Today's Quote: "POST PLAY: 1. Play low - 2. Play wide - 3. Hands up - 4. Feet active."
Today's Theme... Post Play
A great big-man is more than just being big and tall. Having good footwork skills is essential as a lot of offensive post play involves good footwork and some basic post moves... the baseline drop-step, the jump-hook to the lane, the up and under move, shot-fakes, making a dribble-move from the high post or short corner, etc.
We like the post player to catch the pass with a jump-stop, because now either foot can become the pivot foot. We like shoulder and head fakes, shot-fakes, anything that will get the defender to leave his feet.
Post players should "seek contact" on the shot and get into the defender rather than shooting a fade-away shot. Getting into the defender makes it hard for the defender to jump to block the shot, and we may get a basket and a free-throw. A post player is in position to rebound his/her own miss when going to the hoop . In our post breakdown drills, an assistant will use a pad and have the player go into him, learning to finish with contact.
Good post players know how to get open for the pass inside. A lot of post players expend energy "grinding" inside for position against the defender. This may work if your defender is a smaller and you can easily take him 1-on-1. But this is wasted energy if your defender is bigger or taller and you find it difficult to score against him 1-on-1 in the low post. In this situation, flash to the high post or short-corner and get the pass, face and shoot, or make a shot-fake and use your quickness and dribble around him to the hoop for a lay-up. Click here to see a number of tactics that you can use to get open against both man-to-man and zone defenses.
A great post player must be in good condition so he/she can maintain his aggressiveness throughout the game, and sprint the floor. He/she has to "want" (demand) the ball, be aggressive and strong in getting open, posting up, sealing, setting good screens, rebounding, etc. Strength training, time in the weight room, is time well-spent.
A great post player must have "good hands" and be able to catch the pass, even bad passes, be strong with the ball, and be a good passer himself. He has to have "touch" and a good feel for using the back-board... 3 minutes of the Mikan drill every day is helpful in developing this touch.
A great post player is also a good free-throw shooter. When the game is on the line, we want to get the ball inside for a high-percentage shot. In this situation, our post players will often get fouled, and they have to be able to make those clutch free-throws when the game is close.
Great post players are also great rebounders and defenders. They aggressively block out and seek every rebound. They must be able to defend in the post without fouling, and learn how to help against dribble-penetration and inside cutters. A good post defender will know when to go up for the shot-block, and when to keep his/her feet on the floor.
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