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Best Zone Attack Vs Sagging Zones or Pack Line Defenses
Hey Coaches,
Had a scrimmage last night and worked against a team that played a 2-3 sagging zone defense. At we just kept moving the zone around through our rotation and we eventually got some nail and flank action, vice versa. Then I tried to work on baby pin screens with a permanent flank. Got some good action there but it wasn’t consistent. That could have been the result of the kids just really starting to work against other teams in zone defenses.
My question to you all is this:
What is the best action(s) to take against sagging defenses that want to force three point shots? I know this is covered in one of the sections in the read and react, unfortunately I cannot locate the section that talks in further detail about sagging zones or Pack line defenses.
Thanks,
Steve
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5 Replies
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If you don’t won’t to take those 3 point shots, then do everything you’ve been doing (continue to Pin & Skip), but tell your team that you are hunting for defensive close-outs that you can drive. Usually the Pin & Skip forces a rotation of positions in the zone. When you drive the close-out, it forces another rotation – something most zones are not adept at.
Your players without the ball must react to your own dribble penetration in case the penetrator cannot get the shot that he/she wants. That’s why you need to keep working on your general Read&React actions. Ultimately, that’s how you’ll get your shots.
Don’t forget that after ever Pin & Skip, the screener can be open inside. That’s another way to get shots in the lane. Seek the contact and go to the FT line.
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I had this same problem in our recent regional tournament. We were beat in overtime by 5 points. We were the better team based on skill, preparation, and organized approach but they shut us down with a sagging 2-3. We are not a strong 3 point shooting team and even though we looked for the contact we couldn’t find it. I think that had I developed the pin and skip then we could have loosened the defense enough to get some inside looks. Thanks for this program, it has transformed our team!
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Chad, what was your formation?
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We were running the zone attack with 4 out and 1 post down low. I feel like I should of told the post to move from the low block to the nail and get the ball there. Instead we were cutting into traffic and then the passing lane to our post was closed and the ball handler was bottled up in the lane.
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Chad:
Instead of moving your low lost player off the low block to the nail, move them to the SC, and have them run back and forth behind the low post zone defenders as the ball moves. Moving the permanent low post player behind the defense will force the zone to “flatten out” and create more room for the cutters. As the ball is either passed to the nail, or the lane is penetrated by a dribbler, the SC flashes to an open spot for a lay-up or short jumper. Remember, it’s the ball that moves the zone, and defenders follow the ball first, and then locate players. You will be amazed how often your SC player gets lost by the defense because of ball movement, player movement, and spacing. If the post player is playing on the low block, they will not get lost. I think coaches have this mental image that if their post player plays behind the defense, they will never get a shot. This is simply not accurate. On the contrary, the SC becomes the QB of the offense because he sees things from a different angle. They are involved if you nail or flank ‘em. If one of your perimeter players takes a shot, it will be the easiest offensive rebound opportunity they will ever get as they block out from behind a defender who is initially focused on the ball. Your cutters will get more open shots also as more space is created.
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