5 DEFENSIVE MUSTS
#1 - Get back and eliminate points in transition
#2 - Protect the Paint
#3 - Close out and Contest all Shots
#4 - Defend without Fouling
#5 - Block Out and Rebound
HOW WE TRACK THIS
#1 - DFG%
#2 - FTA/FTR
#3 - OR% (Opponent)
OUR GOALS (Relative to Conference)
#1 - TOP 4 DFG%
#2 - TOP 4 FTA/FTR
#3 - TOP 4 OR%
OUR MENTALITY AND PHILOSOPHY
Our Overall Goal
To force our opponent into one low percentage shot, while we consistently shoot high percentage shots on offense
The Hit First Mentality
- Dictate what is about to happen by hitting first
- Initiate the contact
- Proactive, never reactive
- Anticipate and instigate
- Do your work early
The Stonecutters Credo
“When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before.”
The War of Attrition
- the action or process of gradually reducing the strength or effectiveness of someone or something through sustained attack or pressure
- This means doing what we do over a sustained period of time
-Consistently and repetitively adhering to the principles of our defense
Eliminate the 3 Highest Percentage Shots in Basketball
(1) The fastbreak layup
(2) The offensive putback
(3) Free Throws
Force the Offense into Low -Percentage shots
(1) We want to keep the ball away from the rim and out of the paint
- The closer the ball gets to the rim, the higher the shot percentage
- We are at a high risk of fouling these types of shots
(2) We want to discourage inside out 3 point shots
- We acknowledge the analytical value of an inside out 3
(3) We want to influence the offense into taking midrange 2’s
- This is historically the lowest percentage shot
- We have a low risk of fouling on these shots
Allow the offense one option
-We understand that good offensive basketball involves being a threat to do multiple things
- Each offensive basketball “action” involves multiple options and reads
- We want to reduce all of these “choices” down to one low percentage option
Extra Possessions and Gambling
- Our rule is that if you gamble for the steal, you have to get it
- We recognize that some players have a knack for steals
- If a player goes for it, he has to get it, as missing the gamble frequently leads to easy shot opportunities and fouls
- We prefer to create steals and blocks from great positioning
