THE COMPLETE ZONE ATTACK PACKAGE u Overview and Terminology

Key5Coaching.com Zone Attack Principles Page 1 Zone Habits Page 3 Screening a Zone Page 4 Offensive Rebounding Strategies Page 5 Personnel Keys Against a Zone Page 6 Attacking a 2-3 Zone Page 8 Attacking a 1-3-1 Zone Page 9 Attacking a 3-2/1-2-2 Zone Page 11 While there are a myriad of zone attacking principles a team may use, there are three important yet underutilized principles that will immediately make your zone offense more effective. No matter what actions you’re running or what type of zone defense your opponent is playing these principles will help you create advantages and be successful.

1. Engage Two (E2)

Regardless of the defense, your team will always be the most successful when ONE offensive player can occupy TWO defenders. While most players are content to have one person guard them, the best offensive players are always hunting to create a situation where their pass leads to a 4 on 3 situation for their teammates.

This is a little bit of a “cat and mouse” game. You want players to ENGAGE the defense, but never MARRY them. Instead of rushing into the defense and getting into trouble, we must teach our players to keep their options open so they can throw passes to any of their four teammates. Engage, but don’t marry right away. It’s great life advice too.

2. Be Dangerous

This concept applies specifically to when offensive players are playing off the ball. As you teach this concept to your team, there are two key principles to remember:

● What to do if you’re one pass away from the ball. ● What to do if you’re more than one pass away from the ball.

There are many ways to "be" or "play" dangerous. Creating equilateral triangles and dancing (flashing to the middle) is another way to play dangerous. Dancing is related to puncturing the middle. Any time you dance and receive the ball you should look for your dancing partner, another teammate who is occupying the middle of the zone either in or around the key or near the baseline creating a high/low or low/high passing opportunity.

1 One Pass Away

● If you’re one pass away from the ball form an equilateral triangle. ● A sign of a good equilateral triangle is when two defenders jump out at you, neither do, or both hesitate.

More Than One Pass Away

● If you’re more than one more pass away from the ball, dance triple wide into openings. ● Players who are more than one pass away need to work in unison to find the opening. Multiple players should never dance to the middle at the same time. ● When a dancer catches a pass, a dancer to dancer pass is the easiest way to score.

3. Puncture the Middle

To beat a good zone defense you can’t just trim the edges, you have to puncture the middle. This applies to both passes and drives. The key is to keep your zone offense moving in unison. Just like Sir Isaac Newton’s Law of Motion, “For every action, there’s an equal and opposite reaction.” For example if a player is puncturing the middle via the dribble, teammates shouldn’t also puncture or dance at the same time.

There are many ways to puncture the middle of the zone while on offense. The important part is that your players know WHY it’s important and WHAT they should do when a teammate punctures.

WHY: Forces all defenders to turn their heads and focus on the middle of the floor. WHAT: Get dangerous! The defense has a harder time seeing offensive players that are off the ball when they’re focused on the middle.

2 Once your team understands the three most important Zone Attack Principles, you can go deeper with zone habits. We have three simple, yet incredibly effective habits that lead to indecision by the defense, more open offensive players, and better shots for your team against any zone.

1. Set The Table

Before initiating any offensive movement against a zone, your ball handler must make sure to set the table and ensure proper spacing and positioning of their teammates. At a minimum, they should “P1” (place one teammate) to set up the initial pass.

2. Ball Fake & Grimace (BF&G)

We’ve all heard the old adage, “you’ve got to fake a pass to make a pass!” And while that statement has a lot of truth, most coaches miss the opportunity to teach players the WHY of the BF&G.

Anytime a player uses a BF&G, they turn the defense into guessing machines. Zone defenders have specific areas (with edges) to cover. Realistic fakes create time and space for teammates to get open away from the ball.

The best ball fakes include a grimace by the player making the fake. Real and game-like fakes and movements always involve facial changes.

3. Freeze Dribble

A freeze dribble is when the offense intentionally dribbles at a defender in order to freeze that particular position in the zone. When used on the perimeter and with defenders preoccupied with the ball, a freeze dribble can lead to an open interior pass. If the defenders become paralyzed and stay home on the freeze dribble, it can lead to a long closeout and open jump shot.

3 An undervalued zone attack principle is using screens to create offensive advantages. Once you know the rules of the zone, you can use specific screens to turn those rules against the defense and create better scoring opportunities. Here are three types of screens to consider using frequently against any zone.

1. Push Screen

A push screen is a simple and deceptive way to confuse a zone defense that can create an open shot off a pass. Once the offensive player (Player A) makes a pass to Player B, Player A walks down towards the person that was guarding them. This pushes their defender farther down and keeps them occupied. This movement opens up the original space Player A had occupied for Player B (who caught the ball) to go and attack for an open shot.

2. Buffalo Screen

A buffalo screen is a great way to open up driving lanes against a zone. To set a buffalo screen, one offensive player must run straight at a defender in the zone and then screen them using a post up as a decoy. This allows the offensive player to be in legal position even though they’re actually screening and don’t intend to receive the ball.

3. Smash Screen

A smash screen is a ball screen set to the outside of the zone, most often versus a 2-3. This often isolates a single defender to guard both the ball handler and a shooter on the wing. Some teams will also simultaneously set two screens on the same side of the zone to isolate the defense even more.

By smashing one side of the zone, you’ve created an offensive advantage that leaves one defender to guard two offensive players. This allows the ball handler to attack, read the single defender, and either keep the ball or pass to an open teammate if the defender commits to the drive.

4 There are a variety of strategies and tactics you can implement to be successful on the offensive glass and may vary when you are facing a man versus a zone defense. Here are three great ways your team can increase their offensive rebound rate against a zone.

1. Back of Head

Every player grows up playing hide and seek, and this rebounding principle isn’t much different. On the shot, your offense should have 1-2 players stay low and flat to the baseline maintaining vision of the back of the defenders’ heads. As a result, the offense will be more difficult to find when the defense turns to box out.

2. Be the Boxer

This tactic is underutilized at most levels and becomes especially effective when an offensive player properly anticipates a shot being taken by a teammate. This anticipation allows the offensive player to move first and secure the box out angle before the defense has a chance to react. When executed properly, as the shot is being released, the offensive player will be the one getting inside position on the defense to box them out.

3. Flood Opposite

While the first two rebounding strategies were for individual players, this strategy is a team concept. When teams flood opposite, they have every rebounder attack one area closer to the weak side of the floor from where they’re standing when a shot is taken.

This strategy will allow the offense to get as many rebounders to the middle and opposite side of the floor as possible, putting every player in a better position to corral an offensive rebound.

5 Similar to the previous zone attack principles, these specific skill sets can enhance any offense facing off against a zone defense. Ideally, you should be able to identify 2 or 3 players on your team best suited to fit these personnel keys.

1. Playmaking From the Middle

Many zone offenses will at some point feature a “big” getting to the high post and on the catch they’ll look to take an open shot or distribute the ball. Instead of attacking a zone in this traditional sense, consider getting your best playmaker the ball in the middle of the zone.

When that happens, all five defenders are immediately locked in on the ball, giving a playmaker the opportunity to make something happen towards the basket while all four offensive teammates are free to cut or move to open space while the defense is focused on the player with the ball.

2. Heel up Rebounder

This role is perfect for a player on your team that isn’t a great shooter and wouldn’t be someone suited to play-make in space against a zone. This player will play heels up on the baseline in order to constantly stretch the bottom line of defense. They’re ready to explode and rebound from a position that is hard to box out once a shot goes up. If your team shoots a lot of early 3’s against a zone, having a heel up rebounder (or two) will help generate additional possessions with offensive rebounds.

3. Shooter Actions

Regardless of the type of zone you’re playing against, both your coaches and your players should know the specific areas of the floor where you want to generate shots from. Once you’ve identified these spots/areas on the floor, you can then be intentional with the actions you want to use to get shooters open. Below are three great actions to get shooters open against a zone. You should decide which one(s) is most important to you.

6 Baseline Runner

If you’re facing a zone that gives up corner 3’s, find ways to get your best shooter in situations where they’re running the baseline. This will put continuous pressure on the defense to cover the corner or give up an open 3.

Flood Shooters

One of the biggest weaknesses of a zone is that defensive players often guard their area versus being responsible for a specific offensive player. Great shooting teams want to flood shooters to the same area of the floor. This leaves one or two defenders to guard against the two or three best shooters on the other team. This adjustment is especially effective for teams that have multiple shooters hunting open 3’s against the zone.

Ball Screen Pops

One of the reasons that a ball screen can be so effective against a zone, is because when done correctly it leaves one defender to guard both the ball handler and the screener. When a ball screen is set at the 3-point line, most zones have built-in help towards the basket, but there aren’t necessarily additional defenders in space. That’s why a ball screen pop can be so lethal against most zone defenses.

If your best shooter sets the screen,​ ​they’ll be wide open if the screened defender stays with the ball handler. If the screened defender stays on the shooter, it leaves the ball handler free to get downhill with an advantage.

7 In order to be the most efficient when attacking a 2-3 zone, there are three specific principles you’ll want to employ.

1. Exploit the Porch

Most teams play zone because of one of two reasons. Either they’re not quick or athletic enough to guard their opponent man to man, or they want to protect the paint and force the offense to shoot from outside. When a defense sets up in a 2-3 alignment, the porch presents a soft spot that can lead to easy baskets.

The porch is similar to what many call the short corner, the area along the baseline and outside of the paint on either side. By calling it the porch you help your players visualize how they want to set up: heels to the baseline so they can “sit” and see everything that’s going on during the play.

When the ball is entered to the porch against a 2-3, all five defenders find themselves facing the baseline to lock in on the ball, which opens up multiple relocation and cutting options for the offense.

2. Screen the Zone

While screens are expected when playing against a man defense, screens against a zone are underutilized, specifically a 2-3. Screening the zone, combined with proper off- ball spacing, forces defenders to guard against multiple players at the same time.

Every great zone offense will include some combination of on-ball screens, off-ball screens, simultaneous screens, and multiple screens on the same possession. As a coach, it’s important to decide which screens best fit your team’s personnel and when the best times are to use them.

3. Roll the Buffalo

This concept combines a buffalo screen with an off-ball cutter to generate uncontested shots, many of which will come at the rim. Once one player uses a fake post up to screen the middle defender of the 2-3, you’ll want to roll someone into the middle of the paint in the open, unaccounted for area for a clean catch and potentially wide open look.

8 screen the middle defender of the 2-3, you’ll want to roll someone into the middle of the paint in the open, unaccounted for area for a clean catch and potentially wide open look.

Just as there are specific principles that best-apply to a 2-3 zone, the same is true for a 1-3-1 zone.

1. Overload a Side

We know, you’ve heard this one before and you do it all the time. However, do your players understand why overloading is ​most important ​when playing a 1-3-1?

Anytime the defense plays man, they often get to dictate the offensive/defensive matchups; but the moment the defense plays zone, the offense gets to dictate those matchups.

When you overload one side against a 1-3-1, you put the defense into a position where it’s impossible for them to guard everyone and intentional ball movement can lead to wide-open shots and drives.

2. Utilize the Elbows

This concept is perhaps the most underutilized attack principle against a 1-3-1. While many teams flood the perimeter, you can also create open opportunities by utilizing the elbows.

When players are positioned on the elbows (in addition to the wing) the “3” middle defenders must decide who to guard and who to leave open. This is especially useful when you have two “bigs” and one is a good passer. By throwing the ball to the passer in the high post, the opposite side elbow can dive hard and get a quick “seal” situation on the bottom, smaller defender. Then when the defense adjusts and shades help to that post up, the skip pass becomes readily available for a wide-open 3.

3. Knife to Puncture

The knife concept is an immediate attack off of a catch to get the ball to the middle of the 1-3-1 defense. The 1-3-1 defense is often implemented to slow down the offense

9 and force them to become passive on the catch. If your team uses a knife to puncture, you’re using immediate attacks to create advantages.

The off-ball offensive player who is preparing to “knife,” will get in position ready to catch with the outside hand. After catching, they immediately dribble towards the middle to beat the defense before they have time to react. The goal of the offensive player is to drive to the middle as quickly as possible and make the next decision.

10 Both the 3-2 and 1-2-2 zones have similarities when it comes to strengths and weaknesses. Experiment with these three principles to find more success against both zone defenses.

1. Screen Up

Basketball is a game of opposites. Using a screen up against a 3-2 or 1-2-2 zone is an extremely effective way to create openings by using the defense's rotations against itself.

The premise is this: If any part of the zone covers high to low, you want to screen low to high. For example, in many 3-2 defenses, the player who is in the middle of the “3” also has the responsibility to cover the block when the ball goes to the corner. In that situation, you’d screen up on that player with a teammate who’s coming from the baseline to open up the block for another off-ball cutter.

2. Take Advantage of the Corners

How teams guard the corners when playing a 3-2/1-2-2 zone defense can tell you everything you need to know about their defensive rotations, and thus, everything you need to know to be more successful against them. Teams will either guard the corner with one of the bottom two defenders, or they’ll drop a wing defender down into the corner.

When Bottom Defenders Guard the Corner

If your opponent covers the corner with a bottom defender, getting the ball to the corner will open up advantages for cutting to the strong side block and posting up. At that point it becomes a race to see if the offense can get position before the defense can rotate.

When Wing Defenders Guard the Corner

If your opponent covers the corner with a wing defender, patience can lead to uncontested, strong-side threes. By putting shooters on both the ball-side wing and corner, now crisp passing and intentional movement will force the defender to make

11 tough choices on who to guard and who to leave open. If you have a third shooter that can be ready in the slot or top of the key, even better!

3. Baseline Puncture

While the baseline drive can be a risky offensive play, it can also be incredibly effective when intentionally used to attack a defensive rotation. This attack is best used against the 3-2 or 1-2-2 defense because their defensive rotations create awkward angles for rotating defenders trying to cover the baseline. This type of puncture can lead to easy baskets for both the driver and their teammates.

12 TRANSFORM YOUR COACHING Get the blueprint, tools, and inspiration you need to succeed as a coach with a Key5 Coaching membership.