Creating an Advantage with the MPnR Part 2: The Creator as a Magician
What skills does an exceptional Creator possess to become a “Magician” in the PnR?
- Creates space from a disruptive defender.
Exceptional Creators are always in control of pace and space in the pick and roll. Mark Radford, Basketball Tasmania High Performance Manager, at the 2019 BTAS Gala, discussed what it takes to be a great pick and roll player. The first thing he emphasized was the ability of the Creator to handle the ball under pressure against a disruptive defender. If our Creator cannot setup the defender through footwork and usage of the dribble, then he will never get separation from the defender at the point of the screen to gain advantage. To create this space, great Creators play with two deceptive speeds in their pace, with constant hip swivels, and with both feet off the ground to get their defender off-balance. Liam Flynn expects his Creators to be “confident, bordering arrogant” in their setup and usage of the screen.
2. Contrives “Pocket Decisions” at the point of the screen.
An exceptional Creator like, Facundo Campazzo, is a skilled magician with incredible 3D vision in the “Pocket”. These “Pocket Decisions” at the point of the screen are “coverage dependent” split-second decisions where the Creator kills the coverage by juggling three decisions: 1. Can I score? 2. Can the Roller score? 3.Can the weak-side corner/lift score. Elite Creators not only kill the coverage at the point of screen against their defender and the screener’s defender, but also kill the coverage after the point of the screen by scanning the floor and reading who has an advantage in space (back-side tag) and who has an advantage on a cut (front-side).
3. Composes with their finishing package.
One of the three decisions the Creator will juggle in the “Pocket” is “Can I score.” Very rarely will the Creator finish at the rim against teams that defend the pick and roll at a high level. It’s indespensable for the Creator to have a Paint Finishing Package of playing off two feet with stride stops, donuts and floaters. Playing off two feet empowers the Creator to be under control, providing valuable time to read the help-side rotation and make correct decisions as teammates space or second cut. The Creator’s Rim Finishing Package should include the ability to finish with both hands, off both feet and at various points on the backboard.
A Creator can not be considered a Magician in the pick and roll until these three skills are mastered. The next four principles will help our Creator become a dominate magician within the pick and roll.
Teaching Principles for the Creator
- SETUP (Before the point of the screen)
We want our Creator “confident, bordering arrogant” during the setup of the screen, scanning the other nine players and seeing the floor in 3D. Teaching the Creator to be comfortable with inviting the defensive coverage, whether it’s aggressive or conservative, ensures he will make the correct decisions at the point of the screen to kill the coverage.
How will the Creator setup the ball-screen?
A. Pivots — “Footwork before Dribble”
The discipline of “footwork before dribble” by the Creator before the point of the screen when setting up the ball-screen is one of the most undertaught fundamentals to youth players. Our Creator won’t always setup the screen with a live dribble so teaching the Creator to use a dribble and hip swivel or jab step to set up the screen provides the Creator with the deceptive pace to gain separation at the point of the screen. Adjusting the stance of the Creator’s defender with “footwork before dribble”, forces the defender to not only adjust his chest to chest position and balance, but also puts the defender in a position to chase the Creator over the top of the screen, preceding an attacking slicing angle for the Creator.
B. Reject — “#1 Coverage Killer”
“Refuse to Use” —
Refusing the ball-screen to use the ball-screen is a deceptive way for the Creator to setup the defender and coerce the defender to chase him over the top of the screen. Rejecting the ball-screen before the Creator uses the ball-screen largely ensures the defender is at the level of the screen when the Creator uses the screen, providing the Creator separation from his defender leading to a slicing angle that attacks both the rim and the coverage.
The Creator can reject the ball-screen regardless if the coverage is aggressive or conservative and in doing so, always kills the coverage. Rejecting the ball-screen to get on the Creator’s slicing angle kills the coverage because it is opposite of where the screener’s defender is anticipating the drive.
2. SEPARATION (At the point of the screen)
Juggling “Pocket Decisions” at the point of the screen is where we will spend a majority of our time teaching the Creator HOW to read the coverage. Once the Creator reads the coverage, he must invite the coverage with confidence to kill the coverage. Peter Lonergan says, “Vision precedes the decision, decision leads to precision.” The vision the Creator has before the point of the screen will precede his “Pocket Decisions” at the point of the screen when the Creator gets separation from his defender.
Getting separation at the point of the screen leads to freeing the Creator to make correct “Pocket Decisions” and provides larger driving and passing windows for the Creator to slice on his driving line or attack with the pass.
A. “Speed after Setup Produces Separation” —
Playing with deceptive pace, with two speeds from slow to fast, allows the Creator to get separation from his defender. Playing with pace also provides the correct timing for the screener to sprint into the screen on the Creator’s defender. The change in pace (Setup) from slow to fast (Speed) will enable the Creator to gain separation from his defender, springing the next phase at the point of the screen: “Pocket Decisions.”
B. “Pocket Decisions”
At the point of the screen, the Creator must read the defensive coverage and scan the other nine players on the floor with 3D vision. As the Creator is scanning the floor with 3D vision, he has his head on a swivel, using eye manipulation to deceive the coverage. Eye manipulation (“The Eyes Sell Lies”) influences the defensive coverage to defend where the Creator’s eyes are looking, but is opposite of where the Creator will attack with his slice or pass.
The three “Pocket Decisions” for the Creator are: 1. Can I score? 2. Can the Roller score? 3. Can the weak-side “lift”/corner score? These “Pocket Decisions” at the point of the screen are “coverage dependent” split-second decisions where the Creator kills the coverage with the decisions made in the “Pocket.” Making the correct decision in the “Pocket” elevates the Creator to a magician in the pick and roll.
3. SLICE (After the point of the Screen)
Once the Creator makes the “Pocket Decision” to attack off the dribble he must determine the coverage as early as possible because the slicing angle is “coverage dependent.”
Conservative Coverage (Drops, Flat, etc.) —Driving window is open so slicing angle will attack both the rim and the coverage to kill the coverage.
Aggressive Coverage (Blitz, Hedge, etc.) —Driving window is closed so slicing angle will be a lateral dribble to set up the attacking pass to kill the coverage.
A. Rocket out of the Pocket
The goal of killing the coverage is to always make the defense wrong. When the defense coverage has been blown at the point of the screen, the Creator’s slicing angle should catch speed to attack the rim and force help-side defensive rotation. The slicing angle should also completely cut off the defender at the screener’s hip, freeing the Creator to attack the rim and the coverage. Once the Creator has created the advantage with his slicing angle, he must use eye manipulation to deceive the defenders rotating to halt his attack on the rim. To help our Creator look like a “magician” when he delivers scoring passes, it is essential to read the rotating, help-side defender’s chest.
See Chest = Pass — Help defender rotates fully to halt the penetration.
See Shoulder = Score — Help defender stunts the Creator to recover back to his check.
Early Help= Early Pass — Help defender rotates early and up to halt Creator’s penetration.
Late Help = Late Pass — Help defender rotates late at the rim to contest Creator’s finish.
B. Glance Then Advance
The Creator’s slicing angle is “coverage dependent” and when the defensive coverage is aggressive (ie. Blitz, Hedge), the Creator will need to take a lateral dribble instead of an attacking dribble for his slicing angle to set up the attacking pass. The Creator’s lateral dribble should be no more than two dribbles not in direction of the rim to set up the “Glance” pass or the “Advance” pass. Killing aggressive coverage (2 on the ball) should be done with an attacking pass on the “front-side” (See Part 1 “Spacing before Advantage”) of the Creator’s vision to create a 4-on-3 offensive advantage behind the coverage. The Creator’s first option will be the “Glance” pass (quick peek) to the screener as the screener short rolls to the nail. If this pass is not open, the Creator will “Advance” the pass to the front-side 45 (FT line extended) to create the 4-on-3 offensive advantage behind the 2 on the ball coverage at the point of the screen.
“Move it early and move it twice”-
Remember Ettore Messina’s advice: “When we create an advantage with the PnR, where we pass the ball determines if we make a bigger advantage or if we lose the advantage( insert here)” In order to keep and leverage this offensive advantage of having two defenders on the Creator, after the “Advance” pass is made, it’s imperative to “keep the ball hot” (visual cue of passing a hot potatoe to keep the ball moving). In this diagram we see how “moving it early and moving it twice” after the Creator makes the “Advance” pass leverages advantage against the “got-two” defender thus completely killing the aggressive coverage.
C. Attack Then Back
Lastly, the Creator’s slicing angle could be haulted by conservative coverage or by an early rotation from the help-side defense. If the slicing angle of the Creator is haulted by aggressive coverage, the Creator’s “Pocket Decision” will be to pass “front-side” with the “Advance” pass. If the slicing angle of the Creator is haulted by conservative coverage after the point of the screen, then the Creator will “throw it back” to the back-side after his initial attack. The “Attack then Back” pass kills the coverage while the defense rotates with a weak-side tag or with a “help the helper” situation. While the weak-side defense rotates, the Creator’s “Pocket Decision” will leverage advantage with an attacking pass by “throwing it back” to the “back-side” of his vision to the corner or the weak-side lift.
4. SCORE
A Creator that provides illusions as a magician to deceive the defensive coverage does so with his crafty “Pocket Decisions.” While in the “Pocket” it’s strategic that the Creator has the mentality: “It’s not my shot, it’s our shot” when deciding to attack with dribble or to attack with the pass. The purpose of the PnR is to create an advantage, not a shot. So how does Facundo Campazzo mimick a magician while in the pick and roll? He does this through mystifying his “Pocket Decisions” by keeping the defense guessing on whether or not the he will attack off his slicing angle or with an attacking pass.
Coming up next will conclude this series of “Creating an Advantage with the MPnR” with Part 3 — Creating an Advantage with the MPnR: The Screener as a Silent Assassin.
In Part 1 of “Creating an Advantage with the MPnR”, we discussed the necessity of “Spacing before Advantage, Advantage before Shot” and the “Corner-Midde-Corner” Concept before the point of the screen. If you have missed Part 1 you can click this link to view.
