Fast Break vs. Press Break

Heard a great way of looking at the fast break.  If the other team misses then your team runs like crazy trying to get a quick layup and/or shot in transition before the defense sets itself up.  If the other team scores then you have a secondary ball handler take it in to a primary ball handler and bring it up in a 'flow' type of action.  The coaching staff wants to run but the onus is on the defense to stop the opponent.  If the other team's offense can't be stopped then we really can't run and we will have to take our time b/c we are going to have to score repeatedly to stay in the game.

Helping Defensively

One thing that we have to analyze is how we want to help defensively.  With so many teams running dribble drive and looking to draw quick and immediate help, we need to make sure we don't come off the strong side at the first thrust. 

Once the dribble drive forces the defense to pinch, it allows the kick out for 3pter, it opens up the second drive behind the first drive and finally the it allows for the +1 pass to punish the defense for 'helping the helper'.

The help has to come off the strong or weakside post.  Going to be a hard defensive principle to teach but this allows the perimeter to stay locked in awhile longer.

Fake Pressure

In preparing to havef a full-bore pressure defense called  'Up' with denials/steerings/trapping from behind principles and also having a sagging/helping/post double base defense called 'Back', i think it is also important to have as part of our base package a zone pressure defense that involves the look of pressing/steering/trapping but does nothing of the sort.  Sort of a false pressing defense.  Maybe a good name for this would be 'Fake'.  We are faking the press, faking the steering of dribblers and faking the presumed trapping locations.  Whether we do this out of a 1-3-1 or a 2-2-1 doesn't really matter but anything to cause confusion by our opponent.