Defensive Philosophy in Small-Sided Games
- Emphasizes principle-based team teaching that integrates both offense and defense.
- Focuses on training basketball holistically rather than isolating offense and defense.
- Coaches should consider why they are playing a game and what they need to work on.
"Whenever you told me the topic of Defense, I'm like hey let's go. I probably labeled more as an offensive coach. What I'm most passionate about is exactly what you said, it's principle-based team teaching that allows you to teach offense and defense at the same time."
- The coach is enthusiastic about defensive principles despite being more known for offense.
- Principle-based teaching is essential for integrating both offensive and defensive training.
"We really play these games to train basketball because we're coaching basketball. We don't just coach offense; we don't just coach defense. But we're going to look at it through a defensive lens."
- The objective is to train the overall game of basketball.
- The focus is on a defensive perspective while still acknowledging offensive elements.
Principle-Based Teaching
- Principle-based teaching involves applying core principles to both offense and defense.
- Examples include spacing on offense and constricting space on defense, ball movement on offense and disrupting it on defense.
"When I say principle-based teaching, something like spacing is a principle on offense. If we value space, then defense, how do we constrict space? Or offense, we value ball movement. On defense, how do we slow down or disrupt the offense's ball movement?"
- Principles like spacing and ball movement are foundational for both offensive and defensive strategies.
"If you approach the game that way, it becomes simpler to teach but also easier to train and two-way teach where you don't have to block this is our offensive game that we're playing, this is our defensive game that we're playing."
- Integrating principles makes teaching and training more straightforward and effective.
Designing Defensive Games
- The overall defensive system impacts game design by altering scoring and constraints.
- Changing what constitutes a win for offense can help train defensive objectives.
"Our overall defensive system could change the design based on how we score it. Sometimes by changing what a win is for offense, you can train what we're trying to accomplish defensively."
- Adjusting game rules and scoring can help focus on specific defensive training goals.
"If we're trying to train defense to put them in jail, we're adding a constraint to the offense. If you want to work offense, add a defensive constraint; if you want to work defense, add an offensive constraint."
- Constraints on either side can enhance training for the opposite side, creating a balanced approach.
One-on-One Defensive Drills
- Specific drills like "one-on-one no dribble" focus on defensive skills like not fouling and creating contact.
- External cues such as "Palms to the ceiling" help reinforce proper defensive techniques.
"This is a great example of a constraint. In this game, we are one-on-one. The player in the black jersey has no dribbles. Our defender in orange, what we're training since offense does not have any dribbles, is showing the ref our hands, moving our feet, chesting the ball, and not going for fakes."
- Constraints like removing dribbles help focus on specific defensive skills.
"Instead of just saying hands up, hands up, hands up, we would say Palms to the ceiling. That way, we can actually see when we're watching film were your palms to the ceiling or did they come down and face the floor."
- External cues provide clear, observable actions that can be reviewed and corrected.
Types of Drills
- Drills are categorized into teaching, training, and competing.
- "Brush your teeth" drills are routine and foundational, while "sharpen your sword" drills are full-contact and competitive.
"There are three types of drills: teaching, training, and competing. Cody Toppert used these three categories: brush your teeth, water your plants, sharpen your sword."
- Different types of drills serve different purposes, from skill reinforcement to full-contact competition.
"That first drill was kind of a brush your teeth drill. This one would be more full contact, but we're going to get a little bit extra benefit in here."
- The first drill is foundational, while subsequent drills add complexity and competition.
Dynamic One-on-One Drills
- Drills like "blockout to cutout" start with a dynamic element like rebounding, then transition into live one-on-one play.
- External cues like "airplane defense" help players visualize and execute proper defensive stances.
"If we want to play one-on-one from the catch or off the jab, a great way to start would be from a blockout. Player at the basket is in white; they are going to block out player on the wing in black. Whoever gets the rebound gets to play offense."
- Starting with a rebounding element adds a competitive and dynamic aspect to one-on-one drills.
"When guarding a live dribble, we want to look like an airplane. Everybody knows what an airplane looks like; it's a nice external cue."
- Visual cues like "airplane defense" help players maintain proper form and technique.
Transfer of Skills
- Skills practiced in foundational drills transfer to more complex, dynamic drills.
- Effective training involves ensuring that skills learned in simpler drills are applicable in more competitive scenarios.
"That first game that we saw really transferred to this game. We'll watch one more; we call this blockout to cutout. Usually pretty competitive because you got to get a rebound to play offense."
- Skills from initial drills are carried over and tested in more competitive settings.
"Defense stays down, gets a rebound. So that first game that we saw really transferred to this game."
- The transfer of skills from foundational to dynamic drills is crucial for effective training.
Defensive System Design
- Principles of Play: The principles of play for offense and defense are inversely related. What is valued on offense is the opposite of what is valued on defense.
- Categories of Defensive Focus:
- Transition Defense: Preventing layups.
- Neutralizing Advantage Plays: Stopping open three-point shots.
- Defending Set Plays: Understanding and neutralizing the specific actions and plays run by the opponent.
"When I'm designing practice and this goes back to your principles of play and the Paradox of the game what we value on offense we value the opposite on defense."
- The design of defensive systems and practice drills is based on countering offensive strategies.
Defensive Categories and Strategies
- Transition Defense: Focuses on preventing fast-break layups.
- Neutralizing Threes: Emphasis on defending the three-point line.
- Defending Set Plays: Specific drills to counter the opponent's set plays.
"The way I would build my defensive system the way I would choose what games we play would be in these four categories transition defense how they get layups so let's look at a defensive lens how do we take away other teams layups which we would call a nine how do we take away their threes which we would call sevens assuming both are big advantage and then how do we take away this the stuff that they run."
- Defensive drills are categorized to address different aspects of the game, including transition defense, three-point defense, and set play defense.
Two on Two Defensive Drills
- Objective: To neutralize opponent's actions and plays.
- Scoring System Manipulation: Points are awarded based on specific defensive and offensive actions to gamify the drill.
"We use this two on two game to to prepare this is more Scout driven how do we neutralize the actions they run your one-on ones are how do we eliminate their nines right how do we can we eliminate them driving into the basket for for an open layup."
- The two-on-two drill is designed to mimic game situations and improve defensive responses to opponent's plays.
Defensive Principles
- Closing Out: Emphasis on closing out to the most dangerous player, termed as "closing off."
- Every Dribble is a Pass: Defensive strategy to force the offensive player to pass the ball by putting a chest in front of them.
- Eliminating Shots: The primary goal is to eliminate shots at all costs, similar to defense in hockey or soccer.
"A principle or a concept that we have on defense would be we always close out to the most dangerous player uh and we just call that the nearest man."
- Defensive principles include closing out to the nearest man and treating every dribble as a pass to force turnovers.
Feedback and Teaching
- Frequency of Feedback: More frequent during drills and less during live play.
- Buzzwords: Use of specific buzzwords to reinforce defensive principles during drills.
"If there's a teaching and I would say more teaching would be drill based right or teaching or introducing a new concept there's going to be a lot of feedback a lot of demonstration."
- Feedback is crucial during drills for teaching new concepts, but minimal during live play to avoid distraction.
Three on Three No Help Drill
- Objective: To train on-ball defense without relying on help defense.
- Importance of On-Ball Defender: The on-ball defender is considered the most important player, akin to a goalie in other sports.
"I mentioned this game is called three on three no help this was a um one I had to kind of convince myself to do because I don't like not working help defense because I love help defense but this is a way to train your ball on ball defense which is the most important part of Defense."
- The three-on-three no help drill focuses on improving individual defensive skills by isolating the on-ball defender's responsibilities.
Conclusion
- Defensive Practice Design: Emphasizes countering offensive strategies through specific drills and principles.
- Feedback and Reinforcement: Strategic use of feedback and buzzwords to enhance learning and application of defensive principles.
- Importance of On-Ball Defense: Highlighting the critical role of the on-ball defender in the overall defensive scheme.
Defensive Principles and Techniques
- Emphasize core defensive principles: guarding the ball, denying easy catches, and preventing straight-line drives.
- Develop defensive strategies from the ball outward, focusing first on on-ball defense, then one pass away, and post defense.
- Importance of individual on-ball defense and reducing reliance on help defense.
"I love this one because we can't rely on help. In the past, our teams have been so good at help sometimes we just funnel to the help instead of taking pride in our on-ball defense."
- Highlights the need for players to take responsibility for their on-ball defense rather than depending on help defense.
"The way I build defense would be from the ball out. If we're guarding the ball, we're going to take care of those core principles on guarding the ball then we would move to our principles of one pass away which also would include post defense."
- Outlines a structured approach to building a defense, starting from the ball and expanding to cover one pass away and post defense.
Drills and Games for Defensive Training
3-on-3 No Help Drill
- Focuses on individual defense without relying on help, useful for teams that spread out and use drive-and-kick strategies.
- Enhances players' ability to guard their man and prevent easy drives and passes.
4-on-4 Two Ball Cover Down Drill
- Involves a scripted start with a baseline drive and defensive rotations.
- Introduces a second ball to teach multiple efforts and scramble defense.
"Here's the script: we pass it, guard the guard, guard the wing, and we have to start with a baseline drive. So we drive baseline, we help over, we help down. If this baseline drift pass gets through, we're live and now we're working defensive rotation."
- Describes the setup and objectives of the 4-on-4 two-ball cover down drill, emphasizing defensive rotations and multiple efforts.
"I like adding the second ball because it teaches multiple efforts, right? We've got to scramble, we've got to play once we do this it's just completely four-on-four live."
- Explains the benefit of adding a second ball to the drill to simulate game-like scenarios and enhance defensive efforts.
4-on-4 Cutthroat Drill
- Utilizes three teams with a focus on defense; points are scored by getting stops or rebounds.
- Coaches select specific violations to emphasize, like missed blockouts or allowing right-hand drives.
- Encourages players to internalize defensive principles in live play.
"You can only score points on the defensive end. The way you score points is by getting a rebound or a stop of some sort. Anytime we violate, meaning in this game we said any missed blockout is a violation."
- Details the scoring system and objectives of the Cutthroat drill, emphasizing defensive stops.
"Another constraint that I love and violation in Cutthroat that I like would be jumping to the ball. Most coaches that are trying to fix their defense are neglecting their team's ability to jump to the ball."
- Highlights the importance of specific defensive actions, like jumping to the ball, within the Cutthroat drill.
Practical Tips for Coaches
- Limit the number of emphasized violations in drills to prevent overwhelming players.
- Focus on one key defensive or offensive principle at a time to ensure effective learning and transfer to live play.
"I can't agree more in regards to like emphasizing too many things during these games. I had a group of players that there were so many things that they kind of, you could tell, mentally just threw them all out."
- Acknowledges the issue of overloading players with too many points of emphasis, leading to confusion and lack of focus.
"Keeping those things limited, they just don't know what's important. The second thing is I love we have a game that's a five-on-five we just call it hunting turkeys because we're trying to get the three stops in a row."
- Suggests limiting focus to one key aspect and introduces a game to practice getting consecutive defensive stops.
Conclusion
- Reinforces the importance of practicing defensive principles in live, game-like scenarios.
- Encourages the use of small-sided games and specific constraints to improve defensive skills and transfer them to actual games.
Defensive Drills and Their Impact on Offense
- Emphasizing defense in drills can sharpen offensive skills.
- Players become more accountable for taking better shots and avoiding turnovers.
- Effective small-sided games train both offense and defense.
"It rewards defense and it encourages them to get to defense as quickly as possible, which goes contrary to every part of a player's being; they want to play offense."
- The drill changes the player’s natural inclination towards offense, emphasizing the importance of defense.
"It fine-tuned our offense because teams were taking better shots, guys were holding each other even more accountable to take better shots, to not make a turnover."
- Accountability for shot selection and turnovers improves offensive performance.
"I think that's the test of a great small-sided game, is that you do train both things but there may be an emphasis on one side of the ball."
- Effective drills should balance training both offensive and defensive skills.
Rebounding and Its Importance
- Rebounding is crucial and should be consistently practiced.
- Teams can get exposed if they neglect rebounding drills.
- Practicing rebounding is linked to overall team toughness.
"Rebounding is such an important part of the game; it's one of the four factors. It's an important metric in winning and losing."
- Rebounding is a critical determinant in the outcome of games.
"If you're not working on it or training it in some aspect, I think you're asking for trouble along the way because at some point you will be exposed on the boards."
- Neglecting rebounding practice can lead to vulnerabilities during games.
"You can't eat seven apples on Sunday...if you get to that certain point of your season where it's like, oh, we haven't worked on rebounding, let's work on it a lot, it's probably too late."
- Consistent practice is necessary; last-minute efforts are ineffective.
Focus in Practice Sessions
- Limiting objectives in practice sessions can enhance effectiveness.
- Too many focal points can dilute the effectiveness of practice.
"I would also caution coaches of having too many objectives in practice in general...it's just really, really hard to walk away from those practices and say like gosh, we got really good at this today."
- Fewer objectives allow for deeper focus and more substantial improvement.
Defensive Rotations and Close-Out Drills
- Drills that build up from one-on-one to five-on-five can simulate game scenarios.
- Emphasizes defensive rotations and neutralizing offensive advantages.
"You have a line of defenders underneath the basket, you have a line of offensive players at the top of the key. Defense throws the ball out and we're playing live one-on-one."
- Starting with one-on-one drills helps players focus on individual defense.
"We build up to four-on-four...now we're five-on-five and now we're just completely live."
- Gradual build-up to full-team play simulates real-game defensive rotations.
Knockout Game for Scoring System
- Knockout games can emphasize specific defensive or offensive actions.
- Scoring by specific actions (e.g., ball screens, DHO) can focus practice on critical plays.
"We're going to score by twos and threes to eight points...you're going to give each team a knockout punch and that might be a specific action."
- Specific actions as knockout punches focus on particular skills or strategies.
"If the roller scores, that's the knockout punch, game's going to be over."
- Emphasizes the importance of defending specific plays like ball screens.
Connecting Small-Sided Games
- Small-sided games should be connected to larger drills to reinforce skills.
- Consistency in practice drills helps in skill retention and application.
"Connect some of your other small-sided games like the two-on-two on top where coaches are playing against D."
- Linking different drills ensures comprehensive skill development.
"Honestly, I think you could take all these games, the one-on-one through five-on-five, and only have those in your drill library and probably touch on everything."
- A well-designed set of drills can cover all necessary aspects of the game.
Disadvantage Games for Defensive Training
- Disadvantage games (e.g., four offensive players vs. three defenders) are effective for defensive training.
- Emphasizes defensive rotations and handling offensive advantages.
"A big disadvantage game for defense meaning there's four offensive players and three defenders just so we're getting a lot of help in rotation."
- Disadvantage games force defenders to improve their help and rotation skills.
"Offense is training domino's .5, defense is training defensive rotation trying to get neutral."
- Both offense and defense benefit from disadvantage games, enhancing overall team performance.