Exploring basketball's best ideas, strategies, and coaches around the world

Happy Sunday and welcome to all the new subscribers from around the world!

ICYMI: Last week we revisited a look at the "Peel Switch" and how it can be used to solve mismatches either in a PNR or on a drive. Read the full newsletter HERE.

This Week at a Glance:

🔒 SG Plus Content: Isolation Rim Seals - Removing Rim Protection​

🎧 Slappin' Glass Podcast: Nick Winkelman {Author & Irish Rugby}

🥇 Best of the Week: Boomerang Step Ups & Turnouts​

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Isolation Rim Seals

In recent seasons, we've seen a rise in the success of offenses led by diminutive guards who thrive on pushing the pace and breaking down defenses with dribble penetration—perhaps best exemplified by Coach Tuomas Iisalo’s (now with the Memphis Grizzlies) former teams featuring TJ Shorts at Telekom Bonn and Paris. Paris has continued this success and doubled down on the small-guard trend by adding Nadir Hifi into the mix.

When studying Paris and other clubs that build their offenses around small guards, we've enjoyed analyzing the various strategies they use on both ends of the floor—maximizing their guards’ strengths while mitigating their primary weakness: a size disadvantage.

One standout aspect is the savvy screening and sealing by the bigs during isolations, using well-timed seals to neutralize potential rim protection...

Dunker Spot Decisions

As mentioned above, a key feature of an offense led by a diminutive guard is their ability to capitalize on their speed to consistently break the paint and put pressure on the defense. However, while their quickness and agility allow them to break down most defenders off the dribble on the perimeter, these physical advantages are often mitigated in the paint, giving way to size and length.

While offenses have become adept at creating space on the perimeter to open gaps for dribble penetration, equal consideration must be given to supporting the guard once they break the paint. Teams need to find ways to create scoring opportunities around a guard who faces challenges finishing or passing over size in a confined space.

Perhaps the most common spacing around perimeter isolations is positioning the big in the dunker spot, which subsequently places a defensive presence at the rim...

Anticipating this help, the offense faces the challenge of finding solutions tailored to their team, with the goal of assisting the guard in either scoring at the rim or finding passing options against the help rotations.

One of the original benefits of positioning the big in the dunker spot with a corner filled behind the penetration is the ability of spacing to stress the help rotations on the drive. When the rim protector steps up on penetration, the ballhandler's read becomes either to throw the lob or, if the second help "cracks back" on the dunker {🔒}, to spray the ball out to the shooter in the corner.

This simple solution relies heavily on the elite athleticism of the big in the dunker spot to catch lobs from a standstill, as well as the ballhandler’s size to see over defenders and deliver passes in tight spaces. But for those of us coaching a roster of mere mortals—especially with undersized guards—what’s the alternative to clanked floaters or deflected passes?

How about having your ground-bound center eliminate the rim protector altogether with a "seal out" or "screen in"?

Zooming In: Understanding that the guard is likely to beat their defender off the dribble, the big should focus on reading their own defender—either sliding under to seal them out of the help (as shown above) or screening in to eliminate the help (see first GIF ⬆️).

While perimeter isolation and spacing strategies like the dunker spot can create scoring opportunities, teams without elite size must get creative—using seals and screens from their bigs to support the guard’s penetration and eliminate rim protection, opening up more effective scoring and passing options.

In the past we have highlighted a few other interesting ways teams space and utilize a big at the rim, such as:

1. ​Transition Seals {🔒}
2. ​Playing with Multiple Bigs in Transition {🔒}
3. ​Solving "Dead Corners" {🔒}
4. ​Inverted Post Ballscreens {🔒}

Today's installment of rim seals adds another tactic that a coach can use when thinking about spacings that help create another advantage for a smaller guard. For much more, SG+ Members can enjoy this week's newest breakdown on SGTV...

Together with Dr Dish

This February secure your own Dr. Dish CT+ for as low as $3,900 down when using Dr. Dish’s Buy Now, Pay Later payment plan options. These plans are for schools only and have zero interest, no monthly payments, and no hidden fees.

Slappin' Glass Podcast

Last week we sat with the Head of Athletic Performance and Science for the Irish Rugby Football Union, as well as author of the highly successful book, The Language of Coaching, Nick Winkelman. In this highly detailed discussion we dive into Coach Winkelman's thoughts on miscommunication amongst teams, and where things go wrong, internal vs. external cueing, the use of analogies for teaching movements, and much more.

Together with Hudl

The transfer portal has changed the landscape of college basketball and professional scouting and Hudl Instat is here to help. Find and scout the future of your team with robust search tools, then keep track of your prospects on a virtual board. You can access all of your prospects' recent games and highlight videos as soon as they are uploaded right from your office. With video from over 460 international basketball competitions, you can rest assured that the perfect player for your program is just a click away. Visit Hudl to get started today.

Tactical

📺 Horns 4 Out - Boomerang • Step Up​

"A popular European action out of Horns 4-Out is to utilize the boomerang pass to give the PG a live dribble with separation into the step-up screen."

✚ Pair With: Sending a Ghost Screen at the ball rather than setting the Step Up Screen after the Boomerang Pass.

🔒 SG Plus Content: Our breakdown on the actions, exits, and versatility of the "Loop Step Up Screen."

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📺 Turnout - Burn Cut • Pin Down​

"A Blocker-Mover action initiated out of the Turnout entry to set up a pin down screen for the top player in the alignment."

✚ Pair With: BC Lietkabelis executing for the top man in the turnout entry, slipping him out of the Ballscreen on top into a Flare screen.

🔒 SG Plus Content: Our breakdown on the defensive technique of Alberto Diaz in defending Off Ball Screens and DHO's.

Interesting Reads

📚 What Do People Need Most From Leaders?​

“The most successful leaders also have a deep understanding of the demands of their specific role and the expectations attached to it. The best leaders achieve success -- despite varied roles, organizations and industries -- by bringing multiple teams together and making great decisions, driving the purpose and performance of their organization. The more leaders can provide their followers with hope, trust, compassion and stability by leaning on their unique strengths and applying them to the specifics of their role, the more successful they will be.”

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📚 Nick Sirianni: Adversity of 2023 Shaped Eagles' 2024 Title Run​

"I look back on last year and how last year ended and I'm grateful. As crazy as this sounds, I'm grateful how last year ended because it shaped us to who we are today [with] the adversity of the beginning of the year and the adversity through the season, through injuries, through ups and downs, through everything..."

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📚 Personal Renewal ​

"We tend to think of youth and the active middle years as the years of commitment. As you get a little older, you're told you've earned the right to think about yourself. But that's a deadly prescription! People of every age need commitments beyond the self, need the meaning that commitments provide. Self-preoccupation is a prison, as every self-absorbed person finally knows." Commitments to larger purposes can get you out of prison.

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Quote of the Week

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Thank you for reading and have a great week coaching,

Dan and Pat

info@slappinglass.com

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