Skills Checklists

Footwork

• Motor skills, Dribble stops, Getting open, Pivoting, Triple threat, Dribble triple-threat, Drop stance, Stampede catch,  Lateral separation, Shooting, One-dribble pull-up

Motor skills

• Athletic (ready) stance
• Start, stop (jump stop, stride stop)
• Running - forward, backward
• Change speed, direction (agility)
• Lateral movement - crossover, carioca, step-slide
• Jumping, skipping, bounding, lunging

Dribble stops

• Jump stop - off the inside foot
• Stride stop - 1-2 outside-inside, protect the ball
• Speed stop - 1-2 inside-outside stop
  • Speed stop exchange - behind the back dribble

Getting open

• V-cut, backdoor cut, blast cut
• L-cut, spin off, step over (lockdown)
• Flash cut (ball cut)
• Iverson cut (horizontal)

Pivoting

• Forward and reverse pivot
  • permanent pivot foot
  • either foot
• 360 pivot
  • step thru
    • options - shot fake, jab and cross
    • reverse pivot (Kobe)
  • spin back
  • step out (around).

Triple threat

• Square up, ball in shot pocket
  • progression - protect ball on opposite hip or ear
  • inside pivot foot, either pivot foot (ball in the air, feet in the air), or permanent pivot foot
• Dave Smart
  • figure out where there is the most light going directly to the rim, sell opposite with a jab step and/or a hard sweep to the other leg if the defender is bodied up, or an upfake if he is backing off
  • if he is straddling with his top foot in the middle of your stance, he is not forcing, attack the top foot, forcing him to open up [first sell opposite]
• Sweeping - rip the ball from one side to the other, lead with the elbow, sweep low or high (short circle)
  • rips and sweeps - the ball travels below your knees or above your head (protect it on hips or shoulders)
• Jab step
  • see Blog post - Jab Steps
  • get the defender to move
  • Jr. NBA - dictate what the defence does, squash the bug
  • check step - short jab, see what the defender does, can cross step, shoot, go
  • Augie Johnston - jab at an angle (at the defender's top foot forcing one direction), use the ball to help sell the fake (chop down a tree)
  • jab step (ball inside knee), shimmy the ball (knee-knee) and go
    • see Blog post - Body jab and shimmy moves
  • DJ Sackmann - jab step and shimmy, inside your frame
  • Collin Castellaw - use a jab step to drop the top foot, cross opposite to attack or separate for a shot
• Reid Ouse - Purpose behind jabs
  • Side jab - defender has a cushion, look to shift them laterally
    • PGC - jab sideways to get a defender off your line of attack, then cross
    • don't jab back (loading up)
  • Front jab - defender up tight, threaten their foot
    • jab right at a defender, get them to move backwards, create space for a shot, or side jab and cross (PGC)
  • Middle jab - closed stance
    • defender playing tight
    • Augie Johnston - "crotch watch"
      • you're getting a lot of pressure, can't really jab step, have to get your defender off
      • turn sideways from triple threat, take a big step between his legs, push him back, step back, now you have space, but have to be quick, e.g., attack, shoot
    • middle jab to side jab
  • DJ Sackmann - middle jab, bring it back behind you for leverage (split stance)
  • Cross jab - cross step, quick or slow, can spin out
    • Kobe step - cross step, protect ball on outside shoulder, rip back (reverse pivot) or spin if the defender presses up
    • tuck it back, cross step (over the top), reverse pivot
    • middle jab to cross jab, spin out
• Shot fake (get a defender out of stance, or to close in) - go, cross, shoot
• Combination
  • rocker step - jab step, shot fake, blow by
  • back-up move (create space) - shot fake, jab step, shoot
  • shoulder shimmy
• First step - advantage (separation), ball and foot hit floor at same time; second dribble - cut him off, angle to the rim
• Read the help
• Catch to shoot before triple threat

Dribble triple-threat

• Open stance, closed stance (against pressure)
• Inside foot - side jab, jab-at (rotate hips, closed stance)
• Front jab - outside (dribble) foot

Drop stance

• See Blog post - Split (Drop) Stance, Shooting - Drop series, Beat the closeout
• Split catch - catch with split feet in a wide stance, push off and cross-step with the back foot, avoid a travel, attack a closeout
  • Counters - shoot (step up or back), cross-step with the front foot to attack opposite
  • Cross-step with the foot closest to the defender
• Drop move - off the dribble, drop into a split stance, outside foot (dribble foot) forward, ball in the hip pocket (pocket dribble)
  • Drop and go, crossover, shoot (step in), drag pullback
  • Thru the legs - step forward with the back foot to claim space, or scissor both feet to keep space (drop thru/split)
• Inverted drop - a split stance dribbling off the back foot, setting up a push crossover
• Drop pivot - from an open stance, drop the inside foot into a split stance (a starter step)
• Inverted drop pivot - drop the outside foot, go thru the legs
• Hip swivel - go from a closed stance (protecting the ball) to a drop position

Stampede catch

• see Blog post - Stampede Catch & Dribble Release
• meet the pass, run thru the ball (George Karl - go-catch)
• as the pass is coming, meet the ball, catch, dribble release with either hand (depending on the catch) to attack downhill
  • see Shooting - Sackmann pull-ups (Momentum catch)
• start off the 3-point line, stampede, read the defence while the pass is in the air, shoot or rip and get by

Lateral separation

• See Blog post - Lateral Separation, Shooting - Snake pull-ups, Angled pull-up
• Lateral separation on the dribble can create space for a shot or a driving lane to the rim (if that's taken away, cross it back)
• Use shuffle footwork (side step), a lateral bound (skip off the lead foot, land in a split stance, back foot first), or a cross-step (bounce off) e.g. extended stepback
• On a crossover, float and run with the ball (motion steps)

Shooting footwork

• See Blog post - Shooting Footwork, Shooting - Thrive3 footwork, Curry on the move, Drew Hanlen
• Spot-up
  • Silent feet - no hop or steps
  • Foot replacement - bunny hop
  • Hop - off the permanent pivot foot, or either foot
  • Anchor foot - anchor the permanent pivot foot, step with the shooting foot
  • 1-2 - step left-right (for a righty)
  • Stride stop or rhythm step - right-left-right
  • Split catch - shoot (step-in) or attack
  • Wide base - catch in a wide stance, move one foot in to a shooting stance
• Moving towards the basket (straight-on, e.g. transition)
  • Hop, 1-2 (left-right)
  • Stride stop (R-L-R)
• Moving laterally (square-up)
  • See Shooting - Guard workout, Wide pin-downs
  • Hop pivot - off the inside foot
    • or the outside foot
  • 1-2 front pivot (inside-outside)
    • back pivot on the inside foot, jab and square up
    • long jab with the outside foot, pull it back
  • Stride stop - catch on the outside foot into a 1-2
  • Outside foot reverse pivot
    • jab and square up
  • Jump stop, front or reverse pivot to square up
  • Split catch
  • DJ Sackmann
    • Footwork options on a catch
      • typically hop on a catch with the inside foot down, a 1-2 is difficult
      • on a catch with the outside foot down, push thru into a 1-2, or hop if there is no space
    • Shooting footwork that you must have
      • footwork off a catch - inside-outside, or a hop off the inside (or outside) foot
      • use a hop because of the angle, hop off the inside foot if you can't square up all the way with an outside step
• Moving away from the basket
  • Inside foot
    • front pivot
      • with cheat step (brake with the outside foot (see Bill Self perimeter)
    • reverse pivot (drop step)
      • drop a jab step
  • Outside foot
    • reverse pivot
    • reverse hop
    • reverse side-step
    • reverse pivot on the right foot, step in left-right (for a righty)
  • Jump stop facing away from the basket, e.g.
    • shoulder fake outside, front pivot middle
      • front pivot jab
    • outside foot reverse pivot, jab and shoot
    • see Skills Checklists - Post play
  • Permanent pivot foot
    • see Shooting - 5star foul-line flash, Mike Procopio wing
• Off the dribble
  • Hop - off inside foot
    • use when no one is around, balance
    • defender goes under a ballscreen
  • 1-2 inside-outside
    • stop on a dime
    • hard last dribble (boom 1-2)
  • Freeze footwork - outside-inside

One-dribble pull-up

• Footwork is usually inside-outside, L-R (for a righty), or a hop.
• Permanent pivot foot (for a righty)
  • Cross-step going left,
    • R-L-hop
    • R-L-R
    • R-hop
    • R-L
  • Blast step going right,
    • R-L-hop
    • R-L-R
  • Augie Johnston - R-L-R going right, R-L going left (quick)
  • Rick Carlisle - R-L-R both ways
• Cross-step both ways (protect the ball, avoid a travel)
  • See above going left
  • Going right,
    • L-hop
    • L-R
    • L-R-L (cross side-step footwork)
    • L-R-hop possible but harder to square up
  • Two-step crossover - 1-2 both ways, quick
  • DJ Sackmann
    • Four steps, hang the ball (or two dribbles)
    • R-L-R-L going left, L-R-L-R going right.