Jeff Van Gundy

•      stats - 4 ways to impact point differential - true field-goal percentage (FG% plus made 3s); free throws attempted vs given up, rebounding percentages, turnovers

•      need to win 3 out of 4 categories to win

•      screening and closing out should look the same - sprint, jump stop

Avery Johnson

•      use an “attacking” (pressure) man defence to disrupt the other team’s timing, to wear them down, and to turn up your aggressiveness

•      however, you can’t always be in attacking defence mode, e.g., if too many players go for an offensive rebound

•      converting after a missed shot - 1, 2 and 3 get back on a shot, 4 and 5 can rebound only if they are close enough to the basket

•      cover the threats - basket, ball (pick it up as early as possible), wings

•      we want numbers, the xtrailer does not run back with the trailer, he gets in front of the ball, is the help

•      on a made basket, X4 jams the inbounder, 1 moves up from his converting position to the point guard as early as he can, X4 gets to ball level, and at some point double teams with X1 (he can hit immediately on the inbounds pass)

•      on the trap, two interceptors split the gaps, a safety protects the basket

•      may be able to rotate up to cover the trailer, inviting a pass to the furthest attacker (full rotation)

•      trappers form an L, don’t allow a split

•      in halfcourt defence, the most important thing is containing penetration

•      hold players accountable in everything

•      close-outs - hands up on arrival, hands out on penetration - loves active hands

•      out front is the contain area

•      deny one pass away

•      no help from the corners, don’t suck in, stay home (may bluff and recover)

•      play music in practice, players must talk over it

•      disciplined close-outs - foul line and below, can’t let ball go middle, force baseline into another wall

•      defence of the side pick and roll should be consistent with the close-out

•      if closing out high side, force the pick and roll baseline, trap, and rotate to leave open the attacker in the far corner

•      if the close-out is low, forcing middle, the xscreener jumps in front to trap, don’t wait for the screen, on the rotation the other big is an interceptor

•      defend post-ups from a 3/4 position at worst, face on face

•      trap the low post from the nail (one pass away), on air time, not when he gets the ball

•      if there is a high post, his defender traps the low post

•      some coaches assign a trapper (e.g., the defender of a non-shooter), it hasn’t worked for the Mavericks

•      911 situations - against a hot player who can’t be guarded, trap him on air time with xpasser, make him pass, deny a return pass

•      defensive rebounding - just hit someone in your vicinity

•      when the other teams uses full-court pressure after a made basket, usually their X5 is a safety who is getting back, so attacker O5 will try to brush screen (pick off) X4 who wants to jam the inbounder

•      O4 may change sides of the basket on the inbounds pass to help O5 line up the screen

•      the receiver banana cuts to the get the inbounds pass, get the ball on a run

•      if X4 traps the ball, square the floor, with one attacker in the middle

•      if the point guard is trapped and passes, don’t try to get the ball back to him

•      baseline drive, baseline drift - the dribbler looks for an ear pass or step-through pass to the far corner, or a reverse pivot and pass back to the pressure release filling behind

•      or keep the dribble alive, reverse and come back out

•      when the defence forces a sidescreen baseline and traps, the screener rolls to the dunker spot in front of the rim, the other big sprints to be pressure release (square the floor), 4 and 5 are on a string

•      or a weakside attacker may have to fill pressure release

•      if the defence closes out low and traps, the screener must separate to the corner, there is also a dunker and pressure release

•      swing the ball to the other side out of the trap, don’t hold it

•      if the defence traps a midscreen, the screener needs to separate as pressure release, or if he is a roll guy, the replace guy is pressure release

Hubie Brown

•      1 on 1 - play until a score by either player, 2-dribble limit; make-it, take-it

•      defending a dead ball or a live ball where the attacker holds it over this head - jam up and make him turn

•      defensive transition (stopping the fast break) - a designated defender overplays the inbounds pass half a man, arms up and crosses, jump when the passes turns

•      another defender gets on the same vertical plane as the primary receiver, arms up and back to the ball, make the point guard come back to the ball for a pass, then turn him two times in his backcourt

•      post shooting - jump hook (shoulder into chest of defender, bring ball out of your hip), power move, up and under, Sikma (step through as a counter)

•      never do post moves without defence, players don’t like shot blocks

•      drills should be 2, 3 or 5 minutes

•      put in the whole, then work back, they pick it up quickly

•      spacing - no one defender plays to two attackers - if you don’t have it, you can be trapped

•      selfish players need to know when to pass and when to shoot

•      it’s about winning, giving the ball up

Lawrence Frank

•      good offence - can flow 94 feet, good spacing (15-18 feet), ball movement (reversal), player movement, multiple passing outlets, dribble penetration (hardest thing to guard), good rebounding opportunities

Kevin Eastman

•      on ball reversal, there are defensive breakdowns

•      offence close to the rim is more physical, and allowed - always room for flex action

•      stay away from the rim, spread out outside the arc, then look to see how to get back into the action

•      the faster the ball moves, defenders stay closer to their guys - less help, more gaps

•      help with the inside foot and hand

•      zone offence - baseline screen the first defender, post the second defender

•      7 keys for bigs - play low to high, shoulders game, fist fight to get the ball, foot fight to score, use pound dribbles, own the midline

•      post in a “mini-lane” not the pro lane

•      on ball reversal to their wing, post across (both feet in the paint), not up (e.g., step through with the bottom foot, or split the defender with the top leg and leg whip)

•      without shooting drills, you don’t get many shots in practice

•      drill defence, e.g., lock and trail then step inside once past a screen

•      screening - take the screen to the defender, if a great shooter isn’t open it’s the screener’s fault, screen with your back to the area of attack                                  

•      hard work is the price of admission for being good (Kobe Bryant - black-out, not work-out)

•      post cut on a post feed, get the diggers out of the way - if you cut high, elbow, front rim, reverse pivot, clear weakside

•      cutting discipline - sprint, see the passer, to the rim, space out

•      work on conditioning, shooting, dribbling every day

•      contest shots in practice three ways - hand up; foul after the release; anything goes

•      keys to a shooting work-out - catch and shoot; cut, catch and shoot; off the dribble; perfect form (beginning/bottom and end/top of shot - feet and follow-through until the ball hits the rim)

•      the right to shoot is the right to miss

•      game shots, game spots, game speed