High-Scoring Strategies for an Explosive Transition Offense Attack

Coach Herkelman takes you inside his team’s explosive offensive attack and shows you the secret strategies that can keep your team scoring all-game long.

Transition Offense

Coach Herkelman explains that the two main occasions that his teams look to get out and run are on missed shots and after made shots. These simple, yet critically important points of emphasis are key in establishing the philosophy of attacking in transition and getting players to run as hard as they can getting down the floor. 

The wings and trailers are instructed to look for a quick three, while the big looks for a duck-in opportunity from the point guard who is pushing the ball as quickly as possible.

If a scoring opportunity is not possible, you will see how the point guard must look to get the ball back and get into their ‘Zipper’ action – which is a ball screen with a roll-and-replace action between the post players who can get high-low looks and opportunities.

Coach Herkelman highlights his favorite call after a made shot, which he calls ‘Raven,’ which is the main attack in transition. He explains how one of the options that can be run in this circumstance is the traditional stagger double-action when the ball is reversed to the wing. A point of emphasis is made to explain that it’s important to have the trailer’s screen for the wing on the stagger-double to set the screen at the elbow instead of trying to set it on the perimeter.

Trailer Actions

Coach Herkelman covers other transition options that are available involving playing through the trailer. He shows how the trailer can look to run a dribble-handoff, set a ball screen, or run a ghost screen for the win (and emphasizes that this only works effectively if it’s the trailer communicating the action that’s to be executed).

Herkelman says that a trailer can also run a dive-and-replace action to provide an opportunity to attack downhill against a defense. It’s demonstrated that the trailer runs a dribble-action back to the side from where he received the pass and looks to make a dribble handoff. Once the handoff is made, the trailer rolls to the basket.

If the trailer is a fourth guard, Herkelman explains how an option called ‘Flip’ can be used for an effective transition attack. In ‘Flip,’ the point guard looks to attack the point, but then runs a quick flip to the trailer. From here, it’s shown how the trailer looks to attack downhill – which places pressure on the defense to stop the drive.

‘Rush’

Coach Herkelman then provides another way to attack in transition after a free throw or a dead ball, with a demonstration of a creative action called ‘Rush.’ This action is designed to get the ball into the post with a screen-the-screener action that can also result in a three-point shot opportunity.

The initial action features the point guard changing sides when bringing the ball into the front court. The wing on the side the point guard is attacking sets a cross-screen for the post player. The trailer sets a down-screen for the wing, who sets the initial screen.

If the initial screen-the-screener action doesn’t work, the trailer must then step out to the wing and look to receive the pass from the top. This results in another screen-the-screener action taking place to see about getting the ball into the post on the other side.

Coach Herkelman provides unique insight into building a proven, high-powered transition offense that is difficult to stop. 

63 minutes. 2024.