Lokomotiv: Stretch 5

Foto: Euroleague.net

Definitely, the use of this "stretch 5" strategy has been one of the reasons for Lokomotiv Kuban to make it all the way to Berlin. It will be interesting to see what kind of adjustments will be made to fight it in the Final Four.

We saw different ways to get advantages through Anthony Randoph during the play off against F.C. Barcelona, let’s take a look at some of them:

Pretty basic, when all five Lokomotiv players are placed beyond the three point line, creating so many three point threats, there is a lot of room to drive and it is kind of risky to help on penetrations. If Randolph’s defender helps, the opportunity is right there for the kick out pass. Once he gets the ball, the right decision making will end up with shots, penetrations against close outs, or extra passes to beat defensive rotations.

Side screen situations: We are used to “fours” popping after setting ball screens. Not so much to “fives” having that shooting range. Loko often clears the corner and short corner for Randolph to pop to that area. Another shooting threat will be usually placed one pass away from the ball (weak side elbow, three point line on top) making helps on the ball screen situation even harder. 

More side screen, now looking for weak side actions: When Randolph's defender doesn’t help, the weak side defenders need to give a hand on the ball screen defense. Movement without the ball is the key now. Weak side cuts are extremely dangerous for the defense. As we see in the second clip, the skip pass is also used to punish defensive rotations.

Middle screen situations: Randoph’s pop creates a superiority right after the ball is passed. Quick shot or pass against defensive rotation. If the defenders hesitate or are late… the dagger will fly.

Finally, one of the sets they run to free Randolph for a wide open shot, with a hand off followed by an off ball screen. Once again, he will decide either to shoot, drive, give an extra pass against rotations or run the set all the way and play one more hand off / side screen. As we see in the last clip, even if the execution is not perfect (they don't play the initial hand off, don't set the small - big off ball screen) the  key idea remains the same, Randolph wide open and taking care of business. 

The Final Four starts tomorrow, let's get ready for some of the best basketball moments of the year.

Final Four: Bjelica's Corner

Ball screen actions, probably the most frequently used tactical tool in modern basketball, is extensively studied on both sides of the court. It will be one of the keys during the Final Four, as the teams that will be in Madrid excel in the use of this "art" and have terrific players to execute it.

It would be too long to analyze every single option we will find during the Final Four in one post, so this is a small study about one of them, which I think will be important in the semifinal between Fenerbahce and Real Madrid: Nemanja Bjelica on ball side corner and two smalls on the opposite side. This is often played by the Turkish team, and it will be interesting to see how it will work, and Real's defensive answers. 

There are different ways to approach a specific situation from the defensive side. For example, you can have a rule you follow no matter what (e.g. "whenever they play a side screen, we "trap") and you can also consider who are the players involved and then adapt the defense. 

Let's take a look at different scenarios (and let's consider the "1", "2", and "3" positions interchangeable. So I won't talk about "positions" but about characteristics of the players at each one). Always understanding that (in the opinion of many experts) the Euroleague's best "stretch 4", Nemanja Bjelica, is in the ball side corner (he is "4") 

For opposing teams, it would be wise to avoid 4's defender helps against 5's roll (giving room for Bjelica to receive a quick pass): it is an extremely dangerous situation, Bjelica being a huge threat. He can catch and shoot, and he can drive to beat the defender's close out.

If the defense manages to avoid these two situations, they often play a "5 x 4" ball screen which creates a new advantage either for Bjelica to score, or for their "5" to roll hard when he has an advantage or crush the board when Bjelica drives.

Allow "1" to shoot, go under the screen: if you rather prefer that shot (e.g. when the ball handler is not a great shooter) than any other option the offense can find. As usual, scouting and "numbers" will help in the decision making process. No helps needed, no "Bjelica's threat"

Do not allow "1" to shoot, go over the screen and collapse the paint avoiding penetration: this option should be considered when you think "2" and "3" threats are smaller than "1's". The screener's defender will try to stop the penetration. As helps will be coming from "weak" side (which we could consider "strong" side once the ball handler drives to the middle) those are dangerous shooting opportunities. And the player getting that pass may try to drive against the close out, so the defenders need to be ready to rotate.

Switch and defend the mismatch, or multiple switching: here, one more time, the defense avoids helping from Bjelica. One problem, Fenerbahce players are very patient to find the way to exploit the advantage. It can be inside, outside, or they can keep playing with very good spacing which usually leads to a good scoring opportunity. Having great "one on one" players makes them really dangerous in mismatch situations.

"Ice", deny the screen: so you don't let the ball handler go to the middle and you create a "traffic" situation on ball side. Fenerbahce can be either very aggressive or very patient against this defensive option. The "aggressive" option: as soon as the screener sees it, he cuts hard to the rim, while the ball handler drives baseline and attracts the screener's defender. Then he can find 5 or the wide open man on the side if there are long helps (a good way to avoid a quick roll is to bump from "2's" defender) Obviously you don't want to help from Bjelica, he is ready to hit the corner three! The "patient" option: the screener will pop and they will attack on the opposite side.

Flash / Trap against the ball handler: trying to stop the ball, being very aggressive to stop penetrations, force turnovers… Although Fenerbahce's spacing plus their high quality players helps them find a good option. First things first, you need to take care of the roll man. We already saw what happens when you help from Bjelica. So you're gonna have to work on defensive fakes and get back real quick after the flash.

A lot to study, many decisions to make, and a small post to show the kind of work coaching staffs are doing "behind the cameras"

X's & O's: Screen + Hand Off

Right before tonight's third game, a quick analysis about one of Olympiacos "go to" sets. 

These are sets every team has and runs for different reasons. They feel comfortable when playing them, they work well for a key player, or they create problems to the defenders...

Olympiacos look for Spanoulis in many different ways, but in the last game this set was extremely productive for the reds. 

A vertical hand off between a big man and the Greek star, that can be followed by a quick ball screen. As a secondary option within the same structure, they can look for the pass to the big man near the basket, but we will focus today on the Spanoulis' option. 

As we will see in the video, Olympiacos scored twelve points when running this set, nine of them coming straight from Spanoulis' hands.

In my humble opinion, FCB's defensive game plan was ready to defend it. My guess is they planned to chase Spanoulis, while the big man defending the passer would make a short hedge, and the defender of the corner would collapse the paint. 

But mistakes happen during a game, and Spanoulis' execution is admirable so he can score even when the defenders perform well. 

For sure tonight we will see this set many times, we will see how it works! Now, let's take a look at the video.

Real Quick: RMA - FCB Euroleague

With Real Madrid and FC Barcelona still cooling down, and although obviously this is a game that deserves deep analysis, I want to show you this clips from early in the game, with some interesting details.

First, a nice high - low action from Real Madrid. Barcelona often switch in off ball screens when guarding JC Carroll. Real responds well and finds the way to use the mismatch in low post.

Second, another defensive situation from the "madrileños": Maciulis gets on the court and guards Marcelinho Huertas. Maciulis' size and quickness allows him to protect himself from Huertas' penetrations and at the same time he is able to contest shots and switch against ball screens:

Real Quick: No Looking Pass

Defensive organization makes harder and harder for the offenses to find advantages. Automatic reactions, and a lot of coaching, that create well oiled defensive machines ready to face the most common situations on the floor.  

In today's "real quick" we can see the value of a creative player, who goes one step ahead of the defenders, understands the reactions of the defense, and somehow "fools" his opponents to find a scoring opportunity for a teammate. 

CSKA run a ball screen, Fenerbahce try to trap the ball handler while working on the "weak" side. Once the ball leaves Weems' hands, the advantage is in the opposite corner. CSKA players are supposed to swing the ball there, and Fener players, in this case, Goudelock, "know" they need to run to that spot in order to avoid an easy shot. The mentioned player reacts almost immediately to reach the corner, and that is the moment when Teodosic does his "magic" and lying with his eyes, finds the pass to Kaun right under the basket...

Let's watch it:

Real Quick: Two For One

Strategic decisions can change the outcome of a game. There are teams, and players, who are ready to get small advantages that end up being really important. One more time, the small details can be the difference between winning and losing. 

A very good example are the "two for one" situations in the end of quarter (for more info check this interesting article) A team will have two scoring opportunities while the other team will only have one. It's no surprise that the example I'm using today comes from the San Antonio Spurs:

With 34 seconds left in the first quarter, San Antonio gets the ball. They play a quick offense, which Golden State don't appear to expect. Ginobili and Baynes run a ball screen situation, with the argentinian driving hard to the basket, and Baynes following and finishing off the offensive rebound (mismatch situation = offensive rebound opportunity!) 

The Warriors have 29 seconds for their offense, and they (patiently) run one of their ball screen sets. The Spurs get the stop and they have what they were looking for, an "extra" possession which they are close to finish running the fastbreak… Finally they have a baseline out of bounds situation, which they use to create another scoring opportunity for Ginobili, who does his job and scores. 

In the last three plays of the quarter, San Antonio outscores Golden State 4-0, which is a very important advantage! Great preparation and execution.

Let's watch it:

Ball Screen Defense: Switch And Rotation

Last night we watched a great game between EFES and Real Madrid. A tough one that ended up being decided in the last minutes. 

Let's take a look at some of the last plays of the game. Real looking for options off a middle screen and EFES defending it:

Real played this middle screen three times in the last two minutes of the game (in their last three set offenses) Sergio Rodríguez and Gustavo Ayón running the ball screen and Real's power forward, Nocioni, filling the corner on the left side, with the other two smalls, Carroll and Llull placed one on each side.

EFES defensive rule was clear: they switched between Ayon and Rodriguez's defenders (Lasme and Draper) and made a rotation with one of the weak side defenders when Ayon rolled to the basket. With that rotation, the mismatch after the pick and roll is not so big (it wasn't Draper, but Perperoglou or Osman taking care of Real's big) Perperoglou and Osman, both of them big enough to avoid a big disadvantage in that mismatch, were aggressive and managed to deny the pass to the big man.

Real played three different options after the pick and roll: pass for Llull (and another ball screen), pass for Nocioni (one on one against Perperoglou), and Rodriguez's one on one against Lasme (which finished with a turnover). Only the second one ended up with the white team scoring. That gave them two points in three possessions, which was not enough to win a close game.

Let's watch it: