The Baffled Parent's Guide to Great Basketball Plays (INTERNATIONAL MARINE-RMP) - Softcover

Dunphy, Fran; Hsieh, Lawrence

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0071502793 ISBN 13: 9780071502795

Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press, 2009

Synopsis

From one of the most highly respected college coaches in the nation, the only book to show how to teach winning basketball plays to kids age 14 and under

Like no other, The Baffled Parent's Guide to Great Basketball Plays gives you a total playbook for coaching middle and junior-high schoolers through the ins and outs of on-the-court tactics. NCAA coach Fran Dunphy provides 75 winning plays complete with easy-to-follow instructions on how to execute each move for maximum scoring.

About this title

About the Authors

Named head coach of Temple University's men's basketball program in 2006, Fran Dunphy previously guided the University of Pennsylvania men's program to a school-record 310 career wins (and 163 losses) and 10 Ivy League championships over 17 years. One of the most respected coaches in the nation, Dunphy's resume includes nine NCAA Tournament appearances, nine 20-win seasons, three Philadelphia Big 5 City Series titles, seven Ivy League Players of the Year, three Ivy League Rookies of the Year, five perfect Ivy League seasons, and 41 All-Ivy League honorees.

Lawrence Hseih (pronounce"shay") is a corporate and sports attorney in private practice. His commentary and analysis on the IOC's decision to drop softball as an Olympic sport was published in the New York Law Journal and reprinted by USA Softball, the sport's Olympic organizer in the U.S. Hsieh coaches youth softball for his daughter's team, studies tae kwon do with his son, and participates in many other sports, including swimming, SCUBA, skiing, fencing, baseball, and soccer.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The Baffled Parent's Guide to Great Basketball Plays

By Fran Dunphy Lawrence Hsieh

The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Copyright © 2010 The McGraw-Hill
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-07-150279-5

Contents

Chapter One

Game Basics and the Fundamentals of Offense

This chapter provides the context for the play diagrams and descriptions in the chapters that follow. We need a shared language for referring to areas of the court, player roles, and player positions in the common offensive formations. Once we have that, the play diagrams will make perfect sense and we'll minimize the opportunities for misinterpretation.

Note that at their first use, basketball terms used throughout the book are in italic and defined or explained. (Also see the glossary on page 125.)

About the Game

The Court

The most concrete context for the game of basketball is, of course, the court on which the game is played. College courts are 94 feet long and 50 feet wide, though the dimensions of youth league and middle school courts vary. But all courts include the features identified in the court diagram. The inbounds area is defined by two sidelines and two baselines. A midcourt line divides the court in half. The half that is the offensive zone or frontcourt for one team is the defensive zone or backcourt for the other. The team with the ball attacks the basket in its offensive zone, and the other team defends that basket. At halftime the teams switch ends.

In a successful trip "down the floor" to its offensive zone, a team either makes a field goal (a basket shot against defenders) or makes one or more foul shots or free throws (undefended baskets shot from the foul line). If unsuccessful, the offensive team loses possession of the ball to the defensive team by missing a field goal or foul shot and failing to get the rebound (a missed shot), or by committing a turnover (loss of possession of the ball).

Offensive-Defensive Transitions

There are several ways in which the offensive team can turn the ball over. The defensive team can steal the ball from a player dribbling the ball, snatch a pass before the ball reaches its intended recipient, or retrieve the ball after causing the ball handler to bobble it. In any of these cases play is continuous, and the defensive team immediately becomes the new offensive team without having to inbound the ball.

The basketball court.

The offensive team also turns the ball over if a player steps out-of-bounds while in possession of the ball, accidentally throws the ball out-of-bounds, or commits an infraction. Infractions include the closely guarded rule and other infractions discussed below, traveling (taking more than one step with the ball without dribbling), and committing an offensive foul. In any of these cases the defensive team becomes the new offensive team and either inbounds the ball from a baseline or sideline or takes a free throw, depending on the situation.

We'll discuss other turnovers where relevant. For a complete description of basketball rules, fouls, and other basics, see The Baffled Parent's Guide to Coaching Youth Basketball by David Faucher, and The Baffled Parent's Guide to Coaching Girls' Basketball by Sylvia Hatchell and Jeff Thomas.

Since the defensive team is allowed to gain possession of the ball by stealing it from a dribbler, stealing a pass, or rebounding a missed shot, the essence of successful defense is to make it hard for the other team to dribble, pass, shoot, and rebound. And the purpose of this book is to find ways around these defensive tactics.

When possession changes with a made field goal or free throw, the defensive team becomes the new offensive team, and it must inbound the ball from behind the baseline of its defensive zone and travel the length of the floor into its offensive zone.

The defensive team can also gain possession of the ball by rebounding the opponent's missed field goal or foul shot, or by stealing the ball. When possession changes in this manner, play is continuous, and the new offensive team advances the ball over the midcourt line without having to inbound. This may present a fast-break opportunity if the defenders are slow getting back to their defensive zone. When possession changes after an infraction, the new offensive team will either inbound the ball in its defensive zone or shoot free throws in its offensive zone, depending on the situation.

No matter how a team gains possession in its backcourt, it has 10 seconds to advance the ball over the midcourt line and into its offensive zone. Failure to get the ball into the frontcourt within 10 seconds results in a turnover. Once the offense advances the ball into the frontcourt, it may not recross the midcourt line on that trip down the floor. Inadvertently dribbling or passing the ball back over the line constitutes an over-and-back or backcourt violation — another turnover.

A Few Rules about Fouls

For our purposes in this book, we'll discuss most rules as they bear on the plays in question. Keep in mind these few rules, however, which are designed to facilitate the pace of the game and are relevant to many of the plays we'll examine:

• Closely guarded call. A player with the ball who is guarded by a defender within 6 feet of her must not dribble in place for longer than 5 seconds.

• 5-second call. A player who picks up (gives up) his dribble must pass or shoot within 5 seconds.

• 5-second call on the inbounder. A player inbounding the ball to a teammate must pass the ball in within 5 seconds.

• 3-second lane call. An offensive player can't stay in the lane (also called the key or the paint) for longer than 3 seconds. If she steps outside the lane, she can step back in with a new 3 seconds. The count also restarts when an attempted field goal hits the rim of the basket. The rule is designed to prevent the lane area from clogging.

The Players

Each team has five players on the court, and substitutions can be made in any dead-ball situation — whenever the referee blows the whistle and play stops for a foul, a time-out, or the end of a quarter. You can substitute after the first of two free throws and after the last free throw but not before the first free throw, and you can't substitute for the player about to shoot a free throw.

The five players on the floor typically include two guards, two forwards, and a center (who is really a specialized forward). Guards are perimeter players who mainly play away from the basket on offense, but are also playmakers who create scoring opportunities by driving (making dribble moves) to the basket, and they guard the other team's guards on defense. Forwards specialize in driving to the basket or making post-up moves near the basket on offense. The center often plays with his back to the basket on offense, relying on a variety of close-range post-up moves; guards the basket on defense; and rebounds the ball at both ends of the floor.

There is much overlap in the responsibilities and desirable skill sets of these positions—more now, certainly, than there used to be. For example, the best guards are able not only to shoot the ball from the perimeter, but also to drive to the basket. Sometimes a team's best rebounder is a forward, not the center. And the best centers today are highly mobile and can play not only under the basket but 10 to 15 feet away from it. The positions often break down further like this:

• Point Guard or 1. The point guard is quick and the team's best ball handler. He or she dribbles the ball down the floor and directs the offense. Good offense starts with the 1 guard. The point guard often has the best court sense on the team, meaning that he or she is able to "see" defensive breakdowns and gaps and then think on the fly to turn these breakdowns or gaps into scoring opportunities.

• Shooting Guard or 2. Your 2 guard should be your best outside shooter as well as a good ball handler.

• Small Forward or 3. Ideally your small forward will have a good medium-range shot as well as the ability to drive to the hoop for layups and close-in shots. He or she should also be a good rebounder, though he is usually the smaller of your two forwards.

• Power Forward or 4. You want a good inside scorer and rebounder at this position. Your power forward is more likely to play on the post, whereas your small forward is more likely to play on the wing.

• Center or 5. This is usually your tallest player, an aggressive rebounder and an aggressive, effective defender down low (near the basket), where he or she blocks shots or forces the shooters to pass back to the outside or alter their shots. On offense your center plays a post position at the edge of the lane—either a low post position on one of the blocks or a high post position (also called the pivot area) at the free-throw line.

Note the numbers that accompany each position, since these are used in the play diagrams throughout the book—for example, 1 (or O1) is the point guard on offense, and X1 is the player defending 1. Again, note that position roles are meant to be fluid—adapting themselves to circumstances and player skills—not rigid and unvarying. Any coach welcomes a forward who can bury outside jump shots or a guard who can grab rebounds, while a guard who never drives to the basket or a forward who never attempts an outside shot makes his team's offense easier to predict and defend against.

To make it easy to understand the concepts, plays, offenses, and defenses presented in the book, we've included many diagrams. The diagrams use the symbols shown in the diagram key.

Player positions based on court location.

Offensive Formations

An offensive formation (or offensive set) tells the players where they should be at the start of a play. The plays in this book start from a few basic sets:

1-2-2 formation. This is also sometimes referred to as the 3-2 formation. This versatile formation consists of a point (1), two wings (2, 3), and two corners (4, 5). The two corners can also move toward their respective low post positions, leaving three players on the perimeter and two nearer the blocks, which is why some coaches call this the 3-2 Offensive Set or the 3-out, 2-in formation. Many of the plays in this book start with this formation. This is a practice-friendly formation because you can practice many plays—including give-and-go plays—using only part of the formation; for example, only two or three players instead of all five.

Diagram key.

2-1-2 formation. This offensive set places the two guards (1, 2) between the wing position and the top of the circle, one on either side. A third player (usually the small forward, 3) is near the foul line at the high post or pivot area, and the power forward and center (4, 5) are at the low post positions.

1-3-1 formation. This formation puts your point guard (1) at the point, your 2 guard and a forward (3) at the wings, the other forward (4) at the high post or pivot, and the center (5) at the low post.

Stack set. In this formation, your point guard (1) is at the point, with two players (one immediately in back of the other—2, 4) on or near one of the blocks. The other two players (3, 5) start in the same manner on or near the other block.

2-3 formation. This formation puts your two guards (1, 2) between the wing position and the top of the circle, one on either side. Your forwards (3, 4) begin at the corners, with the center (5) on one of the blocks. (See page 14.)

1-4 formation. In this formation the point guard (1) is at the point, and the other players position themselves along the baseline. Players 2 and 3 start at the corners, with the larger players 4 and 5 on the blocks. (See page 14.)

Principles of Offense

Perhaps the most fundamental division in a half-court offense (an offense executed once the team advances into the frontcourt) is the one between a continuity play and a set play. The continuity offense and zone offense plays presented later in this chapter are generically called continuity plays. A continuity play is simply a sequence of player and ball movements that repeats itself until a scoring opportunity opens up. This approach has distinct advantages, particularly for a youth team:

• It provides a framework and a pattern for your offense—a welcome relief from having young players cluster around the ball, dribble to no purpose with their backs to the basket, or give up their dribble deep in a corner and then give up the ball to a double-team.

• It involves all five players and prevents the defense from keying on your best players.

• It provides passing, dribbling, and scoring opportunities for every player, keeping their heads in the game, enhancing their growth in and through the game, and giving them pride of accomplishment—and isn't that what it's all about?

• It teaches fundamental principles such as spacing, purposeful movement, entry passes, and others.

• It teaches such fundamentals of offensive teamwork as the give-and-go and setting screens.

• Since there is usually no shot clock in youth play, you don't have to worry about a clock violation. The continuity sequence can repeat itself indefinitely until a scoring opportunity appears.

• Because it's a repeating pattern, it's easier for the kids to learn and you don't have to call instructions from the bench. Parents will marvel at the smooth-running efficiency of your team!

We recommend that you teach your players two to four continuity plays: one or two to use against a man-to-man defense, and one or two to use against a zone defense.

But what if your continuity offense stops working? What if it fails to create scoring opportunities? What if it becomes too predictable and the other team learns how to defend it and create turnovers from it? This shouldn't happen if your players continue to work on their skills and their initiative—ball fakes, step fakes, crisp passes, sharp cuts and drives, effective screens, and good open shots. Your athletes should make purposeful and aggressive movements, rather than go though the motions—the only exception is a slower movement to lull the defender before making an explosive move to the basket or the ball. But if despite best efforts, your continuity offense bogs down, you can try calling a set play from the bench.

Unlike a continuity play, a set play has an end. If it doesn't result in a scoring opportunity, the offense must reset before running another play. The advantages of a set play are:

• It can be designed to get the ball into the hands of your best player or players.

• It can be designed to attack unskilled defenders or a zone defense's areas of weakness.

• One or two well-executed set plays can create scoring opportunities over and over again, especially in a youth league, and can alter the tenor of a game.

Chapters 2 through 8 cover a wide range of set plays, including basic set plays, give-and-go plays, backdoor plays, pick-and-roll plays, scissor plays, baseline screen plays, and low post plays. Teach your players two or three of these—certainly no more than a handful. Choose plays that are well matched to what your most accomplished players do best.

In addition, you'll need a few plays for special situations: a fast-break opportunity, beating a backcourt press, and inbounding the ball from a sideline or baseline. You'll find these in Chapters 9 and 10. One of each should suffice, except that you might want to teach two to four plays for inbounding the ball from the offensive baseline—one or two to use against a man-to-man defense and one or two to use against a zone defense.

Resist the temptation to try to teach or make your players memorize every play or even most of the plays in this book. Rather, browse the book to select the handful of plays that your team can learn readily and execute well. Then build from there.

For example, all of the give-and-go plays presented in this book are derived from the same basic play. Chapter 3, the give-and-go chapter, shows you how the various permutations can be executed from different positions or angles on the court or used in different situations. The same can be said for the backdoor plays, the pick-and-roll plays, and so on. Therefore, you can first use this book to teach your players the basic version of the give-and-go and/or some of the other play categories. Once they master the basic version, you can (as the season progresses and as the need arises) use this book to show your players how they can vary the basic play to suit a situation.

Keep in mind the following principles when teaching the strategies in this book:

Spacing. A clogged-up area of the court not only limits scoring opportunities but leads to confusion and turnovers. It's quite common for the players on a youth team to converge on the ball, even if the ball handler is in good control. This draws all the defenders toward the ball as well, increasing the chances of a steal or other turnover. While you never want to discourage assertiveness or good hustle, you should teach your team that good spacing helps spread out the defense and makes it a bit harder for the defenders to help each other out. A 12- to 15-foot passing distance between offensive players is a good rule of thumb to follow. Spacing is an important component of all the offensive formations (offensive sets) and plays in this book.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from The Baffled Parent's Guide to Great Basketball Playsby Fran Dunphy Lawrence Hsieh Copyright © 2010 by The McGraw-Hill. Excerpted by permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Edition details

• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
• Publication date: 2009
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0071502793
• ISBN 13: 9780071502795
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 144