Dear Coaches, Players, Friends,

Today's Quote:

"It takes no talent to hustle." - Hans Schmidt

"Winning is about having the whole team on the same page." - Bill Walton

Today's Theme - Half-Court Traps/Presses

Half-court presses start at, or just beyond, the half-court line. These presses are less of a gamble, since all five defenders are back in the half-court. Usually these defenses try to trap the ball as it comes across half-court, in the half-court corner on either side, while the other defenders look to intercept a poor pass made out of the trap. These presses are usually easier to teach and conditioning is less of an issue.

Viking 1-2-2 Half-Court Press
This 1/2 to 3/4 court trapping press has given us more difficulty than any other press we've seen (most of which we break fairly easily). If you have three quick athletes (X1, X2 and X3) who play aggressively, this press can work for you, with only a minimum risk of giving up a lay-up.  It's a matter of keeping the ball out of the middle, and trapping it along the sidelines.

2-2-1 Half Court Press
This trapping half-court press can be especially effective against teams with mediocre, inexperienced guards. Remember, any trapping defense always carries some risk of giving up the easy weak-side lay-up.

Coach Sar's "76" Half Court Press
This press is similar to the Viking press above, but can be used in conjunction with Coach Sartini's "80" and "70" presses, so you can mix things up a bit.

Finally, you can just run your usual half-court pressure man-to-man defense and make a call from the bench or in a timeout.  Here are two actions we might use (more details in the Premium Members section):

"Red" - trapping the point guard as the ball is dribbled across the half-court line... a surprise tactic.

"Side-Fist" - trap the first pass to either wing.

Basketball season is fast approaching!  Get Mike May's Practice Planner Live to help plan all your practices and create a master practice plan.