No matter what offense you or any other coach runs...

Odds are it ends with the primary goal of getting paint touches.

Why?

Because, plain and simple, possessions with paint touches = a higher scoring percentage. Getting into the paint...

• Results in the highest percentage shot
• Initiates more fouls
• Creates more free throws
• Forces the defense to collapse & creates chances for open kick-out 3-point shots.
• Opens up additional driving opportunities off the kick-out pass.

Quite simply, you've broken down the defense when you get it into the paint.

But if you can force your opponent away from the middle, suddenly their offensive options become much more limited.

For example, let's say you're able to force a player to one side of the floor or even the corner. In the diagram below, you force them to the left side of the floor.

Now, they can only pass to the right side of the floor. Where if they dribble penetrate to the middle of the floor, they can pass in all directions.

Denying penetration to the middle essentially cuts their passing options in half for what they can do with the ball.

You also force more skip passes and these are riskier passes. If they're not precise and fast, your defense can get steals and deflections.

And even if they are fast and precise passes, your defense can recover more easily since they are LONGER passes.

So, defensively, it makes your team's job a whole lot easier.

You can anticipate what the offensive player will do.

Now, think about dribble penetration... your defense knows where your help comes from!

If your opponent dribble penetrates, it'll often be to the baseline side and your bottom helpside defender knows to be on high alert.

And your other helpside defensive players can react instinctively with their rotations!

It might seem like a relatively small adjustment, but think about the consequences it could have.

Imagine if you could cut your opponents' field goal percentage by 10% on 10 to 20 more possessions a game!

That could potentially add 5 to 7 wins to your season total!

That's the difference between good teams and championship teams...

And because of how easy this system is to implement, you could start seeing meaningful results and improvements like that this season!

If you'd like to learn how, take a look at:

The Outer Third Defense (No Middle Defense) with Nick LoGalbo

What do you think? Let us know by leaving your comments, suggestions, and questions...

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