Building an Unstoppable Offensive System: Keys to Success, Game Prep & Advantage Creation

with Lennie Acuff,
Samford University Head Coach;
Lipscomb University Head Coach from 2019 to 2025;
2025 A-Sun Regular Season Champions;
2025 A-Sun Tournament Champions;
2025 A-Sun Coach of the Year;
University of Alabama-Huntsville Head Coach from 1997 to 2019;
2x Elite Eight appearances;
8x Gulf South Conference (GSC) Regular Season Champions;
3x GSC Tournament Championships;
8x GSC Coach of the Year;
4x NABC District Coach of the Year;
over 550 career wins

A dominating offense can be a game changer. Programs that know how to put players in a position to be successful are the ones that rise to the top. Coach Acuff has put together some of the best offenses at both the Division I and Division II level. In this video, Acuff guides you through the process of building an unstoppable offense out of 4-Out and 5-Out settings.

Philosophy
Beginning with the end in mind, you must start out with what is your goal on offense - in Acuff’s case: advantage layups, rhythm 3’s, and drawing fouls; these three things as your focus will lead to a high powered offense.

After learning these principles from one of the best in today’s game - John Beilien, Coach Acuff describes how to use the 2 Guard Princeton Offense and look for creators in your offensive system. This system leads to different counters and 5-Out actions you can use to make your opponent frustrated. Acuff goes into detail about the different actions and terminology they use to run a successful offense. Starting with transition play, you can utilize a drag screen to create several different scoring options and flow right into your Princeton series offense.

Half Court Play and 5 Out Structure
Using several actions including pick and roll, you can develop elite level scorers by getting the defense to go flat on the baseline. This action helps guards attack downhill and create more scoring options once in the paint. Players can cut for a hand off, flash to mid post for an easy look, or bounce off and get into 5-Out setup.

In the 5-Out setup, your offense can go from random to structure in a split second. Beginning with Pro Action, you can create an open shot off of a screen away into a ball screen. By giving your players a call after getting stopped, players can reset their alignment and look to use Chin Action, Zip Cut, Jungle, or Snack to reattack the defense. All of these actions can lead to back door cuts or getting the ball moving downhill into the paint.

Counters and Sets
Having sets and counters will only advance your offensive system. Coach Acuff describes 5 different sets they use to get their best players an open shot. He likes to be well prepared and have 3 - 3-point plays, 3 back door plays, and 3 isolation sets. In Cheat, players are setting a back screen followed by a down screen to get ball reversal and create an advantage on one side of the floor. In Throttle, your post player has been taken away so they counter with a ball screen in the chute and give the point guard an opportunity to attack in the paint.

Having the complete offensive system is tough to build. Coach Acuff has successfully built a system that includes back door sets, Princeton series actions, transition flow, and counters when options 1 and 2 are taken away. In this video he goes into great detail about his offensive system and the structure that helps his programs become one of the most efficient scoring teams in the country!

Customer Review: 5 Out of 5 Stars!
”Excellent offensive system and great coaching insights. Lots of detail and actions you can implement right away in your practices!”

71 minutes. 2025.