Off-Ball "Next Defense", Steve Donahue, and Brazil's "Triple Post Action"
Playing to Win
Welcome to our “Sunday Mornin’ Newsletter”, where we explore the best ideas, strategies, and coaches from around the world of basketball.
Today’s edition will explore:
Off-Ball “Next” Defense Strategies
Brazilian Triple Post Action
Steve Donahue Podcast Insights
Best Sets of the Week
Teams to Watch/Interesting Reads
Let’s dive in…
Off-Ball “Next Defense”
A few months ago we looked into one of the more effective and creative ways that teams in the international game were using “Next Defense” as part of their PNR Coverage. In its simplest form, “Next” is when the Help defender at the Nail either stunts or fully commits to a switch onto the ballhandler after they’ve turned the corner. As always, there are many other variations and this coverage “depends” on specific game-to-game scouts, but here is a typical “Next” defensive switch on a PNR going toward the middle of the floor…
As you can see in the clip above, the defender at the Nail commits to stopping the downhill penetration while the defender who was guarding the ball sprints underneath to close-out on the corner shooter.
Advantages of this? One of the main advantages of “Nexting” a PNR is that it allows you to keep your Defensive Big matched up with the Offensive Big setting the screen. Whether he/she rolls or pops, the Defensive Big doesn’t have to worry about “Icing” or picking up the ball handler, thus taking away at least one of the biggest threats in the PNR… the rim roll, the short roll, the pop, or the mismatch created from a switch.
To see the “Next”PNR defensive coverage and more of the variation teams can run with it, see our breakdown video below.
Now, onto the “Off-Ball Next Defense”…
Very similar to the PNR coverage, the Off-Ball “Next” attempts to cause confusion and take away the open gaps created from a wide-pin. We’ll break this up into “Stunts” and “Full Rotations”, and some of the concepts embedded within each.
Off-Ball “Next” - Stunts
To start, here’s a look at a simple “Stunt” in the Off-Ball “Next” scheme…
Beyond just stunting into the gap to take away any penetration as the shooter comes off the pin-down, the “Next” defender can also be active in attacking the ball for potential steal/strip opportunities…
* Zooming In: In both cases above, note how:
1) The off-ball defender does a great job of trailing the shooter off the screen to turn them into the middle of the floor,
2) How quickly the “Next” defender jumps off his man after the pass to stunt and cause havoc on the ball,
3) The angle in which the “Next” defender is stunting (more on this below).
4) The quick timing of the stunt. A late stunt will allow the shooter to get into the gap and put the defense into rotation. The aggressive stunt is also important because it makes any attacking dribble or pass from the shooter coming off the screen very difficult.
*Zooming Out: This strategy can leave the defense vulnerable to a quick pass back to the offensive PG who has just passed the ball (“boomerang action”), which we’ll explore below, which is why the “Next” rotations are equally as important as the stunt to recover from the quick pass back.
Besides this “Boomerang Action”, other ways that offenses will look to attack an aggressive stunt from the Nail defender is by immediately setting a flare for the passer. The Spurs would do this out of “Floppy Action” for Tony Parker/Ginobili, it’s ingrained in the “Mover Blocker” Offense, and we put an edit of some European teams using the concept as well HERE.
Off-Ball “Next”- Full Rotations
A quick stunt is very effective in disrupting a shooter’s rhythm, as well as the flow of an offense, especially if they’re stunting off a non-shooter. But sometimes a full commitment to switching is necessary.
To start, here’s a look at a full commitment to “nexting” once the pass is made…
In this situation, the guard coming off the ball is fully committed to contesting the shot and leaving his man at the top (who looks a little upset about the shot selection of his teammate).
If the shooter doesn’t force up a heat-check, like the banker on our men’s league team, and does move the ball back to the offensive player at the top of the key, we’ll start to see the full “Next” rotation take place.
The above GIF shows an important detail in making this scheme successful, and that is the high angle and active hands the “Next” defender uses when he commits to coming off his man. The high angle and active hands forces a slower lob pass that allows the defender guarding the shooter to sprint underneath the action and effectively close out on the ball.
If the offense does a good job of quickly passing back to the PG at the top, then a weak side “Stunt and Funnel” will be required from the far-side defender. Like shown below, his job is to force the ball back into the gap that his teammate is sprinting into…
Here’s a nice look at all of the above mentioned points being nicely executed…
1) The full, quick, and aggressive switch with a high angle and active hands
2) A weak side “Stunt and Funnel” back to the middle
3) A recovery middle to re-match up and keep the ball in front
*Zooming Out: Important to note here how much an individual scouting report and gameplan can/will vary the coverage and decisions of this Off-Ball “Next” defense. In the last GIF, the defense is helping and switching off a historically reluctant three point shooter in Calathes (31% career 3pt%). This will undoubtedly affect the close-out angles of the defenders as well as the decision to leave the ball so aggressively. It also affects the “stunt or switch” decision of the far-side defender. If Calathes were an elite shooter then the far-side defender would likely switch out to him and the defender sprinting off the initial shooter would continue rotating to another player on the far-side and test the ability of the offense to make multiple passes to gain an advantage.
*Another Note: Like any defense, this Off-Ball “Next” coverage requires a full commitment from the coaching staff to effectively implement as an overall “defensive scheme.” But, it can also be highly effective in ATO situations where a defense decides to run this scheme one time to disrupt an ATO set that the opposing coach just spent 60 seconds drawing up.
Additional Resources for Study
Brazilian Triple Post Action
We had a blast this week in our 3rd podcast episode of the “Extra Pass.” These twice a month episodes are shorter (under 25 minutes) and focus on a specific basketball/coaching topic.
This week we were fortunate to explore the “Brazilian Triple Post Action” with the Assistant Coach of Basquete Unifacisa, KJ Smith. We’ve talked a bunch in past videos and podcasts about the “Bilbao Action”, as well as other types of off-ball movement on a post catch, and the “Triple Post” was another we felt was worth diving into for all the great options it provides.
Here are three of the main actions from the scheme…
#1 Curl for Layup
The whole action often starts with either a shuffle or cross screen by a guard to get a post player into great post position. Once the ball is entered into the post, the progressions start. The first read for the guard is if his/her defender is playing behind or trailing. If so, they’ll look to Curl back to the rim off the “Trail Big” at the top of the key…
#2 Backdoor a Top-Lock
The next read for the guard is if his/her defender is “top-locking” or playing above them as they begin to make their cut towards the top, then they’ll plant hard and cut backdoor…
#3 Pin Down Away
If the guard is not open on either the Curl or the Backdoor, then the Trail Big at the top of the key will then set a Pin Down Screen on the weak side for the guard in the opposite corner. This is a great situation to set this Pin Down as the defender guarding the offensive player in the corner is either stunting to help on the Curl/Backdoor, or finds themself in a natural helpside position and is not attached the their man to disrupt the screen…
* Further teaching points: After these first couple of actions the offense will then play out of whatever advantages they’re presented. In our podcast with Coach Smith he also discusses:
Playing into a PNR after the action
When the Offensive Post who has the ball will start to “go to work” to score
When they’ll run a Grenade DHO out of the action
Teaching the screening and passing angles
And more
Coach Smith also has his own great YouTube video on the action which you can watch HERE.
Steve Donahue - Re-Thinking the Game
We had the pleasure this week of sitting down with one of the best minds in the game, University of Pennsylvania Head Coach, Steve Donahue. Coach Donahue is highly regarded within the coaching community for both his superb tactical ability on the court, but also his openness and willingness with players and coaches to share his knowledge off the court as well. Some of the topics we explored include:
Seeking and Giving Mentorship
How to approach someone to be a mentor
How to look for the right types of mentors
Attending practices and making valuable connections
Advanced Screening Concepts
Slipping, Angles, and what comes after setting a screen
Rolling to Post (when and how to try and post a “tag” defender)
Not offensive fouling
Crunch Time Analytics
The Value of Pace in late-game scenarios
The Midrange Jumpshot
The balance of “art and science” in crunch time (feel and analytics)
Being aggressive in late-game situations and not playing “not to lose”
“Start, Sub, or Sit?!”
Phillies, Eagles, or Flyers?!
Philly Fans, New York Fans, or Boston Fans?!
Rules to add to college men’s game: Timeout to advance the ball, 4 quarters instead of two halves, 5 -foul double bonus each quarter?!
Wing PNR, Middle PNR with 2 Players Behind, Slot PNR with 1 player behind?!
Re-Thinking the Game
Creativity, Relationships, Guarding the Three Point Line, and Growth as a coach
If you have a second, we’d really appreciate a Rating and Review on Apple to help the podcast continue to grow. This helps other coaches find the podcast. Thank you! You can do that here…
Best Sets of the Week
All sorts of great action this week from Manresa, UPENN, BC Nevėžis-Optibet, and more in the Best Sets of the Week.
Teams to Watch/Interesting Reads
Some great teams we watched this week:
Michigan (NCAA D1)
Northwest Missouri State (NCAA D2)
Oregon Women (NCAA D1)
Guangdong (China CBA)
Lietkabelis (Lithuanian League)
Interesting Reads (Joe Boylan Edition)
A few weeks ago we had Joe Boylan on the podcast. The former NBA Assistant and current owner of Hoops Mind was a terrific guest and well worth the hour to check out. He shared with us some of his recent readings. Here they are…
Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this newsletter we’d appreciate a quick share to others you think would find value in it. You can do that here…
Have a great week coaching,
Dan and Pat
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Your newsletter is consistently informative and helpful. Thanks for the great work, especially the breakdowns.