How to Full Court Press
In the game of basketball, most coaches preach the importance of defense. One particularly effective defensive strategy employed by bench tacticians is the full court press. This type of defense is usually used to cause turnovers for the opposing teams and to score quick baskets, especially during key points late in the game.
There are many types of full court presses depending on the formation of defenders such as the man-to-man, 2-2-1 zone press, 1-2-1-1 diamond zone press, among others. In this article, you will learn the most basic type which is the man-to-man fullcourt press. Here are a few tips to get that ball:
Know your position.
All five defenders on the floor should be assigned an opponent to guard. You should then stay with this player until the ball is inbounded. Be careful though since presses are prone to easy fastbreak points to opponents if you are not alert enough to cover your man.
Force the pass near the sideline.
While one player guards the inbounder, the other four cagers should deny the pass by blocking any passing lanes. Don’t worry about the long overhead passes since you have your other teammates as “safety.” Instead, force your opponents to pass the ball at the sides or corner near the sidelines.
You can also locate your opponent’s best ball handler and deny him the ball. Instead, force the leather to go to a weak ball handler and make him dribble to the narrow corners.
Trap along the sideline.
As the opponent is being forced to dribble at the sidelines, the player guarding the inbounder should automatically help in trapping the narrow corners. Communication is key here since your teammates should rotate quickly. Whoever has the ball should be forced to dribble to the sidelines. The next defender closest to the dribbler should come to double team while the rest of the squad rotates to defend the four other players.
Defend the basket.
If the ball gets to cross the half court line, make sure that there is a safety defender. Usually, the center or the tallest player in the team is the “last man back.” He’s the one who foils any potential fast break resulting from the press.
Executing a full court press requires practice, stamina and good teamwork. Master this defensive scheme and score easy transition basket yourselves.