of Euroleague basketball, and fortunately they are on ESPN 3 tape delay! Tonight I watched Real Madrid vs. Olympiakos in the Euroleague playoffsr. It was a fun game to watch and as always I picked up a few good bits and pieces below.

Real Madrid Inbounds Series

I am always a fan of inbounds plays out of unique alignments. Coaches feel more comfortable when defending BLOBs out of alignments they are familiar with. These are two sets that Real Madrid ran out of an alignment with three players across the free throw line and a shooter on the backside. On the free throw line the bigs were on the corners and the point was in the middle. 

In the first set, the ball side post (5) screens in for the point guard and dives to the rim. The inbounder then steps in and gets the ball back for a post up. This is a great look for a big guard to get him a paint touch quickly. 

In the second set, it starts the same way. The ball side post screens in for the point who cuts out and gets the ball. The big who screened (5) dives to the rim and the backside post (4) sets a pin down for the shooter.

Olympiakos Secondary Look
I saw them run this quickly as a secondary look for their trailing big. Good way to get a quick look inside. The point dribbles the ball up, enters it to the wing and starts to make a basket cut. The rim runner steps out toward the short corner. The point doubles back and sets a back or curl screen for the trailer. It might have been designed to be a back screen but in the game it was a curl screen.

Down Screen to Ball Screen Action
This was an action that both teams ran, and I liked. Real Madrid ran it for Rudy Fernandez and it was effective. You can run it for the 2,3 doesn't really matter. Somewhere in the set the post (5) sets a down screen for the best guard (1). The guard cuts up off the down screen and looks for a shot. Right after the screen the post turns around and sprints out for a ball screen almost on the catch if no shot is taken.

The 2-2-1 Set to Kill the 1-3-1 Zone

During my time in Iowa we ran some 1-3-1 zone looking to give us an edge. We played a team that ran the set look below and it killed our zone. I want to say it was Pella Christian, but not entirely sure. Also not sure that it was out of this exact set but is the basic action they torched us on with some possible counters that I added.

Basic Alignment and Action
The offense starts in a 2-2-1 set, which is a very different look. It works because you have two guys up top and are not kind of forcing the middle guy (X5) to cover two high post guys.

The guard makes the guard to guard pass and cuts to the middle of the lane. If the cutter starts to get in the way of the further action it can become a straight cut to the backside corner. As the other guard (2) catches the ball he immediately throws it into the opposite high post.

As the backside high post (4) catches the ball, the 5 steps across the lane and seals the bottom player. The point sprints to the corner opposite his pass. The 4  immediately takes the ball to the rim. and can either kick it out to the corner, take it himself, or dump off to the 5.

 Opposite High Post Denial Counters
      One of the first things they will try to do is take away that pass by bringing the backside wing over.

If that happens, the counter is for the backside high post (4) to turn and pin screen the backside wing player. The point (1) flairs away and the guard with the ball (2) can either skip it or attack the zone and skip it to 1. As that's happening, 5 steps across and seals the low guy.

So you end up with the point on the wing, hopefully alone with the option to shoot, drive, or dump into the 5.

If they try and drop their top guy to cover the backside, the counter is for the guard with the ball (2) to attack on the catch, which should force the top man (X4) to come out and guard him instead.

 If they try to deny the entry with the middle man (X5) and cover the other high post with the wing (X2) then 2 can dribble at the wing on the catch, forcing the defender to come out and opening up the ball side high post. On the catch 3 can drive it and dump off to 5 or take it himself.