Do you already get off-the-ball movement and spacing on your dribble drives?

Even if you answered "Yes"... you'll definitely want to check out this tip below.

That's because it'll make your spacing even better, put the defense in scramble mode, and create more open shots for your team!

Quite simply, your players put the defense in a position where they have to pick their poison. And this creates more open dribble drives and more open perimeter shots! (More on that below...)

When this movement occurs, it creates what Coach Ryan Schultz calls a "positive pass" which you can see in the diagram below.

As you can see in the diagram above, if Player 1 dribble drives and gets met with help defense, the best option is to kick it out to Player 4.

When Player 4 gets above the level of the ball (line across the court) for the kick-up pass, this is referred to as a positive pass.

This creates a longer closeout for the defender. And when executed properly, the defender has to go through the passer making the closeout even more difficult.

As a result, this typically happens...

1. Player 4 gets a wide open perimeter shot.
2. The help defender (x4) over-commits to stop the perimeter shot and creates a wide open driving lane for Player 4 to attack.
3. It creates enough indecision for the help defender (x4) that they don't even stop Player 1 off the initial dribble drive.

BUT if Player 4 stays in the corner, this creates a negative pass where the pass is below the level of the ball. The closeout is shorter and the recovery easier for the help defender which can result in missed opportunities.

Here's another situation where the dribble drive is towards the middle of the floor...

In the diagram below, when Player 1 drives, the same concepts apply.

You want to make the closeout as difficult as possible and put the defense in another difficult situation.

Now player 2 wants to get behind the ball handler (1). On a dribble drive to the left, that means they want to get to the right side of the ball.

As a result, the help defender (x2) has to go through the offensive player (1) and the other defender (x1) in order to close out on the perimeter player (2). If 2 doesn't slide over far enough, the defender has a shorter closeout with no players as obstacles making the closeout quicker and easier to guard.

And those subtle movements can be the difference between your offense sputtering to a halt versus freeing up players for wide open jump shots or a head start on the next dribble drive attack!

So there you have it-a simple change your offense can make immediately to get more uncontested jump shots or wide open lanes for easy layups.

Hope you find that helpful!

P.S. This tactic is just one of the strategies that Coach Schultz includes in his "Hybrid Attack Offense" Program-the exact system he's used to lead his teams to 6 state appearances in 7 years! So if you're interested in getting better shots and scoring more points, you can check out all the "Hybrid Attack" Offense details here (you'll also get a special Breakthrough Basketball discount when you click the link!)

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