Unscoutable On-Ball Offense

with Eric Bridgeland,
University of Redlands Head Men's Basketball Coach;
former Whitman College Head Coach;
led Whitman to a 273-62 record;
back-to-back-to-back unbeaten conference records in 2017, 2018 & 2019;
2018 Basketball Times D-II Men's Coach of the Year;
2018 HoopDirt.com D-III Men's Coach of the Year;
2018 NABC West District Coach of the Year

Eric Bridgeland, former head coach at Whitman College, led his team to back-to-back-to-back undefeated conference records in the 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons thanks to an offensive system that was virtually impossible for opponents to stop. A huge portion of Bridgeland's offense hinges on his players' ability to make the correct decisions when using ball screens, and in this video, he passes on his methods for helping athletes pick their spots to attack off ball screens.

Philosophy

On offense, your goal should always be to get easy scoring opportunities as close to the basket as possible. Ball screens are one of the best avenues to getting deep in the paint to create these scoring chances.

Coach Bridgeland's ball screen approach, combined with his attacking fence offense, is designed to teach players to run, get to the paint, put constant pressure on the defense, and produce more possessions. Ball screens give players ownership of the offense, as they are the ones creating and mastering the action as the game goes on.

Guard Breakdown

In his guard breakdown, Bridgeland teaches how to attack various types of screen defense. From the hard show to soft show, to switching defenses, to icing the ball handler, your guards will learn how to attack them all coming off of a screen.

Through 2v2 drills, players learn to change their speed as they approach the screen and look to square up just past the screener to create misdirection. Off of this action, they can look to attack. Whether pushing off the leg of the defender as they go by or getting low using a bulldog drive into the paint, your players will create advantages they can use to get into the paint.

Post Breakdown

In the post break down, Bridgeland shows how to set solid screens and keep proper spacing. Post players learn to pop off the screen if they have range to help spread out the defense. They also learn to roll wide just outside the lane line, which allows the ball handler to continue to attack the rim and get into the paint. In Bridgeland's 1v1 drill, post players set the screen on a defender and read the help-side defender to determine how they are supposed to react to the screen.

Rounding out the video is a 3v3 and 4v4 live section where players learn to read screens in game speed. Coach Bridgeland uses the 3v3 and 4v4 formats to make the practice environment more controlled and help players adjust to the faster pace.

This is an excellent video for coaches looking to use ball screens as a complement to their base offense. Ball screens can open up a wide array of scoring opportunities and Coach Bridgeland shows how to help your team master the concept!

81 minutes. 2019.