Reading the Defense - The Most Dangerous LIE In Basketball?
By Joe Haefner
First to clarify, when Don says don't read the defense, this is in reference to individual offense when you catch the ball. Moving without the ball is another discussion.
The main points that you take from this video are...
Attack immediately! Do what you do best.
Immediately counter if the shot is taken away.
First off, if you're skeptical, I don't blame you! Initially, I was a skeptic until I saw Don teach this in person. It also helped that I started having a lot of success with developing youth and high school players.
We even had an Olympic coach chime in with criticism as you'll see below.
Do What You Do Best. Do It Immediately.
Why does this work so well...
As Don says, it steers you towards things you are successful and confident at.
It eliminates indecision. It improves reaction time. This allows you to attack the defense while they're still scrambling and out of position.
Also, if you think about it... isn't the defense forcing you to do that because you won't have as much success? That's what coaches do. They scout the opposition. Then they try to force the opponent to do things they're not good at.
So why would we let them steer us towards something we're not as good at... something where your success rate will be lower? That's why you want to do what you're good at.
The defense reacts to you, not the other way around.
You want to OWN the situation... its mentality too.
Immediately Counter If The Shot Is Taken Away.
As mentioned in the video, think about what happens when you attack immediately... and do what you're best at.
Well, your move happens more quickly now.
To stop your move, the defense has to commit. This takes more speed and momentum to stop you. This forces them out of position.
And then BAM... you hit them with your footwork counter.
This makes it very difficult for the defense to stop, change directions, and defend your counter.
As you can see, this also perfectly complements mapping your attack and having your counter moves go opposite of the pass which were mentioned earlier in the educational series.
Now you add "Do What You're Good At" & "Attack Immediately" principles into the mix.
Then through playing the game, studying the game, and countless repetitions, you get more scoring opportunities without sacrificing an aggressive, confident mentality.
Don't Practice Both Hands and Feet Equally? Wrong!
If you believe that we're saying that you should only practice what you're good at, that's dead wrong.
You need to practice footwork with both feet.
You need to practice dribbling & passing with both hands.
You need to practice finishing and close shots with both hands.
However, you need to instill the mentality of attacking immediately and doing what you're good at.
An Argument From An Olympic Coach For Reading The Defense
Here is a comment we got from a subscriber...
For a coach to pass on the message to players that "I don't want you to read your defense" (as Don said in the video clip) is very difficult for me to take. As a coach for more than 35 years at the youth, high school, NAIA, NCAA, and Olympic level, all of my teaching of offensive play is based on "reading the defense".
If you want to develop intelligent players they must see the positioning and movement of the defenders. It should be taught from 1 on 1 play to 5 on 5 play. It is a long, tedious process but is necessary if you want players to be intelligent players rather than being robots."
Maybe reading the defense works best for this coach. I used to teach "reading the defense". You might too.
For 20 years, even Don Kelbick who invented this system taught his college teams to read the defense.
But this comment brings up some good points that we should look further into...
Long and Tedious Process To Teach Reading The Defense
Let's address this. "It is a long, tedious process but is necessary if you want players to be intelligent players rather than being robots."
1 - That's why people LOVE Don Kelbick's Attack & Counter System so much, it shortens the learning curve tremendously. To be effective, it isn't long and tedious. It's simple and it works right away.
Think about what happens when you attack immediately and then if needed you counter away from the help defense...
Your poor decision makers now are mostly making good decisions.
And your good decision makers have even more scoring opportunities.
So I believe you actually end up with smarter players. But who cares if they're smarter as long as they play better!
2 - You don't need to have a group of kids for over 10 years and work with them every single day. And you don't need olympic-caliber players to get it to work.
Is it perfect? No... there isn't a perfect system. This is the real world... you have to do what is optimal for your situation. You have to do what's going to bring you and your players the most success over the long run.
The Attack & Counter System is definitely ideal for the common coaching situation. And I believe it's optimal for all situations, especially as you move up in competition.
Here was another part from the comment above...
"...If you want players to be intelligent players rather than being robots."
While I think the points above are sufficient, this comment leads to this story...
How The 4.3 GPA "Intelligent" Player & Johns Hopkins Graduate STOPPED Reading The Defense And Started Attacking... Then Turned Into An All Conference College Player
I coached a player named George Bugarinovic who had a 4.3 GPA and graduated from Johns Hopkins University for a medical degree. Obviously, he is very intelligent.
When we went over game film and strategies during practice, he knew how to do things.
However, he had a big problem. He thought way too much and reacted indecisively. In fact, he looked like a robot trying to read the defense.
Over time, Coach Dwight Williams did a great job of getting him to just attack. He told George to stop thinking so much.
And it worked... George went on to have 10 points and 20 rebounds in the 6A Kansas state championship game. The game went down to the wire and we ended up losing to powerhouse Wichita Heights. I think they ended the season ranked
#12 in the country and won four state championships in a row.
And George battled future NBA draft pick Perry Ellis who starred at Kansas and Evan Wessels who played at Wichita State. No easy task!
George rode this momentum and went on to become an all-conference player in college at Johns Hopkins University. He even won the prestigious Jostens Award Trophy awarded to only one male athlete in the country.
Additionally, this concept helped me when training a player named Kyle Wolf. Kyle developed into a High School Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Missouri.
Kyle's freshmen year, he started some games and was a contributor to a National Championship team at the University of Central Missouri. In college, he shot 46% for a season from 3-point land and was a career 40% 3-point shooter.
To put things in perspective, Steph Curry is a 43% career 3-point shooter!
Why Making The Wrong Decision Is Right... Dwyane Wade And James Harden
Here is another really positive benefit that you might notice.
When you instill the Attack mentality, even when you make the "incorrect decision" at times... from an academic standpoint, good things still happen.
So you can "be wrong" and still be right because you or your team still scores or gets a high-percentage scoring opportunity.
Who cares how it happens... just put the ball in the basket. That's the point!
If you study Dwyane Wade and his Euro step move, you might notice the same thing. Don't get me wrong, Dwyane Wade attacked at the right time. However, there were also times that the defender would pre-mediate the move and position themselves perfectly.
But somehow Wade would still score, get fouled, or sometimes both... even when the defense knew what was coming.
It was Wade's mentality of attacking and his aggressiveness. "It doesn't matter if you get in my way, I'm doing what I want and I'm still going to score."
In today's game, it couldn't be any more apparent than with James Harden. He's going left and he's going left hard. You practically have to position your chest on the side of his left shoulder to stop him. Then a wide open lane appears to
Harden's right and he takes it!
He creates even BETTER scoring opportunities because of attacking immediately and doing what you do best.
Coincidence that James Harden's long-time trainer Irving Roland is highly complimentary of Don Kelbick's training methods. .. who knows.
Either way, study all the great players and the moves they scored on. You find similarities.
Their aggressive, attacking mentality made them great.
Also, by attacking immediately, you take advantage of the small gaps and small advantages.
When you first catch the ball, you have your biggest advantage. The defense is still moving. If you wait for them to position themselves, the advantage disappears. Attacking immediately enables you to take advantage of the gaps and advantages.
Won't Your Players Attack Blindly? Won't This Lead To Other Issues?
Are you open... Yes. Shoot it.
Is there an open lane... Yes. Attack.
Attack BLINDLY... no. We don't believe you should do that.
In a perfect world, you attack and make the right decision. However, we don't live in a perfect world.
It's better to have a player who attacks and makes the "correct decision" 50% of the time than a player who slows down to make the "correct decision" 100% of the time.
If you slow down to make the right read when immediately catching the ball, the gap will disappear.
I believe through playing the game, timely feedback, and countless repetitions, you improve decision making. And this allows you to play instinctively rather than timidly. If you sacrifice the attack mentality in order to make the "correct decision",
you can hinder the development of your game.
Here's Why You Should Stop Saying Read The Defense And Read And React
As I have studied psychology and social psychology, I've come to the conclusion that the words that you choose are very important. This is true for teaching and it's even true for all areas of life.
Here are two interesting points from author Robert Cialdini.
There are dozens of examples in his book Pre-suasion, but here is a couple...
1 - Simply using the words attain, succeed, master increase performance on an assigned task and DOUBLES their willingness to keep working at it.
2 - Men were twice as likely to help a woman in distress when made aware they were on Valentine's Street.
Words that you use are important!
Over the last few years, that's why I stopped saying "Read the defense" and "Read and react."
The word read is a passive word by nature. And here's the definition of the word react: respond or behave in a particular way in response to something.
In both situations, you are being passive and giving ownership of your decisions to the defense! Instead, you want to have the mentality that you own the situation as mentioned earlier.
Attack... if necessary, counter!
Take action!
Even If You Think This Is Bonkers...
Even if you think "Attack Immediately" and "Do What You're Good At" is not right for you, it really doesn't matter.
If you ignore the mentality and just focus on the way that Don Kelbick teaches skill development, footwork, and counters, your team will still improve quite a bit.
Just the skill development side of his system...
Develops basketball moves faster and accelerates and simplifies skill development.
Teaches shooters how to use inertia to improve accuracy and shooting range.
Helps ball handlers beat their defender by being more effective with their feet.
Reduces practice planning time.
Reduces travels by developing better balance.
Develops better strength to finish through contact.
Develops counter moves that lead to more scoring because it takes advantage of the positioning of the defense.
Focuses on progressions and drills that happen the most frequently during games. That way, you're not spending time on things that happen infrequently or other fluff.
Improves shooting percentages by focusing on progressions that are the most efficient shots.
How To Get Better... Almost Immediately
If you want to learn more, check out Don Kelbick's Attack & Counter Player Development System. He shows you how to teach the system step by step.
We also remove all of the risk for you with our 100% money-back guarantee. We don't want your money if the system isn't right for you.
Get Access Now
What do you think? Let us know by leaving your comments, suggestions, and questions...
Stop Reading The Defense Do This Instead
Don Kelbick explains in more detail in this video clip from his Attack and Counter Skill Development System.
As you can see, the main points that you take from this video are...
Do what you do best. Do it immediately.
Immediately counter if the shot is taken away.
Lets break this down a little bit further...
Do what you do best. Do it immediately.
Why does this work so well. .. It steers you towards things you are successful and confident at.
It eliminates indecision and improves reaction time which allows you to attack the defense while they're still scrambling and out of position.
If you think about it... isn't the defense forcing you to do that because you won't have as much success? That's what coaches do. They scout the opposition. Then they try to force the opponent to do things they're not good at.
So why would we let them steer us towards something we're not as good at... something where your success rate will be lower? Do what you're good at.
Own the situation... it's a mentality too.
Immediately counter if the shot is taken away.
As mentioned in the video, think about what happens when you attack immediately... and do what you're best at.
Well, your move happens more quickly now.
To stop your move, the defense has to commit. This takes more speed and momentum to stop you.
This forces them out of position.
And then BAM... you hit them with your footwork counter.
This makes it very difficult for the defense to stop, change directions, and defend your counter.
If you think about the other principles mentioned in the education series on the Attack & Counter Skill Development System...
Now, you add the Do What Youre Good At & Attack Immediately principles into the mix. Then through playing the game, studying the game, and countless repetitions, your decision-making continues to get better without sacrificing an aggressive, confident mentality.
Attack Immediately and Making The Wrong Decision And Why Being Wrong Is Right... Dwyane Wade and James Harden
Here is another really positive benefit that you might notice.
When you combine the attack mentality with a fearless mentality, which Don Kelbick does, even when you make the incorrect decision from an academic standpoint, good things still happen.
So you can be wrong and still be right because you or your team still scores or gets a high-percentage scoring opportunity.
If you study Dwyane Wade and his Euro step move, you might notice the same thing. Dont get me wrong, Dwyane Wade made the right decision plenty of times. However, there were also times that the defender would pre-mediate the move and position themselves perfectly. But somehow Wade would still score, get fouled, or sometimes both even when the defense knew what was coming.
It was Wades mentality of attacking and his aggressiveness. It doesnt matter if you get in my way, Im still going to score.
In todays game, it couldnt be any more apparent than with James Harden. Hes going left and hes going left hard. You practically have to position your chest on the side of his left shoulder to stop him.
In fact, study all players and the moves they scored on. You find similarities.
Their aggressive, attacking mentality made them great.
Also, by attacking immediately, you take advantage of the small gaps and small advantages. When you first catch the ball, you have your biggest advantage. The defense is still moving. If you wait for them to position themselves, the advantage
disappears. Attacking immediately enables you to take advantage of the gaps and advantages.
Thats why you play better when you attack immediately, even if you make the correct read 70% of the time compared to not attacking immediately and making the correct read 100% of the time.
How A 4.3 GPA "Intelligent" Player & Johns Hopkins Graduate STOPPED Reading The Defense And Started Attacking... Then Turned Into An All-Conference College Player
I coached a player named George Bugarinovic who had a 4.3 GPA and graduated from Johns Hopkins University for a medical degree. Yeah... he is super intelligent.
When we went over game film and strategies during practice, he knew how to do things.
However, he had a big problem. He thought way too much and reacted indecisively. In fact, he looked like a robot trying to read the defense.
Over time, coach Dwight Williams did a great job of getting him to attack and be more decisive. He told George to stop thinking so much.
And it worked... George went on to have 10 points and 20 rebounds in the 6A Kansas state championship game. The game went down to the wire and we ended up losing to
powerhouse Wichita Heights. I think they ended the season ranked #12 in the country and won four state championships in a row.
And George battled future NBA draft pick Perry Ellis who starred at Kansas and Evan Wessels who played at Wichita State. No easy task!
George rode this momentum and went on to become an all-conference player in college at Johns Hopkins University. He even won the prestigious Jostens Award Trophy awarded to only one male athlete in the country.
Additionally, this concept helped me when training a player named Kyle Wolf. Kyle developed into a High School Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Missouri.
His freshmen year, he started some games and was a contributor to a National Championship team at the University of Central Missouri. In 2016, he even set the school record for 9 three point shots made during one game.
Even if you think we're bonkers...
Even if you think "Attack Immediately", "Do What You're Good At", and "Mapping" are not for you, it really doesn't matter.
If you ignore the mentality and just focus on the way that he teaches skill development, footwork, and counters, your team will still improve quite a bit.
Just the skill development side of his system...
Develops basketball moves faster and accelerates and simplifies skill development.
Teaches shooters how to use inertia to improve accuracy and shooting range.
Helps ball handlers beat their defender by being more effective with their feet.
Reduces practice planning time.
Reduces travels by developing better balance.
Develops better strength to finish through contact.
Develops counter moves that lead to more scoring because it takes advantage of the positioning of the defense.
Focuses on progressions and drills that happen the most frequently during games. That way, you're not spending time on things that happen infrequently or other fluff.
Improves shooting percentages by focusing on progressions that are the most efficient shots.
How To Get Better... Almost Immediately
If you want to learn more, check out Don Kelbick's Attack & Counter Player Development System. He shows you how to teach the system step by step.
We also remove all of the risk for you with our 100% money-back guarantee. We don't want your money if the system isn't right for you.
Get Access Now
What do you think? Let us know by leaving your comments, suggestions, and questions...
Basketball defense | Educational and methodological material on physical education on the topic:
Defense preparation
Defense preparation begins from the first day of training. Fundamentals of defensive play are of paramount importance in the early stages of a team's training and should be constantly addressed by coaches throughout the season. (When five players play the team's main offensive interactions, the coach should indicate which of them stays behind on safety net. After the throw, the team quickly switches from attack to defense.)
The coach must improve group tackling in personal, zone defense, or zone pressing defense. He is obliged to include in the lessons exercises to improve the technique of defensive actions at the baseline and against a player without the ball. In order for the defense to be aggressive, it is necessary to show the players how to mark the ward from the side of the ball. They also need to explain the principles of free or delayed defense. The coach teaches the players to never let an attacker get on the ball in front, especially a corner player who breaks into the three second zone.
Players need to know how to push their players out of their favorite shooting positions (this is especially important when defending against a fast break).
It is essential for players to understand the importance of team defense.
The greatest burden on a team is a weak or lethargic defender, and the coach always prefers an aggressive defender who plays poorly on offense over a shooter who does not want to play defense.
To emphasize the importance of a good defense, the coach should adhere to the following points:
1. To convince the team of the need for a coordinated, well-played team defense.
2. Break down the defense into its component parts.
3. Improve group defense interactions at each training session and establish rules for each phase of defense.
4. Allocate as much time to defense in a training session as to offense.
5. Spread out defensive exercises during training. Those involved get tired during the game, and this cannot be ignored in training.
6. Fix security bugs immediately.
7. Encourage good defensive play. The stability and reliability of a good team defense can help out with a weak game in attack.
General basics of attack and defense
In basketball, two teams meet on the field trying to defeat each other. This struggle can be very sharp and requires a lot of mental and physical effort from the players.
The game of any team in basketball consists of offensive actions (attack), the purpose of which is to throw the ball into the opponent's basket, and defensive actions (defense), the purpose of which is to prevent the offensive actions of the enemy.
The offensive and defensive actions of each team must be varied and correspond to the characteristics of the opponent and the conditions in which the game takes place.
In order to play successfully in attack and defense, you need to master the technique of the game and be able to apply it in a timely manner against a specific opponent in a specific situation.
Technique is the foundation of mastery.
You cannot play basketball successfully if a player cannot catch and dribble the ball, pass it to a partner, stop abruptly or change direction in simple or difficult situations. There are many different techniques in basketball. Passing the ball, for example, can be done with one and two hands, from behind the back and on the court, for short and long distances, etc. Throwing the ball around the basket, dribbling the ball and catching it are just as varied.
All of them are equally important for playing the game and must be carefully studied and mastered during training sessions. You can not give preference to any one technique. The more techniques the players have learned, the higher their technique, the better the team is armed. And the better the team is armed, the easier it is to fight the enemy and achieve victory.
Any, the most successful tactical idea cannot be implemented without a good mastery of the technique of the game. The actions of the entire team, all the efforts spent on taking the ball away from the opponent, may be useless due to inaccurate passes or inept catching of the ball. Every basketball player should strive to perfect his ball handling and movement technique. A technically trained and versatile player is the most dangerous for the opponent.
The coach must ensure that the players use the simplest and most rational techniques. Depending on the situation, more complex techniques can be applied, but it is not necessary to artificially complicate the technique and use a more complex and “beautiful” technique when the situation does not require it.
Simplicity, rationality of the technical methods necessary to achieve the team's result is a characteristic feature of the Soviet school of basketball.
Pretentiousness and artificial complication of technique to show the player's personal capabilities always goes to the detriment of the team's results and is a feature of the players of bourgeois teams.
In addition, the unjustified complication of techniques requires a greater expenditure of the player's strength.
The art of economical use of energy and the desire to simplify various complex techniques as much as possible should be educated in players from the first steps of their training. It is better to spend more time studying and instilling in the player a sense of the appropriateness of the techniques than to correct ingrained errors later. Striving for ease of application of techniques, players should not avoid difficult positions, they should use techniques and expend no more energy than the situation requires.
The main goal of tactics is victory.
The main tactical task is to determine (select) means (techniques) and methods of playing against a specific opponent. This choice should be made taking into account the conditions of the game. First of all, it is necessary to take into account the qualities of one's own team and the opposing team, as well as weather conditions, lighting, the size of the site, the quality of the soil, the characteristics of the field, etc.
i.e. determine the tactics of the team.
Otherwise, the team will play "blind", its tactics will not be able to ensure success and will benefit the enemy.
It is possible to correctly determine and choose tactics provided that the players and the team as a whole are well aware of the various means and methods of play and the various forms of their application.
Players must learn this through systematic practice.
A detailed study of tactics, testing it in practice also makes it possible to improve old and find new ways of playing the game. Knowledge of various tactical methods of defense and attack, the ability to apply them in practice testify to the tactical maturity of the players and the team.
Tactics training provides basic guidelines for the actions of players and teams under different conditions.
At the same time, tactics cannot contain recipes for all sorts of situations that may occur in the game.
Advanced tactics are incompatible with conservatism and the habit of acting according to a pattern.
Poor knowledge of tactics forces players and the team to use the same methods of fighting against any opponent, and this often leads to defeat. Template tactics become helpless as soon as the game environment changes or becomes more complicated. Standard tactics eliminate the maneuverability of actions, the creative initiative of the players and the team.
The actions of the team players on the field are determined by whether the team is attacking or defending. The team is in the offensive position when it has the ball.
Players of the attacking team, with the help of movements and various techniques, try to overcome the resistance of the defending opponent and bring the ball closer to his backboard at such a distance and in such a position from which it is possible to successfully throw the ball into the basket. The defending team seeks by all means permitted
the rules of basketball, take the ball away from the attacking team or make it difficult for them to get to the backboard and prevent them from shooting the ball into the basket.
The success of the team in defense and attack will be achieved if all five players participate in the struggle.
Therefore, the main condition for a successful game is the active and skillful actions of all team players in defense and attack.
According to the rules of the game, the ball goes to the other team if it takes the ball directly in the game, in case of technical errors of the opponent (jog, double dribble, etc.) and after the ball hits the basket. Each team during the game many times is in the position of the attacker and defender.
The frequent change of these positions requires all players to be able to quickly change their game from attack to defense and vice versa.
Successful offensive actions produce results directly, while successful defensive actions reinforce them. They complement each other, and the imperfection of one of them negatively affects the overall result of the team. If the attacking team skillfully threw many balls into the opponent's basket and, poorly defending, conceded the same number of balls into their own basket, the result of the whole game is reduced to zero.
All actions of attack and defense are divided by their nature into collective and individual. Individual actions include independent actions of individual players without the help of partners. Collective actions, depending on whether all or several team players participate in them, are divided into team and group actions.
All five players participate in team actions, while only a part of the team players participate in group actions. Command actions are carried out by using attack systems. Group actions - by applying combinations. The success of these systems and combinations depends on the timeliness and correctness of individual actions.
For individual actions, the player can be given various tactical tasks aimed at the full use of the individual characteristics of his technique, tactics, physical characteristics against the weaknesses of the enemy. Such tasks are given before the game, if there is an idea about the enemy, and during the game as a result of information obtained by reconnaissance during the game.
From this we can conclude that the main tasks of the team in the game are as follows:
Collective and individual actions of all team players to overcome the resistance of the enemy and throw the maximum number of balls into his ring.
By collective and individual actions of all team players, eliminate the actions of the attacking team and let the balls into your basket as little as possible.
Personal protection
Individual requirements. The effectiveness of a team's defensive plans is determined by the individual abilities of each player. These include speed, quickness and alertness of mind, aggressiveness, desire, pride, foresight and adaptability.
Speed and quickness. High running speed allows the defender to move from one position to another faster than other players. This allows him to correct errors in defense and take a new defensive position, eliminating dangerous situations. The speed, mainly of the legs, arms and hands, allows the defender to keep the attacker on his toes and neutralize his superiority in speed. Since defensive action usually starts 5-6m from the basket being defended, quick reaction may be more valuable than speed, but either way, both are the foundation of a good defense.
Vitality and aggressiveness. A player who reacts instantly when switching from attack to defense will always be ready to cover the free player of the enemy, prevent an unexpected maneuver of the attackers and disrupt the attack. Alertness of mind, combined with aggressiveness, i.e. the ability to attack defensively and feint, can force the attacker to think more about defending the ball he has.
Desire and pride. No matter how technical a defender is, he will not be able to defend well without desire and pride, as defense requires hard work and determination that are rarely supported by approval and praise. Assertiveness comes from desire, which includes the determination to play your best defense, full focus on the attached opposing player, and work tirelessly. Overcoming fatigue with extra effort leads to success.
Pride is the feeling of satisfaction that you have done your best part of the work, despite the fact that it is not very noticeable.
Foresight and adaptability. Foresight is the ability to predict the actions of attackers, which allows you to decide whether to go for the interception of the transfer, whether to exchange wards, etc. The ability to act in accordance with a changed situation characterizes adaptability. These abilities are based not so much on instinct, but on a careful study of the individual and team features of the opponent's game from the very beginning of the meeting.
Protective stance and balance. There are two defensive stances when holding the ball carrier. The first stance is with the leg extended forward, or a ledge (boxing), the other is parallel (wrestling stance).
Stance with forward leg. In this stance, the legs are located approximately shoulder-width apart, one of them is set forward. Players with a strong right hand seem to be more comfortable with the left foot forward stance, left-handers prefer to put their right foot forward. The distance between the feet varies slightly among different players. Tall players are more comfortable standing in a wider stance. But a very narrow or excessively wide stance is dangerous for a defender. The more placed the feet, the more difficult it is for the player to maintain balance. The wider the stance, the more difficult it is to start the first movement. Body weight should be evenly distributed on the balls of the feet, not on the toes. With a stable position, the center of gravity shifts back, not forward. The legs are slightly bent at the knees, the pelvis is lowered to lower the center of gravity of the body, the torso is slightly tilted forward, the head is raised up. Head, shoulders and back form a straight line. Any movement of the head or shoulders will throw the defender off balance and give the attacker an advantage.
Arms and hands should be kept in a comfortable position and their movements should help in maintaining balance. The arm above the front leg should be raised and it should be swung from side to side. The other hand should be set aside. The movements of the arms and hands are a deterrent defensive tool, as they unbalance the opponent and impede his movement.
Players perform a different number of movements in defense. Many of them expend a lot of energy, but every defensive move must be executed deliberately.
Parallel stand. In a wide, or parallel, stance, the feet are parallel and spaced, as a rule, wider than the shoulders, the weight is evenly distributed on both legs, the legs are bent at the knees, the pelvis is lowered, the torso is more tense than in the stance with the leg extended forward, and the arms and the brushes are down. This stance is usually used to actively attack a player who has finished the dribble. In addition, it is taken by defenders attacking a dribbler who is moving towards the basket and a player making a pass from the side farthest from the ball.
Use of sight, hearing and voice. Three important additions to the fundamentals of defensive play are vision, hearing, and voice. The player must see everything around him, both directly and on the periphery.
Do not focus only on the player when he is not in possession of the ball, unless the coach gives a special task. Usually, when guarding an attacker without the ball, the defender sees where the ball is and monitors the possible setting of side screens.
The defender guarding the ball carrier must be alert at all times to voice warnings from teammates. When playing defense, the voice is constantly used to warn partners about screening, to signal to switch, to encourage, and finally, to unnerve the enemy and raise team spirit.
Footwork and defensive movement. The four types of footwork form the basis of good personal defense. The first is running backwards; the second is moving with side steps, or a boxing step; the third is running and stopping at full speed and the fourth is turning around to regain a defensive position.
In defense, one must be able to move backwards as easily and freely as in normal running. Running backwards is unnatural and therefore requires constant training and good balance. In this case, the weight of the body is slightly shifted in the direction opposite to the movement. If you shift your body weight back, the defender will fall on his back. 9; board. The other leg is quickly attached to a distance of 15 -! 20 cm from the first. The player repeats fast, sliding steps, maintaining balance and position in relation to the ball carrier and forcing the latter to move towards the touchline or in the direction of a teammate. In this case, the legs should never cross.
When guarding a dribbler who is moving towards the basket, the defensive player starts stepping on the foot closest to the passing direction, pushing the dribbler towards the endline or in the direction of his partner. In this case, if the attacker managed to get around the defender, the latter takes a cross step and runs at full speed to restore the defensive position.
While running at full speed, the player must stop with the pivot foot firmly planted and strongly bend the legs to lower the center of gravity, regain balance and immediately assume the main defensive stance.
A good defender is usually prepared mentally and physically for quick starts and constant changes of direction. The starting movement begins with a short step with the nearest foot in the desired direction and a push with the far foot. Simultaneously, the arm and shoulder swing in that direction. The change in direction of movement begins with a stop in the equilibrium position, without loss of time, and a repeated starting procedure.
Circling to restore defensive position is used when an attacker dribbles past a defender. The defender must make a 360° turn. To do this, he pushes off with the foot closest to the attacker, turns on his back foot 180° outward from the dribbler, pushes off with his other foot, and completes a full turn, regaining a defensive position.
Team defense
The main purpose of the team defense is to limit basket attack opportunities, prevent fast break situations and counter positional attack interactions. The coach decides on one of the types of defense based on several factors, the most important of which is an assessment of the individual abilities of the players.
The correct defense will be the one that best limits the offensive capabilities of the attackers. A good team defense combines the strengths of both personal and zone defense. For personal defense, the main reference point is first of all the player, and then the ball. But teams that use mostly personal defense do not exclude the advantages of zone defense. We mean loosely holding players without the ball, as well as pulling the defenders on the far side of the court from the ball under the basket to prevent the attackers from entering this area and grouping the defenders under the basket and in the middle. On the other hand, zone defenders who focus on the ball and then the opposing player must be prepared to apply the principles of personal defense against the ball carrier. The zone today not only covers the free throw area. Players use the principles of personal defense, attacking the attacker with the ball and preventing passes to the post player's position.
Basic defensive tasks
A team's offensive actions can only be successful if they are backed up by skillful defensive actions.
A strong and durable defense reinforces the result achieved by the team and, conversely, if the defense is poor, the team easily loses the superiority achieved.
Indicative, from this point of view, was the performance of the Egyptian men's team at the 1953 European Basketball Championship. her final result: she placed eighth.
The value of protection cannot be overestimated. A solid defense not only consolidates the success achieved by the team, but also leaves its mark on the nature of the actions in the attack.
A team that is confident in its defense plays more boldly in attack, is not afraid to aggravate the game, and more confidently makes shots to the basket not only from close, but also from medium and long distances.
The game is completely different if the team has poor defense.
Such a team usually loses its offensive activity. The actions of the team become overly cautious, there is a fear of losing the ball, the decisiveness disappears when throwing into the basket. This forces the players to patiently wait for the opponent's mistakes, passing the ball to each other endlessly without risking a shot to the basket from medium or long distance.
Some teams go to the other extreme: they easily exchange shots and try to get more balls into the basket than the opponent can do. The game of such teams is always characterized by a very large score.
From what has been said, it can be seen that the content of the game in defense and attack are mutually related, and the imperfection of one of these actions negatively affects the growth of the team's sportsmanship, and the further development of the game. Skillful defense forces the team to improve and look for new forms of attack, and, in turn, a technically and tactically strong offense encourages the search for more advanced forms of defense.
Observations made at the major All-Union competitions of 1953-1954 give reason to conclude that the skill of the players in attack has increased immeasurably higher than in defense.
In the USSR championship in 1954, the men's team "Dinamo" (Tbilisi), which won first place, scored an average of 60 points in the opponent's basket and at the same time missed an average of 46 points in their own basket.
The meeting of the teams CDSA (Moscow) - "Nauka" (Kyiv) ended with a score of 95: 75. The teams CDSA (Moscow) and "Zalgiris" (Kaunas), who took 19th in the championship54, the second and third places, scored on average 71 and 72 points into the opponent's basket, respectively, and at the same time missed CDSA - 60 and Zalgiris - 61 points into their basket.
The following fact can also serve as confirmation: the men's teams participating in the 1953 USSR championship made an average of 43 personal errors per game in defense. In the meeting of the men's teams CDSA - "Zalgiris" both teams hit each other with a total of 100 free throws.
The main tasks of protection are as follows:
1) Protect your basket from being thrown.
2) "Keep" the opponent, i. e. prevent him from performing any game actions - catch, pass, dribble, go to an empty place, etc.
3) - Fight for possession of the ball.
Players can perform fully on defense only if the team is able to perform all these tasks equally.
A team that builds its defense solely on the protection of its basket acts passively and is doomed, as a rule, to defeat. On the contrary, a team that can fully combine the protection of its basket with a tight hold on the opponent and an active fight for the ball is active and usually seizes the initiative in the game and achieves victory.
During a competition, however, there may be cases when, depending on the specific game situation, it is advisable to focus on solving one of the above tasks.
Here is an example. The team loses 2-3 points. There is less than one minute left in the game. The ball is with the opponent. In such an environment, it is advisable to focus on the struggle for possession of the ball.
Another example. The opponent has seized the initiative and scores one goal after another. The team in this case needs to focus on defending their basket and thereby restrain the offensive impulse of the enemy.
Defense must first of all be resistant. To play defense, you need high moral and strong-willed qualities of the players. A mistake made by a player in defense is fraught with more serious consequences than a mistake in attack. If a player commits a blunder in attack (with the exception of a personal error), then as a result the team will only lose the ball. A gross mistake in defense entails a throw into the basket and changes the score of the game in favor of the opponent.
The game of defense requires above all that the players act independently. If in attack the most important thing is the ability of a player to interact with partners, then the main thing for defense is the ability of each player to independently and fully cope with defensive functions without requiring the help of a partner. Victory in the fight against the enemy, other things being equal, is won by the one who has more will to win. Teams whose players do not have high-willed qualities play unevenly in defense.
In cases where the team has the initiative in the game, it plays better in defense, but as soon as it loses the initiative and lets a few goals into its basket, the players in defense are lost, the team loses confidence in its abilities even in these minutes she can concede more balls into her basket than in the entire game.
Players must be instilled with a sense of responsibility for defensive play. The loss of a sense of responsibility in at least one player breaks the strength of the defense and gives an advantage to the attacking side.
It is also extremely important that the player reacts correctly to the opponent's temporary success, to his own failure.
A player who has made this or that mistake must consciously relate to failure, be aware of the causes of the mistake, mobilize in order to eliminate the mistake and prevent it again.
The defender must not lose his temper and show vehemence. A player who loses his temper or shows excessive vehemence cannot be a full-fledged defender and usually makes blunders.
In order to timely mobilize the efforts of the team to play defensively and bring calmness and confidence to it, players need to support each other during temporary setbacks. It is also necessary that the captain and coach lead the team properly.
Protection must be flexible and maneuverable; it does not tolerate a standard and a pattern. Actions in defense should be built depending on the characteristics of the opponent's game. Defensive failures are often due to incorrect placement of players, or an erroneous preliminary defensive plan, or a change in the nature of the attacking team. Each team needs to be able to detect these errors in a timely manner and quickly rebuild the game in defense. The higher and more diverse the individual training of the players, the better the team masters various defense systems and their options, the higher its maneuverability and flexibility of defensive actions.
It is equally important that the protection is active.
The team, while defending, must also take care of the attack. The team must not only defend, but also strive to actively fight for the ball.
An active defense, constantly threatening to turn into an attack, must be characteristic of each team.
It is appropriate here to recall the words of the great Russian commander Suvorov: "retreating strike, but do not fight back."
Active defensive play helps the team to seize the initiative. In order to confidently seize the initiative, it is very important to force the opponent to change his usual manner of playing and impose on him the most unfavorable form of play for him.
It is very important to move from attack to defense in a timely manner.
The attacking team must not forget about the defense, it must always be ready for a sudden loss of the ball. The timely transition from attack to defense depends primarily on the players' sense of responsibility for playing defense. In addition, the players must be able to quickly switch from attack to defense, as well as correctly insure each other in case the ball is lost.
The team must always strive to outnumber the enemy in defense and return to the defense as quickly as it does when moving into the attack.
Defending against fast breaks
Defending against teams successfully using fast breaks must be organized well in advance, i.e. while the team is still attacking.
For this purpose, players in the frontcourt must move in such a way that two or three players are in the center line in case the ball is lost.
Indicative in this respect was the game at the 1953 European Championship for men's teams between the USSR and Israel. The Israeli team, trying to fight against the rapid breakthrough successfully carried out by the USSR team, was forced to build its attack in such a way as to leave three or four people in the back row of the forward zone for safety net. In addition, at the time of the shot on the basket, the players did not fight for the ball that bounced off the backboard, but immediately retreated to their backcourt. The same technique was also used when performing a free throw, when the players of the Israeli team did not even try to take a place near the free throw area, but retreated to their backcourt.
Such actions of the Israeli team cannot be considered correct. The fight against a fast break should go in two directions: the part of the players closer to the middle line must immediately retreat to their backcourt when the ball is lost to fight the first attacking players of the opponent, while the second part of the players located closer to the backboard enters the fight for the ball after it bounces off the backboard. If the fight at the shield was won by the opponent, then the player with the ball should not be left alone, but you should immediately close it and prevent him from making the first pass. The struggle against the first transfer is carried out in parallel by another player. Teams that use a fast break usually have a predetermined position for the player who receives the first pass. Therefore, the second defender needs to quickly cover this player as well. To more successfully complete this task, the team must scout and determine the player's place to receive the first pass.
Delaying the first transmission deprives the enemy team of the main weapon - speed, and this gives the defending team the necessary time to organize a defense.
Summarizing all of the above, we can formulate the following three main methods of fighting against a fast break: a) strengthening the safety net for a timely fight against the attacking players of the enemy; b) battling for the ball bouncing off the backboard, and c) battling against the first pass.
Technique and tactics of defense
The success of the game in defense depends on the skill of the defensive actions of all team players.
A team can achieve high defensive skills only if it pays serious attention to the individual preparation of the players.
Actions in defense are extremely complex, multifaceted and require persistent, persistent and painstaking work.
Defensive actions require players to have a tactically fine understanding of the game and possess excellent technical skills, high physical qualities, quickness, endurance, strength and agility, quick motor reaction, well-trained attention, and also be persistent and cool-headed.
In the available literature, when describing the technique of the game, in most cases they are limited only to the analysis of the attack technique, while very little attention is paid to defense.
Perhaps this is one of the reasons why coaches pay very little attention and time in the training work on the special technical preparation of players for actions in defense.
In this book an attempt has been made to reveal more fully the technique and tactics of defense.
Each player must master the following basic defensive techniques:
a) - defensive stance,
b) - movement, the so-called "boxing step", stops, turns,
c) - methods of fighting for possession of the ball (interception, knocking out, pulling out, taking the ball after rebounding from the backboard).
Technical training must be combined with the tactical training of the player, which includes: a) choosing a place, b) orienting and observing the player and the environment, c) reconnaissance of the enemy, d) fighting with screens, e) fighting with a numerically superior enemy .
Let's take a closer look at the main technical and tactical methods of playing defense.
Rules of Basketball
How the rules have changed in your favorite game
How the rules have changed in your favorite game
WE ALL LOVE TO PLAY BASKETBALL, BUT DO YOU KNOW THE RULES FOR EXACT?
Basketball was invented by James Naismith in 1891. Then everything was different: playgrounds, baskets, balls…
!!! Read about the evolution of balls in the article:
Basketball was invented by James Naismith in 1891 year. Then everything was different: playgrounds, baskets, balls…
!!! Read about the evolution of balls in the article:
The history of basketballs
The history of basketballs
What balls are played now and how it happened
Beginning
The rules have also changed a lot during this time. Initially, there were only 13 of them in basketball:
The ball can be thrown in any direction with one or two hands.
The ball may be hit with one or both hands in any direction, but never with the fist.
The player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw the ball from the point at which he caught it, except for a player running at high speed.
The ball must be held with the hands. You can not use the forearms and body to hold the ball.
In any case, hitting, grabbing, holding and pushing the opponent is not allowed. The first violation of this rule by any player shall be called a foul; the second foul disqualifies him until the next ball is scored, and if there was an obvious intention to injure the player, then a disqualification for the whole game. It is not allowed to replace a disqualified player.
Punching the ball is a violation of points 2 and 4, the penalty is described in point 5. commit no foul).
A point is scored if a ball thrown or bouncing off the floor hits the basket and stays there. Defending players are not allowed to touch the ball or basket while shooting. If the ball touches the edge and the opponents move the basket, then a point is scored.
If the ball goes out of bounds, it must be dropped into the field by the first player to touch it. In the event of a dispute, the referee must throw the ball into the field. The thrower is allowed to hold the ball for five seconds. If he holds it longer, then the ball is given to the opponent. If either side tries to play for time, the referee must give them a foul.
The referee must monitor the actions of the players and fouls, and notify the referee of three consecutive fouls. He shall have the power to disqualify players under rule 5.
The referee must watch the ball and determine when the ball is in play (inbounds) and when it is out of bounds (out of bounds), which side should be in possession of the ball, and any other actions normally performed by the referee .
The game consists of two halves of 15 minutes each with a break of 5 minutes between them.
The side with the most goals during this time period is the winner.
The biggest rule change in the history of basketball is the introduction of dribbling. In the original version of the game, this was prohibited by paragraph 3 of the rules.
One of the first changes in the game and the rules was the replacement of the basket with a ring with a net. It seemed to be very inconvenient to climb after the ball every time after a hit. Around the same time, free throws, dribbling appeared, and the composition of the teams was fixed for 5 players on the court at the same time. Before that, in some matches, up to 50 people could be on the court at the same time. All this happened back in 1896-1897.
The emergence of FIBA (International Basketball Federation)
Basketball at the beginning of the 20th century became more popular and the rules in each country could be different. This was one of the reasons why FIBA appeared in 1932 year. At the first FIBA Congress, the teams were approved (5 people and 2 substitutes), and it was decided that after each goal there would be a throw-in in the center. This rule was removed after 4 years to reduce the advantage of tall players.
Over the next few years, the main changes were related to the number of personal fouls, the number of players on the bench and the introduction of a time limit for getting the ball into the opponent's half of the court.
More changes came in 1952 after the Olympic Games. The game became very boring, because the teams held the ball, having received a minimal lead in the score. Everyone understood this and searched for solutions for several years in order to save the life of basketball. At 1954 Danny Biason proposed to the NBA to limit the time for the shot to 24 seconds. At the 1956 Olympics, there was a similar rule: it was necessary to make a throw in 30 seconds. At the same time, to add equality between defense and attack, another rule familiar to us appeared: you need to start dribbling the ball before the supporting leg comes off.
Then the game became similar to the modern one from a technical point of view: dribbling, shots, a three-second zone appeared. In 1979, the NBA added a three-point line, and in 19In 1984, FIBA also added an arc.
!!! An article about the evolution of the three-point shot and interesting facts:
10 interesting facts about the three-point shot.
10 interesting facts about the three-point shot.
Three-pointer evolution and insane records.
Changes in the rules and basketball since 1956 have included the number of free throws, the situations in which these free throws are given, and individual and team penalties. Some rules were introduced, and a few years later they were canceled. For example, the "3 for 2" rule: if a player was fouled in the shooting phase, then if one of the first two shots was missed, he could make another free throw. This rule was later removed.
Since the 1990s there have been constant changes: the emergence of alley-oops, changes in the timing and rewriting of the rules of running, which continue to this day.
From the most interesting: if the team has 0.3 seconds or less to throw the ball from behind, then it must be a one-touch throw. It takes at least 0.4 seconds to perform a full throw.
Derrick Fisher made similar throws:
And here is a small selection of videos of how they throw in 0.2 seconds:
Do you want to take your first steps in basketball or improve your basic skills? We have a Basic Basketball Skills workout for you. See the schedule and sign up:
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Coach: Yuriy Bespalov
- Professional player of the INANOMO 3x3 team; - Champion of Russia 3x3 2019, 2021; - Winner and medalist of the MOFB championship; - MLBL Summer League MVP 2017; - Multiple participant of Moscow Open; - Champion of Moscow 3x3 2017; - MVP GrunisCup 2017.
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This forces them out of position.
And you don't need olympic-caliber players to get it to work.
Obviously, he is very intelligent.
That's the point!
.. who knows.
He shows you how to teach the system step by step.
.. It steers you towards things you are successful and confident at.
The defense is still moving. If you wait for them to position themselves, the advantage
disappears. Attacking immediately enables you to take advantage of the gaps and advantages.
He told George to stop thinking so much.
In 2016, he even set the school record for 9 three point shots made during one game.
Fundamentals of defensive play are of paramount importance in the early stages of a team's training and should be constantly addressed by coaches throughout the season. (When five players play the team's main offensive interactions, the coach should indicate which of them stays behind on safety net. After the throw, the team quickly switches from attack to defense.) 
The actions of the entire team, all the efforts spent on taking the ball away from the opponent, may be useless due to inaccurate passes or inept catching of the ball. Every basketball player should strive to perfect his ball handling and movement technique. A technically trained and versatile player is the most dangerous for the opponent. 
Since defensive action usually starts 5-6m from the basket being defended, quick reaction may be more valuable than speed, but either way, both are the foundation of a good defense. 
The distance between the feet varies slightly among different players. Tall players are more comfortable standing in a wider stance. But a very narrow or excessively wide stance is dangerous for a defender. The more placed the feet, the more difficult it is for the player to maintain balance. The wider the stance, the more difficult it is to start the first movement. Body weight should be evenly distributed on the balls of the feet, not on the toes. With a stable position, the center of gravity shifts back, not forward. The legs are slightly bent at the knees, the pelvis is lowered to lower the center of gravity of the body, the torso is slightly tilted forward, the head is raised up. Head, shoulders and back form a straight line. Any movement of the head or shoulders will throw the defender off balance and give the attacker an advantage. 
The other hand should be set aside. The movements of the arms and hands are a deterrent defensive tool, as they unbalance the opponent and impede his movement. 
The player must see everything around him, both directly and on the periphery. 
Running backwards is unnatural and therefore requires constant training and good balance. In this case, the weight of the body is slightly shifted in the direction opposite to the movement. If you shift your body weight back, the defender will fall on his back. 9; board. The other leg is quickly attached to a distance of 15 -! 20 cm from the first. The player repeats fast, sliding steps, maintaining balance and position in relation to the ball carrier and forcing the latter to move towards the touchline or in the direction of a teammate. In this case, the legs should never cross. 
This forces the players to patiently wait for the opponent's mistakes, passing the ball to each other endlessly without risking a shot to the basket from medium or long distance. 
e. prevent him from performing any game actions - catch, pass, dribble, go to an empty place, etc. 
The opponent has seized the initiative and scores one goal after another. The team in this case needs to focus on defending their basket and thereby restrain the offensive impulse of the enemy. 
Victory in the fight against the enemy, other things being equal, is won by the one who has more will to win. Teams whose players do not have high-willed qualities play unevenly in defense. 
In addition, the players must be able to quickly switch from attack to defense, as well as correctly insure each other in case the ball is lost. 
The same technique was also used when performing a free throw, when the players of the Israeli team did not even try to take a place near the free throw area, but retreated to their backcourt. 
Therefore, the second defender needs to quickly cover this player as well. To more successfully complete this task, the team must scout and determine the player's place to receive the first pass. 
Initially, there were only 13 of them in basketball: 
This was one of the reasons why FIBA appeared in 1932 year. At the first FIBA Congress, the teams were approved (5 people and 2 substitutes), and it was decided that after each goal there would be a throw-in in the center. This rule was removed after 4 years to reduce the advantage of tall players. 
