I didn't catch the game between Spain and Serbia live the other day in FIBA EuroBasket Tournament action but I was a little surprised at the result of the game, a 66-57 win for Serbia. 57 is definitely a low number for the Spaniards so I took a look at the game film to see what Serbia did specifically on defense to shut them down. After all, this was the same Spanish team that just about upset the Redeem Team.

Clearly the philosophy behind the Serbs defensive strategy was to clog the lane and prevent any layups. They did this in the following ways:

- they got back in transition defense, sending only 1 to the offensive boards.
- against Spain's deadly fast break with Ricky "Business" Rubio, the Serbs fouled at every opportunity, opting for free-throws rather than allowing layups.
- they helped with at least 1, sometimes 2 defenders on all penetration.
- finally, they doubled the post, but came from the weak side along the baseline.

Combined, it worked to disrupt the offensive flow for the Spaniards. With this kind of "pack line" type defense, the Serbs did give up some open shots, and the Spaniards weren't able to hit shots, going 18-for-42 on 2-pointers, just 2-for-19 3-pointers, and an unconscionable 15-for-28 from the free-throw line.

But I did want to look a little more at the doubling of the post, specifically against Gasol (both Pau and Marc), because it was somewhat unique. The idea is to bring help from the baseline for 2 reasons. The first is that it cuts off the baseline and shuts off the drop step move, forcing the post player to go middle and a slightly more difficult jump hook. The second reason is the double comes from a spot with which it is difficult for the ball handler to see and pass to, thus allowing the rotating defender to easily pick off the pass,



The Serbs must have picked off about 4 or 5 passes this way. The double comes from the blind side. The post attempts to pass out of the double-team by locating from where the double-team came. The weak-side defender easily reads the pass and gets a hand on the ball for the deflection or the outright steal. The Spaniards could never really get a handle on this the entire game.

Summary

In one of those situations where you prepare and execute to beat the best team, but then go ahead and lose against an inferior team, the Serbs did just that. After beating Spain, they proceeded to lose to Slovenia. As this tournament progresses, it will be very interesting to see how the final standings end up, with the top 6 out of 13 earning spots to the World Championships next year in Turkey.

For more ideas on defending the post, take a look at Lon Kruger's DVD on Winning Every Possession on Defense. Coach Kruger is the head coach of UNLV.

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With all the craze over the dribble drive offense, I tend to see a creep of some of my pet peeves as a coach, over dribbling. Don't get me wrong, I think the dribble is a fundamental part of basketball, but when you can move the ball much quicker with the pass, when you should be able to get to the basket on 1 dribble, I think there is a lot to be said for minimizing the amount of dribbles you make as a team.

I caught some Euro 2009 qualifying action the other day between France and Turkey and it really stuck out from watching the game in the second half. France relied way to much on Tony Parker dribble penetration. The Turkish defense was in a pack, matchup zone, whatever you want to call it, and Parker just kept dribbling into a crowd. I don't understand a lot of French, but I can hear the commentators say something like, "trop de complicateur" and "tres difficile". France made things way more complicated than it should be, just reverse the ball, and shoot the open shot. Take a look,




No Need to Dribble:

Turkey was playing a switching M2M pack, or a packed in matchup zone, whichever you look at it. Instead of trying to dribble drive and kick so much, what probably would've been easier to execute was simply a backpick on the weakside, then swing the ball either through the high post or up top,


Shoot When Open:

When you're open, you must shoot the ball. Drive and kick, endlessly won't result in anything good. If you don't have confidence in your players ability to shoot, then drive and kick simply won't work. You can't drive and kick for the sake of driving some more. Drive and kick works because it will give you an open shot, which you must take,


Summary:

Of course, it's easy to sit hear and pick a few clips and show some pictures of how things ought to be. But as coaches, we all know things are much different in reality. But we can adapt and change, we must. I think by looking at your team and your coaching critically, only then will you improve and reach your ultimate goals, so you don't repeat mistakes over and over again.

From one of the great basketball coaches in the game, check out Don Meyer's brand new DVD on Best Things He Learned in Coaching. I was very saddened to hear that Coach Meyer has been hospitalized due to a recent auto accident and now has learned he has cancer. My thoughts go out to Coach Meyer and his family and I truly hope he will recover soon so that he can do what he was born to do, coach basketball. Be sure to check out the X's and O's Basketball forum to discuss your favorite coaching topics.

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What a final match. It had everything, drama, suspense, passion, both teams played unbelievable, put everything out there and in the end, Team USA was just a little better, barely. Though defensively, both teams could've have played better, I felt that Spain really couldn't have done any more to stop Team USA, and Team Spain were hitting some unbelievable shots that Team USA couldn't have defended any better.

Obviously, the big plays in the 4th quarter were the 4-point play by Kobe Bryant and 3-pointer by Dwyane Wade with 2 minutes to go and up by 4. Though in my opinion I thought Lebron James was the key to the win. Bryant got the scores, but I felt Lebron made all the big clutch plays even though they probably didn't get noticed much.

Hustle on Defense and Offense:

With 5 minutes to go and Team USA up by 9, this was one of those sequences where you look back and say, this could've been a potential 4 point swing either way. Thankfully for Team USA it went their way. First, after a Team Spain miss, and a battle for the defensive board, the ball is tipped by Dwight Howard. It should've gone out of bounds but Lebron chases the loose ball and saves it to his teammate,


Then Lebron runs the floor, gets the ball and goes up for the laypup. He misses, but gets the offensive rebound and goes up strong and scores, Team USA stretches the lead to 11,


High Post Zone Offense:

When Coach K put Lebron in the game at that high post position against the zone, that was a key tactical substitution. Once Lebron got the ball in the high post, the defense must respect his ability to attack the rim with 1 dribble or less. Watch as 3 Spanish defenders converge on Lebron, he gets one dribble off then pitches it out to an open Dwyane Wade who hit that huge 3-pointer that put the game away,


Defensive Rebounding:

Rebounding wins games. In a game where the bigger Spanish team actually outrebounded Team USA 37-31, it's WHEN you get the rebounds that matter. After Team Spain misses a 3-pointer, you can see Pao Gasol actually try to push Lebron who has position to get the rebound. Lebron doesn't budge, skys for the rebound and pulls it down. Danger averted,


Summary:

Team USA were never really in a tight game going into the 4th quarter prior to this game so we never knew how they would respond or who they would go to. Now we know. Kobe and Lebron made the big plays down the stretch and one has to wonder if they win this game without them. It was a well-deserved win for Team USA and Team Spain played their guts out, fighting and clawing their way for every basket. It was fitting that the best game of the tournament was also the Gold medal game, the way it's supposed to be.

For more great winning strategies from a truly great basketball mind, take a look at Hubie Brown's DVD on Playbook for Success. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to discuss this and other basketball topics.

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Two terrific games at the Olympics today in Beijing. First, Spain with the gutsy win over Lithuania in the early game. Then Team USA beating a resilient Argentinian team that almost took it to the Americans without Manu Ginobili who went down in the first quarter with an ankle injury.

A lot of people will point to the apparent phantom foul call by the referee on the 3-point shot by Carmelo Anthony to close out the half as the play that changed the game. Certainly from a momentum standpoint, that halted the ferocious 2nd quarter surge by the Argentinians. But I felt that Team USA came out of halftime with a different mentality on attacking the zone that frustrated them so much in that 2nd quarter. Credit to Coach K for making the necessary adjustments during halftime. Really, the Americans didn't do anything special scheme wise. I saw 1 or 2 nice BLOB plays they used against the zone inbounds, but other than that Team USA just kept to basics to beat the zone.

Early Postup:

Just because it is a zone defense doesn't mean you can't fast break or run an early offense. In fact, one of the best ways to beat the zone is for your forwards to go key to key and gain an early postup advantage. That is exactly what Dwight Howard does here getting very deep postup position in the lane,


Skip Passes:

Probably the most significant change Team USA made coming out of halftime was moving the ball side to side. It's that old hoosiers line "3 passes before you shoot". Nothing fancy here, Team USA is spread in a 4-out 1-in, and they just move the ball from side to side and Dwight Howard is going from block to block. Eventually, there is a breakdown in the zone defense with all the side to side action and allows Howard inside position for the dunk,


Use Pump Fakes:

This is probably just lack of preparation and scouting by Argentina who from what I understand don't like running the zone defense. Here, Scola goes back to play the ball after the pass out from the post to the wing. Kidd receives the ball and gives a head fake, Scola bites on the fake and jumps at him (bad mistake as we all know Kidd can't shoot well), Kidd dumps off a nice bounce pass to Chris Bosh who nails the shot from the short corner,


Offensive Rebounding:

Last but not least, you can almost single handily beat a zone defense if you have great offensive rebounding. Because the defense is playing the ball, it is elementary for your forwards to get underneath the defense and grab the rebounds. In fact Team USA outrebounded Argentina 16-9 on the offensive glass and 43 to 32 overall. Off the 3-pointer miss, Dwyane Wade flies into the open lane and skies to tap the ball back to his teammates,


Summary:

Zone defenses can work extremely when used by a less athletic team trying to nullify the athletic advantage. Zone defenses can become a killer to beat offensively if your team is undisciplined and makes bad decisions no matter how athletic you are. In the first half, when Argentina reluctantly switched to the zone, that is exactly what happened. Team USA settled for 3-pointers, didn't share the ball and just didn't play smart overall. In the second half, they started to pass the ball, get offensive rebounds, and make smart decisions, and it worked.

Tomorrow, Team USA faces Spain in a rematch of their round robin game. The difference I felt in that game was the toughness factor. Team USA bullied the Spanish players around for 40 minutes and they didn't know quite how to respond. We'll see if Team Spain is up for the challenge. They seemed able to toughen it out against a solid Lithuanian team so who knows.

More info for you coaches on zone offense, this is Ronnie Arrow's DVD on his Inside/Outside Zone Offense. Coach Arrow is the head coach of the University of South Alabama. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

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Unfortunately I was only able to catch the Spain vs Croatia game last night but thankfully it was a great game. I thought Spain came out fired up early and Croatia could never quite make up the necessary ground after being down 10-1.

One of the things that I like about Spain and especially their forwards and big men is the way they set screens. Specifically Marc and Pao Gasol, we've all seen Pao playing for the Lakers, he does a great job. But Marc does a great job as well, really gets into a nice wide stance. Let's also not forget that it takes 2 to tango. In any screen, on-ball or off-ball, it takes a combination of the screener and mover working together to make it work and Spain does it all very well.

Stay Wide:

Get wide son! Of course, the bigger you are, the wider you can get. Though you don't want to get your feet too much wider than shoulder width. When you have a wide base, you cover more area and your feet are firmly planted. I've watched too many screens where the screener almost had feet together and the defender could easily get around or through the screener.



Be Patient, Shoulder to Hip:

In the previous pictures, there was a gap between screener and mover. Mainly because the defender was playing off their check. You hear as a coach that movers should be shoulder to hip with the screener so that the defender cannot squeeze through. That may not always be the case, especially when the defender is playing off in which case you have to see whether the defense will hedge, trap, or go underneath. However, if the defender is playing 1 hand away or hand on hip, then you definitely want your movers to go shoulder to hip with the screener so that the defender cannot squeeze in between, like so,


Summary:

Spain moves on to the semi-finals starting tomorrow night to face Lithuania. I suspect Spain to come out and play hard, especially after that tragic plane crash in Madrid today. Those events usually fire up players, gives them more motivation. Lithuania is a very good team, and I think it could very well come down to a last possession in the 4th quarter.

If your a regular at coaching clinics every year, you'll recognize the name Don Meyer. If you want a nice guide to coaching you should check out Don Meyer's new DVD on Basketball the Don Meyer Way. Coach Meyer is the head coach of DivII Northern State University and the second winningest coach in college basketball history. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

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Now that the games count for real, all the pressure is now on all the remaining 8 teams in Beijing to bring home the bacon, none more than Team USA. After doubling up on Germany, Team USA will face Team Australia in the quarterfinals. Though I expect Team USA to win the game, I don't think they will come anywhere near doubling them up.

Team Australia and Team USA have already played, in the pre-Olympic tournament. In that game, Team USA struggled with Team Australia. I highlighted Team Australia's offense which at the time did not have Andrew Bogut in the lineup. I watched Australia dismantle the top team in Group A, Lithuania, and was extremely impressed with their offense especially. Now, I know that Lithuania had already locked up top spot in Group A and were probably only going about 90%, it was the way they won that impressed me. They didn't get a lot of cheapy fast break points, most of their scoring came from execution off their half-court offense, which will obviously be a major factor in their game against Team USA.

Multiple Sets:

What I like about Australia's offense is their versatility. They're most popular sets are the 2-3 high and 1-2-2 but I've seen them go 4-out 1-in and even 1-4 low. Here is the 2-3 high,

Here is their 1-2-2,


Backdoor Cuts, Give and Gos:

What Australia loves to do out of their set offense is to go backdoor and give and go. So, off their 2-3, their first cut is a flex cut and a look to the cutter. In their 1-2-2, you'll see the forward pops out to receive the pass up top, then looks for the corner wing to go backdoor,


Team USA will really have to be cognizant of the backdoors. Since we expect them to come out with their aggressive man defense, they will be especially vulnerable to getting backdoored, Coach K will remember just this past March when Duke almost lost to Belmont in the first round by getting backdoored.

Inside Out:

The major difference between the pre-Olympic game and tomorrow's game is the presence of Andrew Bogut. With Bogut, the American's have to respect his ability to post up and make plays 1v1. With help from the top, that will allow Australia's many shooters to get open shots,


I think for defensive purposes, Coach K will go with Dwight Howard anytime Bogut is on the floor, so that they won't have to double and have Howard play him straight up. I think both Bosh and Boozer just give up a little too much height to Bogut to cover him 1v1.

Pick and Roll:

Now, the past couple of games against Greece and Spain, we saw Team USA clean up their defensive coverage of the PNR. They'll need to continue to do that, except, they'll need to watch for Australia's shooters. The roll in this case is not as important as defending the pick and pop or just ball-screen for the quick jumper. Australia has some outstanding 3-point shooters that can cause a lot of problems,


Early Offense 3-pointer:

I don't expect Team USA will have too many problems with Australia trying to outrun them, but I highlight this just because it is something that we've seen Australia run on more than one occasion. They like to run 5 guys hard, and Patrick Mills will hit the trailer for the open 3-pointer,


Team USA likes to do this with Michael Redd in a lead position rather than a trailer, but nonetheless, the scouting is report is out there, Australia will shoot these early 3-pointers, and hit them, when open.

Summary:

In my opinion Australia could very well give Team USA it's biggest test yet and if they go on to win Gold they may look back at this game and feel relieved that they came away with the win. Australia is extremely balanced, they have size and speed. They have toughness, after all it was Patrick Mills who refused to back down from a minor tussle in the warmup game. I think the deciding factor could very come down to whether Team USA can make outside shots and from the free throw line.

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After the first 4 games of the round robin, Team USA is now 4-0 with their most convincing win this time over undefeated Spain. I think Team USA needed to win the game more than Team Spain as Team USA needed to maintain their aura of being undefeated. Overall, I thought the game was played fundamentally different by both teams. Team Spain, relied on their skill while Team USA went with brute force. On this night brute force won, bigtime.

That is not to say that Team USA didn't have skill, they had their best shooting game since the Olympics started. But from the opening tip, Team USA asserted itself physically and I thought Team Spain was a little put off. Team Spain had trouble adjusting to Team USA's physicality and it just wore them down. The top aggressors in my opinion started with Lebron who was just a beast, then Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade followed by Dwight Howard.

Go at the Defense:

How many times do you hear coaches say, "Go at him!". Well, easier said than done. Lucky Team USA has guys like Lebron. I always liked to have a couple of football players on my teams. Because they bring that kind of mentality, they're not afraid of "going at guys" and putting them to the ground. These two plays here happened in the first quarter and I thought they set the tone, they let Team Spain know that "we're here and if you get in our way, we'll go through you",



In this sequence, Chris Paul sees the help defense in the lane but attacks him, not around him. Forget about the charge, just go at the rim and let the referee make the call (the call was defensive block). Once you wear down your opponents, many times they will just get out of the way next time, knowing that you won't hesitate to "go right at him",


In this last sequence, the Spanish defender does successfully take the charge (according to the refs), but took one heck of a shot in the chest by Dwyane Wade. Again, be the aggressor, don't go around the defense, go through them. I can't show the video (IOC and China censors, fight the hypocrisy!!), but if you saw it live like I did, you can bet that guy will think twice about getting in the way of Dwyane next time,


Split the Trap:

We've seen Chris Paul do this many a time in the NBA regular season. Here, he splits the attempted open court double-team going full speed. That's a tough thing to do if you think about it, and you certainly wouldn't fault CP3 if he chose to pull-back and go around. But if you play aggressive and attack the defense, it leads to 3v1 opportunities,


Summary:

Obviously it was a huge win for Team USA. They finish up the round robin with a meaningless game against Germany (who unfortunately got robbed by the referees against China). They will play Australia in the quarters, then likely Argentina in the semis. If they hit their shots like they were today against the zone, and play aggressive, I don't see anyone that can match them pound for pound. As for Team Spain, they didn't play all out today, they certainly pulled back a little. If they face Team USA in the gold medal game, they have to find more toughness or they'll get tossed like ragdolls like they did today.

It's one of those things you hear over and over, guys working on core strength. If you or your players are looking to get stronger, check out Alan Stein's DVD on Strength & Power Training for just $29.99. Coach Stein is the strength and conditioning coach for Montrose Christian working with the likes of Kevin Durant. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

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Just finishing watching the first half of the big Team USA win over Greece yesterday at the Olympics in Beijing. What you really noticed from the get go was that Team USA was going to play aggressive in your face defense. They can afford to do that, because athletically they are much better than Greece. They can afford to play chest to chest, gamble on steals, because the risk-to-reward ratio is much lower due to their athletic advantage. Team USA did double and trap a lot in the second quarter, but I think it was mostly just the aggressive ball pressure that disrupted Greece's rhythm preventing them from getting into their offense.

The other major difference, other than the incredible ball-pressure was that when Greece did get into their PNR offense, Team USA did a great job with help side defense then recover on the reversal. That is not to say that they prevented every PNR from scoring, but that they did a much better job than they did in 2006. Offensively, I though Team USA did what they needed to do, though they still struggled from the line and were still inconsistent from beyond the arc. But back to the defense.

Ball Pressure:

From the opening tip, Team USA brought the pressure and never let up. In this opening play, you can see Dwight Howard going chest to chest with his check on the perimeter. I don't know why you don't see this more often, I've always felt that if a forward or center is out on the perimeter to receive the pass, get up in their grill. Make it difficult to pass the ball, disrupt their offense. The reason why they have the forward out there is because of their height, they can pass over the top to cutters going to the basket. So on defense, you should make it as difficult as possible to make that pass, only give them the option of going with a bounce pass to the perimeter instead,


More pressure here. This time on handoffs. Watch here as Dwyane Wade gets in tight to prevent the handoff. If the offense is giving room between the handoff, as a defender you can shoot the gap and prevent the handoff. The downside is that they can play misdirection and go the other way, but Team USA is athletic enough to recover if that were the case. Instead, it prevents the handoff, and the forward is forced to pivot back and look for a wing pass instead, shaving more time off the clock,


When I talked about gambling on defense, here is a great example of that. The ball is in the post, and the other defenders are in help. Deron Williams is in great ball-you-man position but he's anticipating the pass. When the pass is attempted, he jumps it and deflects it. Now, if he fails to get the tip, again, he's quick enough to recover back to his man,


PNR Defense:

Overall, Team USA was consistent in their PNR defense. They would soft-switch to prevent the shot, and bring a help defender to protect the basket. Once the ball was reversed to the open man, they would recover (sometimes giving up a temporary open shot). It was perfect, but I thought it was effective enough, especially given their aggressive on ball pressure which prevented Greece from getting set offensively in the first place. Notice here that Carmelo Anthony is in the lane while his check is actually at the 3-point line. The ball is eventually swung to Melo's check but being the athlete that he is, Melo is able to recover,


Summary:

The biggest test for Team USA of course is tonight against Spain. However, since both Team USA and Team Spain have secured their spots in the next round, I'm not sure whether either or both will try to show too much of their hand this game, knowing that they will probably face each other in the finals down the line. It's an interesting paradox as a coach, you want to win of course, but do you show all your stuff in the preliminary round? You can go both ways, it's a tough call for sure.

For more on aggressive ball pressure on defense, you should check out Chris Lowery's DVD on Halfcourt M2M Defense. Coach Lowery is the brains behind the Southern Illinois tenacious defense. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

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From last night, Croatia beat Russia in Group A action at the Olympics in Beijing in a mild upset. Some of you probably watched it and can conclude as do I that Croatia is probably the best team in Group A and will probably go on to win Group A. I watched Croatia play in the qualifiers last month, especially that great double OT game where they beat Germany.

People who watch Croatia will immediately notice their familiarity with one another. But beyond that, what makes them so good is their shooting. True to the European stereotype of great shooters, this Croatian team is full of sharp shooting snipers. In their win over Australia, they went 12-for-16 from 3-point. In the win over Russia, they went 8-for-15 from 3-point and 25-for-29 from the line. The Croatians run a lot of stagger screens to spring their shooters for catch and shoot situations. They also have a lot of quick draw shooters who are extremely difficult to defend.

The Quick Draw:

At the end of the game against Team Russia, Croatia hit some key 3-pointers down the stretch. Both of these shots below were straight off the dribble. This is one of the key advantages of developing the quick draw, you can get your shot off from the dribble in many cases before the defender can close out. The first one here is from Roko-Leni Ukic. You'll notice that the defender is in decent position, though a little further (ideal position is to be 1 arms length away). If you have a quick draw though, it's not a problem to go from dribble to shot,


In this second crucial shot by Zoran Planinic, you'll notice that the Russian defender actually has his arms down and is also farther than 1 arms length away. With a quick draw, that is as good as a wide open shot,


To be clear, there is a difference between having a quick draw and shooting when half-defended, and just chucking up a quickie. Notice in each of the screenshots above, the player is in their shot pocket before the defender is 1 arms length away. You don't have a quick draw if you're not in your shot pocket before the defender gets to you. Big difference.

So, the question needs to be asked, did Team Russia just play bad defense? In my opinion, no. Ideally, you'd like to be 1 arms length away, but with the threat of the dribble drive, you have to hedge a little, get your arm up but at the same time give a little distance so you won't get dusted. It's a tough decision either way. That is precisely why playing a team full of shooters is scary. Because if they are hitting all their shots, it's almost impossible to defend. Stephen Curry from Davidson this past March proved that much.

Summary:

If there is any downside to Croatia, it's that they are extremely young. So while they may have great chemistry, will their youth be a detriment to them against an experienced team like Argentina or Lithuania? We'll have to find out. As for Team Russia, I think consistency has been their major deficiency so far. Sometimes they look like world-beaters, then they will make a really bad play or two and erase any gains they just had. If they can put it all together, they are as good as any.

For some great shooting tips from a former great shooter and now head coach at New Mexico, check out Steve Alford's DVD on The Shot. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's of Basketball Forum to talk about this and your favorite basketball topics.

If you're wondering why I don't have a Youtube clip as I usually have, you'll have to ask the IOC as they asked Youtube to shut me down. I'm not sure why they think this inconsequential educational blog is a threat to their Olympic brand, but I suppose it's a matter of principle. It is unclear whether my account will be reinstated but I'm appealing it now. Freedom of speech is a myth, big brother is everywhere!!

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Watching a recording from the other night in a great matchup between Lithuania and Argentina which Lithuania won with a game-winning 3-pointer. It was a great game and it was a shame it had to come down to 1 shot, but it did. It was a pretty simple play by Lithuania, but poorly defended by Argentina which allowed Lithuania to get an open shot.

One thing you'll also notice that's much different between FIBA and NBA are the timeouts. This is especially evident at end of games. In FIBA, a timeout can only be called from the bench in a dead ball situation. So, if the ball is live (shot miss then rebound), you can't call a timeout, you just keep playing. This is significant because in the NBA, you see all the time when the game is tied, one team shoots, misses, the defense rebounds then timeout. In FIBA, you have to just keep playing.

Why is this significant?? Offensively, in my opinion, it's not such a big issue. Most teams already know what their end of game plays will be, who will take the last shot, the play reads, etc... Defensively, is where it comes into play. First, you can't make substitutions for defensive shut-down specialists. Second, you won't be able to make the necessary adjustments from a timeout situation.

Lithuania 1-4 Low PNR:

So, to set the situation, Argentina had a chance with 30 seconds running a PNR with Manu Ginobili handling the ball. Lithuania hedged the screen, and forced Ginobili to shoot a tough fadaway from near the corner which he missed badly.

Lithuania's end of game play here is very basic. They setup 1-4 low, and O5 comes up to set the screen for the O1. O5 rolls to the basket while O4 comes up to the 3-point line. Argentina's strategy is to play the ball and switch on O5 rolling underneath. X1 gets caught on the low switch and doesn't rotate to O4. O1 finds and open O4 for the open shot,



Argentina's Defensive Lapse:

What really causes the open shot is the defensive lapse. X4 goes to cover O5 rolling to the basket. X1 and X5 are caught in no man's land. It should be X5 on O1 and X1 should rotate to cover O4 earlier but it's too late and it's an open 3-pointer,


It's hard to put the blame on Manu Ginobili (X1) here. Basically they got their lines crossed defensively and got confused with their assignments. They realized that but not before it was too late.

Summary:

If Team Argentina had a timeout in between offense/defense like they do in NBA, they could've schemed that. But of course, this is FIBA and everyone plays by the same FIBA rules. In my opinion, that's the beauty of the FIBA game, it's much more spontaneous, not so scripted. It's more of a players game where the team that is more focused will have the advantage. In the NBA or NCAA game, coaches have much more control over the game which is good for coaches, but it makes the game much less entertaining to watch for the average viewer.

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A bunch of great games last night in Beijing. I only watched 3 of the 5 games but all featured great play. I wish I caught the Lithuania vs Argentina game. Anyways, this post is all about Spain vs Greece, probably the most anticipated matchup of the first night. For most of the game, Greece was actually pretty close and they made a great run in the final couple of minutes.

First off, after watching the whole game, it was evident that Spain is the better team. Spain's defense was terrific and their shooting was on as usual. Greece, despite their struggles shooting wise, I thought they played a good all-around game, just not enough to beat Spain on this night. On offense, the Greeks were great at turning Spanish TOs into fast break points, and their PNR offense was still working despite Spain's stifling defense, they just missed some easy lay ins.

I liked what Greece showed defensively. They are a very physical team. In the NBA, most of the stuff would get called as fouls, but in FIBA, you're allowed to bump and impede the offensive player. Pao Gasol, perhaps still used to NBA rules, got knocked out of rhythm a few times. Also, Greece showed they can full-court press anybody, trapping Spain on more than one occasion. And we're not talking about some ordinary guard, they did this against Jose Calderon, and we know that Calderon is one of the better point-guards in the world right now. Here are the full clips, offense in the beginning, defense at the end (apologize for the fuzzy ones at the end, bad satellite feed),

3:25 PST Update: Unfortunately, it seems like the Orwellian Olympic Committee (IOC) doesn't like me posting my usual clips, so you'll just have to take my word for it about Greece's offense and defense...

Be Physical:

I watched that Road to Redemption series earlier in the week and they had a whole segment with Chris Bosh and Carlos Boozer talking about the big difference in FIBA allowing physicality. You can bump cutters, contact off the ball is generally not called, and in post defense you are allowed 2 hands in the back of the post-player. Here (fuzzy, I know), the Greek defender basically humps Gasol from behind so hard that it actually dislodges the ball,


Greece's Full-Court Press:

I'm actually very surprised more teams don't full-court press. I know Team USA has a soft 1-man press with Kobe. In FIBA rules, you only have 8 seconds to cross half-court, that 2 seconds less makes a huge difference. As you can see, even your traditional press break of the retreat dribble, reversing the ball and go, isn't enough time to cross in 8 seconds,



Now, having said that, after Greece cut the 20 point lead to 11, they called a timeout. After the timeout, Spain ran a give and go press break that cut right through the press. Still, I think the press is a tactic that can be used with great effectiveness in FIBA rules. We'll have to see how much more we'll see it used in later games.

Summary:

Everyone is circling the USA vs Greece game as the first big test for Team USA. The key for Team USA is how they defend Greece's devastating PNR offense, hence Coach K stressed it in his press conference earlier in the week. Defensively, that is Team USA's biggest weakness. In watching their game against Australia who ran a lot of high PNRs (like Greece), Team USA did not have a unified strategy on how to defend the PNR. Lebron would hedge, Bosh stayed underneath and Carmelo switched. As for the physicality, expect to see a lot of Howard and Boozer down low against Greece.

For more full-court pressing info, take a look at 2008 NCAA Coach of the Year Keno Davis' DVD on his full court press. Coach Davis is the head coach at Providence College in the NCAA. Be sure to check out the X's and O's Basketball Forum to talk about your favorite basketball topics.

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Two games in a row heading into the main tournament and Team USA has not only looked beatable, but lackluster. I thought they would easily beat Team Australia but I was totally wrong. Australia played aggressive, ran great offensive sets, settled into their pack-line defense, and out-played Team USA. All without their best player, Andrew Bogut. If it weren't for some bad TOs (much like Team Russia), they would've beat Team USA.

I was very impressed with Team Australia's offense. I watched them play Angola earlier where they mostly ran post-entries into Bogut. Without Bogut in this game, they instead went through several offensive sets. 2-3 high, 1-4 high, handoff and high PNR. I took several clips of all of them except for the PNR plays because frankly, the PNR plays were more bad defense by Team USA. Here they are,



2-3 High and UCLA Cut:

I like the 2-3 high set. Especially against an aggressive Team USA defense. Bring your players up high so that the passes are shorter and there is less chance of getting deflected.


In this play out of the inbounds, they run a simple UCLA screen off the 2-3 high set and Team USA gets caught over the top with the lob,


Handoff Play:

I really like the handoff play. It must be my football roots, because my favorite football offenses I ran were the veer and triple option. Because your back is turned to the defense, you can handoff the ball or fake it, then turn and go. Lebron gets caught anticipating the handoff and Anderson spins to the basket creating a 2v1 opportunity,


Summary:

I thought Australia was the aggressor on this night. They went right at Team USA from the start and were not intimidated by Team USA at all. To the credit of Team USA though, guys like Lebron and Chris Bosh stepped up the intensity to match the Aussies. Against the packline defense Australia used, I felt Lebron was most effective. Much like the NBA season, Lebron proved he can go 1v5 and still get AND1 opportunities, which he did.

On the 1-4 high offense which is very similar to the 2-3 high, a new DVD from Luther Riley on 15 Quick Hitters from the 1-4 High is worth looking into. Coach Riley is a high school coach in Mississippi as well with Nike Basketball. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.

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If you are a Team USA fan, you would have to be a little concerned after the game against Team Russia the other night. Sure, they won by 20+, but at times the score was much closer. Of most concern was when the game slowed down to the half court and the Russians went to their matchup zone was when Team USA showed some deficiencies. Ultimately, Team USA was bailed out by some bad turnovers and shot selection by Team Russia that led to a few easy baskets.

There really wasn't anything too special about Russia's matchup zone. Coach David Blatt has been running a matchup for a long time now so it should be no surprise. Another big plus for the Russians was the way they got back on defense. On every offensive possession, their PG would hustle back and they usually had 2-3 defenders back before Team USA could break out, check it out,



2-3 Matchup Zone:

Some notes I've read from Team Russia's coach David Blatt showed his 1-1-3 matchup, but against Team USA, they used a 2-3 matchup zone mostly. Really what they were doing was put ball pressure and everyone else played the ball. They allowed penetration but always had help side defense. They did end up fouling a lot but it did slow Team USA down quite a bit,



I thought that Team USA tried to beat the zone with alot of 1v1, driving into help and getting into trouble either with the offensive charge or trying to pass while in the air. They just didn't look coordinated in their zone attack. The best combination of players out there that I thought played the best against the zone were Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer and Lebron James. I think Dwill and Boozer are used to playing that random cutting style in Utah that made them more capable to adjusting to this kind of game. Lebron is just brute force, if he's driving to the basket, nothing will stop him, not even 5 guys zoned up. Kobe scored a lot of points, but many were off of bad Russian turnovers.

Summary:

Team USA plays Team Australia tonight, which I don't anticipate will be anywhere as close as the Russia game. Australia has height and size but USA is better in every aspect including size. I agree with Coach Fran Fraschilla on the broadcast who said you beat Team USA by playing half-court, and that when we get to the elimination round, there are going to be some close games where Team USA will have to grind out a win, we'll see if they can do that.

For more matchup zone video info, check out Bill Fennelly's DVD on the 2-3 Matchup Zone. Coach is the head coach of Iowa State's womens basketball team. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.

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From Wednesday night, Angola and Australia faced each other in a warmup game to the Beijing Olympics next week. It was a very close game throughout with Australia winning it on a last second 3-pointer. I thought Angola played as well as they could against a much bigger Australia team, especially with Andrew Bogut in the middle for Aus.

I thought Angola played very smart, and used what skills they had to their advantage. They used a lot of dribble drive but also had some nice inside play as well, mostly off of pick and seals. Here are a few nice plays from Angola that I picked out (the play-by-play is in Chinese and the feed isn't great so apologize in advance),



Pick and Seal:

All of Angola's plays are out of the 4-out 1-in set. Here, it's just a simple baseline screen for the corner. Because Australia is switching all screens, they get a big on small situation and the Angola player is able to seal. The entry pass is perfect (notice the use of the pass fake) and the finish is as well,


Dribble Drive Offense:

On this night, the Angola guards were quicker than Australia's, and they used it to their advantage. By getting dribble penetration, Angola was able to breakdown Australia's guards and force help to come, or finish the play outright.

In this first play, it's out of 4-out 1-in again. The Angola forward sets a downscreen for the corner wing. At the same time the PG beats his defender off the dribble forcing Bogut to help and the forward is there for the easy dump off,


In this next one, Angola's primary offense has broken down. With time winding down on the shot clock, they spread back into 4-out 1-in, and let their PG beat his defender off the dribble again. He fakes like he's going right, then crossover to the left and to the basket. The other forwards collapse for the rebound which is unnecessary as the basket goes in and the AND1 after,


Summary:

I watched Angola last night against Serbia and they got thoroughly thumped. Serbia just shot absolutely lights out, something like 60% from 3-point land. I think Angola is going to do OK, their biggest issue is giving up height and therefore rebounding. As for Australia, as you can see, they don't have great speed in their backcourt which will be a problem against the top tier teams like US, Spain and Argentina. They beat China earlier who is similar to them in many ways.

I'm a big Fran Fraschilla fan, I always try to catch the college games he broadcasts on ESPN when they are on. If you're looking for more specific video tips on the dribble drive motion offense, check out Fran Fraschilla's new DVD set on the Encyclopedia of the Dribble-Drive Motion Offense
. The set includes 3 DVD's where Coach Fraschilla breaks down 3 different kinds of the dribble drive based on the different formations, 4-out, 3-out, and vs zone. Don't forget to check out the X's and O's Basketball Forum to talk hoops with other coaches.

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Took in the friendly between Spain and Argentina yesterday, and wow, what a great game it was. I was fully expecting both teams to go through the motions, not show their hand, and substitute liberally. Instead, I was very surprised to watch a very intensely fought game, with both teams going all out to win.

In the end, Spain won by 25 points, but the game was a lot closer than the final score of 85-60 showed. What was the difference-maker?? Spain's stifling defense. The way they play defense, I could easily them winning the whole thing. Here are a few sequences from the second half,



Trap and Zone up:

Spain plays a very aggressive M2M switching half-court defense. They run a lot of run and jump and half-court traps. Here, they switch the ball-screen and they force the ball to the corner. X1 is digging between a trap and O4. X2 has switched to take O4 at the high post, and X3 is splitting O2 and O3 on the other side. As O1 prepares to skip the ball, X3 anticipates it. Because O3 is between the basket and O1 and therefore O1 cannot skip it to O3, X3 is able to jump the pass and steal the ball,



A couple of the other clips, great help-side defense coming for the weak-side block by Gasol; anticipating the inbounds, because in FIBA you cannot go backcourt once you are in the frontcourt; finally just great transition defense forcing the ball wide, then help to take away the easy layup forcing a bad pass.

Summary:

Argentina has great team shooting, that is their tactical advantage. Spain's defense however has been able to take that away. Ginobili can penetrate, but then you have great help defense. Now, the ultimate question, how does Spain and Team USA matchup? If Team USA gets bogged down in a half-court game, they could be in trouble. They need to push the ball and use their depth and athleticism to their advantage.

If you're a pressure and trapping coach, you should check out Dana Altman's new DVD on his Green and Blue Press. Coach Altman is Creighton University's head coach. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.

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Team USA is playing a few exhibition games in preparation for Beijing in a little over a week. Yesterday was a warm-up game against Canada. I'm proud of Team Canada, who came out and played hard in the first half, tough to do after the losses last week in Greece.

Keys for Team USA will be individual and team defense and early offense points. If they can do both well, their depth and athleticism will win out. I took a couple of clips from the first half, one is a Michael Redd 3-pointer off a missed basket, and the other is a great steal and dunk by Kobe Bryant,



Early Offense 3-pointer:

Couple of things. Because the FIBA 3-point line is shorter than the NBA 3-point line, Team USA needs to take advantage of that. Second, with the superior depth and athleticism that Team USA possesses, they must push the ball every single time. Here is the early offense play. Nothing special, everyone runs their lanes, Redd spots up looking for the catch and shoot, Bosh and Boozer head straight for the blocks looking for either a running dunk or the rebound off the shot,


The second play was just great individual defense by Kobe. I think that is where Kobe will be instrumental for Team USA. Pressuring the other team's primary ball-handler. That alone could be the tipping point for Team USA against the top teams in Beijing.

Summary:

Can't wait for the Olympics. Spain plays Argentina in about 30 minutes in a friendly match. This is going to be one of the best international basketball tournaments of all time in my opinion.

For some more transition offense pointers, take a look at Steve Smith's new DVD on his High Scoring Transition Offense. Coach Smith has built Oak Hill Academy into a prep school powerhouse with famous alums in the likes of Jerry Stackhouse and Team USA's own Carmelo Anthony. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.

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What a great game yesterday between Croatia and Germany at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying semi-finals. On the line was a guaranteed spot in Beijing next month. The game was intense, both teams played hard, and it came down to 2 OTs to decide the outcome. In the end, Croatia was the better team, they played much better together.

This play was very indicative of how well the Croatians played together. It's just read and react basketball. Going backdoor and great passing, you can tell they've been playing together for a while, which was the big difference in the game. Take a look at this great basketball play,



Go Backdoor:

This is just great basketball. If you run any Princeton offense, 5-out, etc... This is just basic read and react. The defense is in denying the wing pass, 1 pass away, so the Croatian wing player cuts backdoor. Also notice how the center starts on the other side of the lane, thus there is so much room for the wing to cut through,


Draw the Double, Dump off to Center:

Because of the backdoor cut above, it forces Chris Kaman to come off of his man and step up to help on the cut. The Croatian wing reads this and dumps off to the center who is sitting there waiting for the pass or a rebound,


Summary:

I loved watching this game. You could see the emotion, energy, these men were playing for more than just money, or their club, or a city, they were playing for their country. Dirk Nowitzki was diving all over the place chasing down loose balls (I bet Mark Cuban was holding his breath each time). Germany is playing Puerto Rico right now, whom I believe they will beat, so the final 3 going to Beijing will be Greece, Croatia and Germany. Earlier last month I predicted, Brazil, Croatia and Germany to go on, I guess I was wrong about Brazil and Greece, but pretty close anyways. Have a great rest of the weekend...

If you want to learn to be a better wing player, take a look at Ganon Baker's DVD on Wing Development Drills. Discuss this and the rest of your favorite basketball topics at the X's and O's Basketball Forum.

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