Defensive Help Needed

[unc_kobw]

Okay so me and a few friends play in a summer league in our hometown. There is a 25 game schedule and then a tournament at the end and you are seeded based on your record 1-16.

There is one team in it that has 5 current college players on it. Not D1 or anything, but players who are from this area and have been the best talent that has passed through here the past few years. They start 4 perimeter players and 1 big man, who is more of a forward (he is around 6'5, but is the best shot blocker in the league because he is so athletic). 3 out their 4 perimeter players a good shooters and the other is a slasher who has an ok mid range game but can almost dunk anything around the goal. They all are good ball handlers and can beat you off the dribble.

This is our worst mismatch in the league. We start two big men who are both around 6'4 but there is always someone on the floor who one of them can't guard. They are quicker and taller then our 3 guards as well. They are to quick for us to play man to man defense, to good of shooters for a 2-3 zone, and have to many weapons to throw in a junk defense like a triangle and 2 or box and 1.

What does anyone think could be a defense to try and at least slow them down? I've been thinking a 1-3-1 just because no one else in the league has ran it and it might throw them off some. Any other suggestions?

[AlexBrady]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

Somebody on your team has to play legitimate defense at some point. You can't really resort to a junk zone and you can only play a 1-3-1 if you have Bill Russell or Nate Thurmond in the middle.

You should practice quick defensive slides in all directions. Always keep one foot on the floor. Your defensive posture should have your weight evenly distrubuted. Back should be straight and knees bent. Shadow the ball with one hand and interfere with your opponent's vision with the other hand. You should have the freedom to move laterally, forward, or backward.

The tools to basic defense include work ethic, desire, a degree of quickness, and core strength. You should overplay a right-handed player with your left foot slightly ahead of your right foot so he can't get to his good hand as easily. The reverse is true if your guy is overly reliant on his left hand.

Your guys should have a good read on what their assignments like to do. Which side do they pull-up better from, left or right? Does the guy use screens or move much off the ball? How does he respond when his strong hand is overplayed? Is he a spot-shooter or a driver?
Everyone should communicate how certain screens should be played.

From time to time, jab an opponent's hip to disrupt him. Always close out on a right-handed shooter with your left-hand, and vice versa with a left-handed shooter.

If you go for a block, do not wind up and smack the ball. Give it more wrist and flick it. Swiping down on a dribble appears to be an obvious foul to any refs. Instead swipe from below the ball. If a foul is in order, make sure that you pin the player's shooting arm from the top down. To cap off your defense, you should always box out your man to discourage offensive rebounds.

[Dice]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

Just taking a shot in the dark without knowing your personnel nor the intricacies of the other team, I'd probably suggest trying the 1-3-1 or even a 3-2 zone. Or maybe shoot them with an old school Jerry Tarkanian "Amoeba Defense", which is basically an enhanced match-up zone.

All this to say that defenses are useless unless you got the personnel to play it. Play to your strengths first and then draw them towards their weaknesses second.

[unc_kobw]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

Just taking a shot in the dark without knowing your personnel nor the intricacies of the other team, I'd probably suggest trying the 1-3-1 or even a 3-2 zone. Or maybe shoot them with an old school Jerry Tarkanian "Amoeba Defense", which is basically an enhanced match-up zone.

All this to say that defenses are useless unless you got the personnel to play it. Play to your strengths first and then draw them towards their weaknesses second.

We play great team defense, but don't have any solid shut down defenders. We are more of a positional defensive team as we aren't as quick as most of the teams we face. I just know this is the only team we can't play man to man as we have so many mismatches. I'm learning towards a 1-3-1 as well, but I was just wondering about other people's opinions.

[wwharton]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

We play great team defense, but don't have any solid shut down defenders. We are more of a positional defensive team as we aren't as quick as most of the teams we face. I just know this is the only team we can't play man to man as we have so many mismatches. I'm learning towards a 1-3-1 as well, but I was just wondering about other people's opinions.

I would stay away from the 1-3-1 unless you guys actually hold practices and can work on the details. It's a very easy defense to exploit if EVERYBODY doesn't play their role properly. Weak side wing doesn't drop and it's an easy layup... quick rotations to the corner can be a wide open 3... and not adjusting when shots go up will lead to many, many offensive rebounds.

I think your best bet is a 3-2 as far as zones are concerned. Weak spot is at the high post, but I'd still let the guy catch it there if they're even smart enough to camp somebody out there. He catches and the nearest big closes out but keeping him in front. Psychologically, it's not the easiest shot because you most likely have defenders in your blind spots that you may be worried about.

I would still mix the defense up, going between man, 3-2 and still some 2-3. Just keep throwing different looks and force them to adjust how they attack. In your man to man, don't deny the wings and make sure any weak side defenders are completely in the paint. Have the guy on the ball close out fast, inviting a drive. If everyone's on the same page there should be 2 guys waiting in position to cut the driver off... he kicks, next guy sprints out to close and invite another drive... rinse/repeat. This takes A LOT of energy bc you need to sprint back to the paint when your man gives up the ball as hard as you sprint out when he catches it. But if all 5 guys are committed this should take them out of an offensive rhythm, discourage 3pt shots, and create help on every drive. You, as the defender, force them to do what you want them to do which helps everyone behind you know where they should be.

Also, you didn't really get into this, but when I've played in leagues with similar situations, the issue is more with fast breaks than half court sets. They take off and either you're just outnumbered getting back or you can't get good rotations on D because of how they're breaking. Sometimes zones help here bc you're all running back to your spots instead of trying to match up in the middle of a break (which you just shouldn't be anyway). But the quick and easy is GET BACK ON D. Don't hang around after rebounds, don't try to get a steal in the back court, don't wait for your man to run up the court. Everyone sprint to the paint every single time and force them to play a half court game. Do that, limit turnovers and offensive rebounds and it'll really just come down to what you can do on offense to win.

[ehh]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

If it's just a summer league and there's that big of a talent gap then no strategy is going to help you out. If they give you mismatches at every position then you're going to lose 99 times out of 100. How badly do you usually lose to them by?

IMO you have to stay man-to-man, zones never work in summer/rec leagues. Zones are basically an excuse to barely give any effort on D in most leagues like that and most teams are horrible at defensive rebounding out of a zone.

I've used the concept that wwharton mentioned about mixing up your defenses throughout the game but I feel the same way about that kind of strategy in a summer league, it's just not going to work well. Teams need to practice that sort of thing, even if you've got guys on your team that know what they're doing.

I'd say your best bet is to sag off everyone that isn't a lights out shooter and hope they have an off night shooting the ball. You can apply more token pressure in a sagged-in man-to-man defense than a 2-3 zone. A zone will just lead to tons of warm-up jumpers, at least you can get a hand up at the last second in a man-to-man.

So I'd try to limit easy buckets/layups and see if you can catch them on a cold night. If they drill tons of threes then you just tip your hat and accept the loss. Kind of like how most foreign teams strategize against Team USA.

[Weeks]

Re: Defensive Help Needed

1-3-1 is only good if you practice it. In our league, we tried to do the same against the best team, and they were just able to pass around until they got an open shot. We switched to 2-3 at the half, and ended up doing a lot better.

Unless you can practice, I recommend a 2-3 or a 3-2. My recommendation is you pack in the 3-2 and force them to beat you with the jump shot. Packed in it's harder to drive against, and with three guys on the perimeter, they won't get as easy of jumpers.