Transition Into the 4-Out 1-In Motion Offense

ÿwith John Brannen,
University of Cincinnati Head Men's Basketball Coach from 2019 to 2021;
2020 AAC Regular Season Champions;
Northern Kentucky University Head Coach from 2015 to 2019;
2017 Horizon League Coach of the Year;
2x Horizon League Regular Season Champions;
2x Horizon League Tournament Champions;
led Northern Kentucky to the NCAA Tournament in their first year of eligibility;
the first school to do this since 1970!

John Brannen has built his team's identity on playing fast on offense and possessing a constant "attack" mentality. With his transition offense blended with a 4-out/1-in motion offense, Coach Brannen has been able to develop a pace and space mentality that has translated to a lot of wins.

In this video, Brannen presents a comprehensive clinic on building a fast-paced transition offense. Starting with a holistic approach, he shows how an aggressive defense helps augment the offensive transition game.

Offensive Philosophy

At the core of Coach Brannen's offensive philosophy is the three-word mantra of "Sprint, Space and Share." This mindset gets to the heart of playing fast and running both transition offense and half-court offense. If players are ever in doubt as to what is going on, they are reminded that they need to sprint the floor, have good spacing, and share the basketball. Brannen also discusses his use of the "shot spectrum" which grades good and bad shots, as well as "shot licensing" which is how he determines the players who have the green light to shoot 3-pointers in games.

One of the key benefits of this video is Coach Brannen's constant sharing of metrics he uses for various drills and in-game stats that help improve transition decision making and success. He illustrates how focusing on a few key stats can help improve shot selection and increase points per possession. You'll get key stats you can focus on to define your players' roles in transition.

The focus on important stats that define and shape your transition offense can also help players better understand the overall team dynamic and how to work with their teammates to create successful transition outcomes.

Setting Up Transition Offense

On any missed shot, Coach Brannen has players on the court who are "Bust-Out Guys" - the players who can bring the ball up the floor if they rebound it. To determine whether someone is a Bust-Out Guy, their assist-to-turnover ratio is assessed and it must be positive for the player to remain a Bust-Out Guy. Anytime someone who is not a Bust-Out Guy gets a rebound, they must outlet to the point guard.

Regardless of whether the shot is made or missed, Brannen tells his players to "Beat Up the X's." The break isn't numbered like many traditional breaks are, but each spot gets filled and there's always someone running to the rim. If a big man gets the rebound, the opposite big man will be the rim runner. However, if a Bust-Out Guy gets the rebound, the first big man up the floor is the rim runner.

To teach running in transition, Brannen uses the "Coach Izzo Break Drill." This drill is designed to work on sprinting up the sideline and getting lay-ups, post-ups, and 3-point shots in transition. A variation to this drill is having the point guard pass ahead to a wing running up the opposite side.

Building the Offense

Coach Brannen begins building his offense with half-court penetrate and pitch drills. These drills, which he adopted from Billy Donovan, are designed to work on attacking the paint and kicking out for open 3-point shots. They also help teach the spacing that is necessary for motion offense in transition.

With spacing and movement created thanks to penetration opportunities, the offense beings to heat up. The sprinting in transition and spacing created by Beating Up the X's allows the offense to become a penetrate & pitch attack designed to utilize penetration, jump stops, kick-outs, and super gaps.

As an added bonus, Brannen covers a baseline out of bounds set with multiple variations and shares a way that you can make your inbound plays virtually unscoutable.

In all, this presentation from Coach Brannen is a detailed and comprehensive attack plan that you can use to play faster and take your transition offense to a whole new level!

45 minutes. 2019.