How to Build your Man Defense

Here is an outline to help you build your man to man defensive philosophy.  

What do we want our identity on defense to be?

What are our target stats?

What habits will we reinforce?

Full Court principles

           Turning the ball handler

            Forcing to the weak hand

Half Court principles

            Denial

            Pack Line 

            Help rotations-help and fill system

Communication

             Terminology

Transition

             How are we guarding the advance pass?

On ball positioning

            Stance: top, wing, corner

                   Are we forcing baseline or middle?            

            Ball pressure

            Hands

            Jump to the ball

Off ball positioning

            Open or closed stance

            Position on the line from the ball to defender

            Bumping cutters

Closeouts

            Approach: straight up/force baseline/force middle/to dominant hand

            Distance

            Hands

            Slides vs. penetration-be able to guard your yard

Post D 

            How we guard the post must be aligned with how we are playing on the perimeter.

            Positioning: top of the key, ball above the FT line, ball below the FT line at wing, & corner.

            Footwork

            Trapping

Help and Rotation

            Stunt and recover vs. penetration

            Rotations based on penetration from the top-wing middle-wing baseline

Screening: How are we guarding screens?

            Downpick

                        Strong side

                        Weak side

            Back screen

                        Big to little

                        Little to big

            Cross screens 

                        Little to big

                        Big to little

                        Like size-big to big, little to little

            Diagonal

                        Little to big

            Pick and Roll

                        Who is the ball handler? 

                              Shooter, driver, both

                        Who is the screener? 

                              Shooter, driver, both

                        What is the angle?

                              90/45/flat/step up/baseline

                        What part of the floor is the screen?                        

                              Side-middle-drag-elbow-corner

                        There are at least 7 ways to defend the pick and roll.

      Ice or Down

      Switch

      Jam

      Trap

      Soft hedge

      Flat hedge

      Hard hedge 

                Basic Play Actions

                              Flex
                              UCLA
                              Zipper
                              Horns
                              Iverson-1-4 high set guards go over top and other under
                              Elevator-top or side
                              Floppy-single double

                              Staggered
                                    Big-Big for little
                                    Little-Big for little
                                    Big-Little for little
                              Hand offs/dribble weave
                                    Big to little
                                    Little to little dribble weave
                                    Big to little dribble weave

            

Rebounding

               In the paint

               Outside the paint

               Outside the 3 point line