Coaching Middle School Basketball: The Wheel Offense

The zone defense is a tool that lower-level basketball teams like to use to offset their players' ability and understanding of the game. With great movement and multiple scoring options, the Wheel Offense gives players good shots all over the court. Nick Cammarano has been coaching at the middle school level for the past 15 years and has become an expert at teaching and implementing offense at this level. In this DVD, he shows the ins and outs of the Wheel Offense that he has used for years when facing zone defenses.

Coach Cammarano uses on-court demonstrations and whiteboard diagrams to provide detailed instruction on how to effectively run, install, and teach the Wheel Offense. He starts with the basic set-up and philosophy on why the wheel offense is so successful against zone defenses. As he explains, your post players will get involved and create scoring opportunities for your guards as they look to dribble penetrate gaps in the zone. Coach Cammanaro demonstrates how spacing within the wheel offense is the most important thing you can teach your players.

Coach Cammanaro progressively builds the wheel offense with a variety of breakdown drills. From the give-and-go, cut-to-swing, and shoot-to-penetrate and shoot, your players will learn how to cut, fill, and attack in the wheel offense. You'll learn the ins and outs to the wheel offense as Coach Cammanaro demonstrates how to apply cuts used during drills into game-like situations. He uses 5-on-5 settings to demonstrate where gaps and driving angles will be. Players will pass right around any defense with these instructions.

Any coach knows that you must have counter calls to keep the defense on their toes. Coach Cammanaro gives you three sets that can be run against a zone defense for a quick-scoring opportunity. If the offense starts to get stagnant, then looking to post players for scoring opportunities or overloading the zone are just a few of the options that can be used against any zone defense.

If you're looking for an offense to attack zone defenses, no matter of the age group, the wheel offense delivers an effective system that is simple to learn but with enough options to be unpredictable.

49 minutes. 2014.