Northern Illinois University- John McGinty "Attacking Off -Guard and Post Reads" Reads Going into the PNR • Teach the ball handler reads to set up the pick and roll. o Off the dribble and on the catch • 5 things must happen prior to/surrounding the ball Catch, face the basket, triple threat o rd o Correct spacing (lane line extended, middle 3 ball screen, posts, weak side guards) o Timing on coming off the PNR, setup, off ball movement (Duck in, lift, replace, screening, interchange) o Guard setup/Angles (jab, step through legs, sweep) (hesitation, skip, hip swivel, live dribble to get defender below screen) o Post Angles (target inside lower half of their hip, hold until guards shoulders, hip are past you)

Guard Reads on Pick and Roll • Always attacking to score • Looking for the teammate who screened for you (NIU pops to window) (Reading Help) • Duck in when getting to the nail or elbow • Weak side shooter • Replace guard or post

Guard Rules: 1. Guards must catch and face the basket, looking for scoring opportunities 2. They must sweep/show the ball in the opposite direction of the ball screen 3. Must hesitate, jab, glide, or skip into the screen, create contact if needed 4. Probe the defender, create space by initiating contact/engaging the defender. 5. Shoulder to hip on your teammate. 6. Read the defense, DO NOT PRE DETERMINE your action prior to coming off the screen 7. Turn right off the back side of your screener/defense 8. Check the paint as turning the corner, get to the nail on the line or elbow 9. Should be able to touch the back of the calf of your teammate to establish you are low enough 10. Must go 2 dribbles off the ball screen to create space and draw help defense ideally 11. Guards have to change speeds but be coming down hill 12. Drive to score 1st, or make 2 guard the ball to create a four on three situation.

Post Player Rules: 1.Sprint to the screen, if in the paint, seal and then sprint to the screen 2.Sprint to the defender, body to body contact 3.Locating the back side of the defender’s hip 4.Angle yourself on the lower half of their body, really just trying to interfere or get in the way of the defender for a second. 5.Hold through contact, be as flat as needed to make the defender go over the screen 6.Open to the on a switch if the guard goes under 7.Sprint to the rim or roll to a pocket (away from the help defense) 8.Move in conjunction to the defender 9.Look to slip if the defender hedges too early, if you don’t see her between you and the basket, automatic slip.

Flat/Low show in Help- (This is where the post player stays behind the ball screen inside the 3pt arc and stays with the ball until the guard recovers) • We teach NIU guards to look to change speed @ the ball screen, come off shoulder to hip and attack downhill @ the big right away. We believe this is the best/easiest way for guards to get a score on the PNR. When they “Turn the corner” (ideally before the closest elbow) they are reading to see if the big comes up to contest or back petals to stall. On a back petal, we want to pull up, on a contest or step up we want to use a hesitation and blow by the defender.

High Hedge- (Where the screeners defender decides to get out early, high, and hard to force the ball handler away from the basket, ideally toward half court) • Offensively, we teach again set up the defender, as we see or scout the high hedge, our guards need to look to attack the high foot of the hedger as well as get their shoulder into their hip to get them to open up. • Wanting to turn the corner before the 2nd elbow or right after they cross the midline

Quick hedge- (where the defender doesn’t ever detach from the screener and just sticks her arm out at the guard coming off) • Hesitate at the screen to get the big to go away and attack trying to go right off their back, again attacking shoulder to hip and the high foot/arm.

Split Read- (when the defender jumps out at the ball handler but doesn’t stay attached enough to force the guard away and leaves space between screener and defender) • Step @ the big, cross over low and below the knees, throwing the ball out in front ahead of you for you to go get and finish.

Switch PNR- (Where defender x1,x2x,3 and x4,x5 switch defenders when guard comes off the ball screen) • Create space by dragging the defender out toward half court and top of the (coming from the wing) while teammates are looking to space the floor. Guard then looks to attack downhill (right at the switch). Looking to stop and shoot or quick change of direction. • The big must open to the ball catching the switching guard on her back, where the guard then has the opportunity to throw into the mismatch or dribble back to where she came from and punch it in. • On a slow switch, a guard can look to attack right away at the big seeing if they can catch her off guard moving left to right

Under the screen- (where the guards defender x2 goes underneath the screen) • First make the guard really guard you tight, until then keep going toward the rim, making the ball screen lower and lower • When coming off the screen create space right behind the screen looking to shoot the 3. • Attack hard if not a shooter, to come back for a re screen, probe the ball screen, act like you are coming off the screen and go right back at the guard defending you trying to go under.

Ice/Down Screening- (When your defender or a team decides to force you toward the corner or baseline not letting you use the screen going middle) • Create space by retreating and getting off the sideline more toward lane line extended OR retreating into the defender pushing her toward the lane line. • Post then flip the screen to being flat (back to baseline) and attack the big. • Or you are looking to get the guard on your back and looking to snake (curl) the screen with the ball getting back to the middle

Snake Read- (when you get the defender guarding the person with the ball on your back and you are able to curl the screen attacking the big with x1 guard on your backside) • Looking to turn the corner, keeping the guard on your hip, tight turn to keep defender on your back side and play 1v1 with the big. Would be like curling an off the ball screen.

Blitz- (On a blitz or trap/ of the ball handler, trying to force a quick ) • Retreat 2-3 Dribbles then attack the slower defender (post) using a quick change of direction, keeping your dribble alive is key until you can find an open outlet

Refusal- (When defending guard does not make the ball handler use the screen) • Get to the screen, sell by hesitating, on a head turn or jump in anticipation, change direction and attack • Always reject/refuse screens if the guard can (defense is relying on the use of the screen) (John Groce)

Passing out of the Ball Screen 1. Pocket pass- square up with the post defender as the guard tries to recover, find the window for a scoop or bounce pass 2. Wrap pass- deliver a strike around the post or as the post is returning to the roller. 3. Pivot Pass- Take two/three hard dribbles, come to a jump stop, pivot and throw an overhead pass to the roller (soccer pass) 4. Reverse pass- Defense jumps or hedges high, the guard takes the screener defender away but can’t turn the corner, stops, reverse pivots, back to the middle of the floor and throws a direct line pass. 5. Hook Pass- popular in the NBA, we don’t use too much at NIU have to throw a pass over the guards head and over the defense. 6. Jump Pass- Getting into a or jumping to see over the defense while throwing an over the head pass.