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For decades now, Bob Knight has been an influential figure in the development of the motion offense. Used at all levels of basketball, the motion offense utilizes frequent player movement and doesn’t follow a specific pattern. Rather, this offensive scheme is free-flowing and focuses on players making screens to get open. With Knight as your guide, learn about proper spacing and cutting within the offense, two crucial elements that are important to master in order for the offense to be effective.
The motion offense frequently uses reverse action, which is basically taking the ball back one way and then bringing it back another way. The offense also uses cuts that the defense will have a tough time playing and often forces the opponent to switch.
Meanwhile, the motion offense involves three key things: passing, cutting, and screening. As a coach, it’s important to teach your players how to get open, how to get their teammates open, and to also show them the possibilities as a screener and as a cutter.
Within the offense, we also use the screener a lot, including slip screens, where if a defensive player starts to help out on a cut, then the offensive player slips to the basket. This is an effective way to counter switching defenders. While the offense can be utilized against any zone or man defense, we’ll focus on man offense for this feature.
Spacing against the defense enables the offense to score points. When we talk about spacing, that means players should be 15 to 18 feet apart. It’s also important to remember that the baseline is as good of a defensive player as there is in the game.
Proper spacing also allows for the cutting and screening needed in order to get good shots off. Without this spacing, we’ll have too many guys too close to each other and playing in the same part of the floor. In other words, we won’t get anything out of it. The key is to maintain the 15-18 foot spacing, regardless of what the defense is doing.
Keep in mind that Coach Knight isn’t a big fan of having a post player way down low in the post. Rather, this player should go higher up in the lane.
A good way to work on spacing is to implement a spacing conversion drill. This drill works on the transition area from defense to offense and setting up proper spacing on offense at the other end of the court.
Start out with all five of your players around the free throw line on the opposite end of the court. Then on “Go”, have the players sprint down the floor and get into position – all while maintaining proper spacing to get set up. Getting proper spacing in conversion is the first thing needed in order to set up the motion offense.
Post players shouldn’t be real deep in the paint. Instead, they should be in the middle of the lane. For instance, if a wing player gets the ball on the side and has the opportunity to drive baseline, but there’s a post guy down there clogging things up and he can’t go anywhere. But if the post guy is in the middle, then the wing guy can make a fake and then head down toward the baseline. Now he’s got a chance to get to the bucket or hit the post guy as he slides down the lane.
Also, if the post guy starts on the low block, gets the ball there and tries to go baseline, he’s practically under the hoop and has a harder shot. However, in the mid-post position with the ball and with a defender on his backside, the post guy can fake hard one way and then step back and head the opposite direction. He’s got options. It’s key to read the defensive man and use the pivot to your advantage.
Try to read the defensive man all the time. Remember, he can’t cover you in two different directions. Always pay attention to what the defensive guy is doing. This is an important part of cutting as well.
The drive to the basket is a result of good spacing. No matter where we are on the floor, we have to set up the defensive player. Meanwhile, seeing what’s available to the offensive player makes the offense go.
As we mentioned before, cutting is one of the most important ingredients in order to be effective against a man-to-man defense. When making a cut, you want to take your man one way and then you go the other way. If the defender is above you, then take him higher before cutting low (without a screen being involved). If the player is below you, then come down a bit before going up above him.
Stay tuned for future features covering the nuances of the motion offense and more tips from Coach Knight. The previous clips can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “Bob Knight: The Complete Guide to the Motion Offense.” To see more offensive videos, check out our extensive basketball library by clicking here.
Plyometric exercises typically focus on developing explosiveness in sports. This comes particularly important in basketball, where quick and explosive jumping ability pays major dividends for a player.
Follow along as Alan Stein runs through 10 plyometric exercises that have proven to be effective for basketball players, not only for explosiveness, but also in the areas of injury prevention, power development and increased speed.
*Keys to Remember
Here are some keys points to remember when participating in plyometric exercises. Avoid Knock-Kneed Position, keep your chest over your knees and knees over your feet, absorb shock with your ankles, knees and hips, land toe to heel, and also jump as high and as hard as you can.
Start out with one leg in front of the other while squatting. Your back should be straight and eyes focused straight ahead. One knees should be in front with your opposite knee pointing straight down. Jump up with a burst and switch the leg that you land on. Ultimately, you will always remain in the same position, but you’ll just be switching sides upon landing. Raise your arms high in the air.
Stand up straight, skip up in the air and raise one knee high out in front of you, all while raising your opposite arm at your side at the same time. Always switch sides, back and forth. Really get a good burst.
With your feet in place, make giant broad jumps and land in place. Really try to bend your knees and get good propulsion.
With these, as soon as you land, you should be right back into your next jump. In other words, you want quick jumps all the way.
Facing the side, you should jump across using one foot to jump and the other foot to land. Use one foot only at a time. But the other foot can land after the initial jump.
This is the same as before, only much faster. There should constant stepping in your shuffle.
Here you are essentially taking one single step and then leaping high into the air and then landing in place. When you land, keep a staggered positioning with your knees slightly bent.
These are basically zigzags while jumping and landing in place. There will be no stepping here, just jumps on a zigzag. Keep those knees bent and maintain a low positioning like when playing defense in basketball. Look to leap as far as you can go.
This exercise is essentially the same as before, but this time face the baseline and jump backwards on a zigzag (side to side).
In a similar form to a speed skater, you will be jumping here using just one foot on a zigzag and then landing with the opposite foot. Meanwhile, your other foot will trail behind and remain in the air like a speed skater would do.
The following exercises – along with many others – can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “130 Pro Power Strength, Power, and Explosiveness Drills” featuring Alan Stein. Check out more conditioning workouts in our exclusive training library.
A post player who can score on the move or in transition will be an effective weapon and constant threat out on the basketball court. With renowned basketball coach Kevin Sutton leading the way, check out these useful drills for post players that involve the Mikan Drill and a variety of screens.
One at a time, have players start the drill with the Mikan Drill. They should do four total layups (two on the left side and two on the right side). Then have players take the ball out of bounds and make an outlet pass to a teammate on the wing. That player will then sprint to half court (and if possible, cut around a chair) and then back to the hoop from which they came from.
Once within the three-point line area, they will make a cut across the lane, receive the ball back from the outlet player, and then go hard to the hoop for the layup — all without even putting the ball on the floor. Remember to attack the rim hard. Also, be sure to work both sides of the basket with your players.
Next, proceed with the drill like before, but this time, have the players make a shot fake after they receive the ball before going for a straight drive layup.
Players should receive the ball around the elbow and then deliver a quick release/shot while on the move. Always follow your jumper.
A) Pick and Roll
After the initial jumper, that player will then make a ball screen for a teammate on the wing. He/she will then roll to the basket, receive the pass and hit the layup. Remember to keep proper footwork on the pick and roll and to open up to the pass before rolling to the basket.
B) Pick and Pop
After the ball screen, players will then roll to the near corner and hit the open jumper.
C) Direct Drive with Early Slip
On the first shot, players should make a pump fake and then drive to the basket for a layup. Then immediately, players should turn and sprint out towards the wing player and make a screen around the three-point line before slipping back to the hoop. From here, catch the pass and roll to the basket.
The following post drills – and many more – can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “30 Drills for Building a Complete Post Player” with Kevin Sutton. To check out additional videos featuring post play, check out our extensive basketball library.
When developing agility, it’s about the ability to change directions quickly and efficiently. A lacrosse player equipped with excellent agility will certainly have a leg up on the competition. Check out the following drills below and see how you can improve your agility and make strides out on the lacrosse field.
There are some key components athletes should think about when involved in agility drills: “Drop and push”, and always use your arms (particularly on cuts). We’ll talk more about this later on in the article.
Here are some tips to keep in mind about accelerating. First, we are always looking to go from low to high. When you start out, you will start low with your body when accelerating and then go to high with your body. Start with your feet wide and then eventually move them to narrow. We also want to move to the balls of our feet as fast as we can. Then we need to drive our arms real hard to also help with the acceleration.
As for deceleration, we are looking to go high to low and drop the butt down. This time, it’s about going narrow to wide and using our heels.
Goals for Agility: To accelerate and decelerate properly, to always be pushing, and always be using our arms.
With sprint cuts, we’ll go through four main sets. Always finish off that last cone with a five-yard sprint. As for equipment, we’ll need five cones spread out five yards apart and five yards up (in a zigzag).
Set 1: Sprint and Stop in Ready Position
We will start in ready position and then hold in our ready position before gradually moving up to full game speed. Here’s how it works. Start in ready position at a cone and facing forward. Then sprint to the next cone on a slant and then immediately get back into ready position. Then again, accelerate and decelerate to the next cone on a slant (all zigzags here). Keep repeating until all cones are used.
Set 2: Rapid Fire
This is the same idea as before, but this time we are using “quick steps” or “hot feet” at each cone.
Set 3: Exaggerated Cuts
Now look to lean into all of your cuts. Always pick up that inside foot when leaning into the cut. Then push off hard on your outside foot.
Set 4: Full Speed
Go with a full sprint in this set. Drive hard out of each cut and push hard each time.
Watch the video below to also see how these sets can be accomplished using lacrosse sticks. With a lacrosse stick in hand, players can really practice game-like situations and work on switching their stick from hand to hand when making specific cuts.
Equipment: Six cones and create a “W” pattern. Adjacent cones should be five yards apart.
Set 1: Sprint with Backpedal
Here we’ll sprint up to the cone and backpedal right back.
Set 2: Sprint with Forward Shuffle
Sprint up to the cone, touch the cone, push off with your right leg, and then lean into the direction of your cut. Next, push off with your outside foot, step with your inside foot, and give an elbow snap to help turn the hips. Be sure to always get a good arm drive going as well.
Set 3: Sprint with Backward Shuffle
Turn and shuffle back the same way that you just came from.
Set 4: Full Sprint
Now sprint to each cone, going hard each time. This is a perfect drill for lacrosse players.
The following workouts – and many other lacrosse-specific drills – can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “100 Conditioning Drills & Exercises for Lacrosse.” Check out similar videos in our lacrosse library by clicking here.
Don’t have access to a lacrosse field this summer? Well don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Wall ball workouts provide a number of ways to improve your lacrosse skills, from catching and throwing, to playing on the move, to developing your wrists, and to making you a more explosive player overall.
The great thing is that you can find a wall just about anywhere, whether its at the gym or school. So find a wall, grab a handful of lacrosse balls, and bring your gloves along with a partner. Remember to go into your wall ball workouts with a purpose. As you will quickly discover, the benefits are tremendous.
One Cradle: 10 Right, 10 Left
Sometimes players will use their arms to throw the ball or they might hold their stick too tight. Focus on your wrists. You want explosive hands to be a good player.
Look to maintain a good base, keep your hands up at your chin, and your feet should be shoulder width apart. Your bottom hand should be a little higher than your top hand. Next, get a little cradle going and get comfortable with the stick in your hands. This really trains the wrists to be explosive.
Quick Sticks: 10 Right, 10 Left
There is no cradle here. This drill is similar to pepper, but without the cradle. Get a good base, stand five yards from the wall and look to establish a decent pace off the wall.
Focus on that triple threat position with your hands up by your chin and maintain a staggered stance. Keep that opposite foot forward and try to snap that ball off the wall. Use soft hands but don’t go reaching for the ball. The ball should be in and out of your stick quickly.
One Hand, One Cradle
This really helps to develop your feeding/passing and shooting. It’s also a great way to develop a stronger stick. For this one, take the bottom hand off your stick. Snap your wrist with each throw. Catch the ball deep and use soft hands in and out.
Catch and Switch: 10 Right, 10 Left
This drill is similar to a crossover in basketball and is ideal for working on exchanges typically seen during a game. You need to be comfortable moving the stick from hand to hand. Your feet are always working underneath. They are not waiting for the ball. Remember the progression “Ear, Chin, Ear.” This will help you maintain proper form throughout the drill. Also, don’t abandon those fundamentals for speed. If your fundamentals suffer a bit, just slow things down.
Grounders: 5 Right, 5 Left
With this one, play the ball off the bounce. Get the ball off the ground, right to your ear and snap it out of your stick quickly.
Shovels
Here, you will be catching the ball across your body. This is also an effective drill for defenders and works on game-like situations. Basically, you’re going to work on a cross-body shovel. Catch the ball, give a face dodge, and then shovel it away.
Cross-Hand Catch and Throw
This is an ideal exercise for those moments when you have to catch the ball on your opposite side and then have to throw it from that side, too.
Backhand: 5 Right, 5 Left
This drill is a little more advanced, but it involves taking a normal pass, making a half cradle and then throwing the ball over your shoulder. Take your time with this one to make sure you maintain proper form and get the ball in and out of your stick cleanly.
Once you’ve practiced the wall ball drills for a while, it’s then time to proceed with the wall ball test. Here, we will incorporate the following techniques: One Cradle, Quick Sticks, One Hand-One Cradle, Catch and Switch, and Shovels.
The wall ball test will make your workouts more competitive and also allows you to shoot for goals every time. Eventually, look to do 110 reps under two minutes. Grab a partner to feed you balls as well. Then, start five yards from the wall. Once you get comfortable, take a stopwatch and time yourself and look to improve your time on each occasion.
Watch the video below of a few Ohio State lacrosse players going through their wall ball test:
The entire wall ball workout can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “Explosive Skills & Drills for Offensive Lacrosse” featuring Nick Myers. To check out additional lacrosse videos, visit our lacrosse catalog by clicking here.
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