Full Court Press

[EMM]

What is a good fullcourt press to teach to young kids 11-13 to cause turnovers at the ends of games?

[williebfree]

The press should be one that does NOT allow the players to foul the opponent.

[Bart Tyson]

1-2-11

[Back In The Saddle]

Originally posted by Bart Tyson
1-2-11

Ah yes, the 1-2-11 defense. Very effective...as long as you don't get called for having 14 players on the floor!

[Hawks Coach]

If you can teach an effective trap, 1-2-1-1 or 1-2-2 works really well. But you must teach them how to trap, and how to deny the near passing lanes immediately following the trap. The main benefit of 1-2-2 over 1-2-1-1 is eliminating the long cross-court run if the ball is reversed - you have coverage on both sides. If the backside defender is a little sleepy, 1-2-2 does offer the offense more chance at an upcourt pass over the top. Good traps help prevent that from occurring.

We used to use (and still do) a man press. All defenders play baseline side of the potential pass receivers, switching on all screens, doing everything in their power to dney an open inobunds pass. The inbounder's defender is used as an extra defender to take away the upcourt pass initially (since everybody else is on the ball side) or to double the best ball handler/FT shooter and completely deny them the ball. When the ball comes in, this defender can jump in on a trap immediately. If we surprise a team with it, we can get a five second count or a couple of quick turnovers. We keep the ball out of the hands of their most dangerous players. Has worked great for four years!

And welcome to the coaches' forum

[Snake~eyes]

Pressing at that age is not a good idea. All it will do is put the other team in the bonus, sometimess doulbe bonus. At that age, the most important thing is rebounding, that's all you need. If you can crash the boards all day you will win.

[footlocker]

Originally posted by Snake~eyes
At that age, the most important thing is rebounding, that's all you need. If you can crash the boards all day you will win.

I agree with this. This is true for all fundamentals at this age. Lay ups, hands up, passing, dribbling.

Originally posted by Snake~eyes
Pressing at that age is not a good idea. All it will do is put the other team in the bonus, sometimess doulbe bonus.

If this is girls and my objective is to win, who cares, I don't mind them at the line.

I think that if you truly want to serve the kids best a man defense will teach them the individual defensive skills needed for higher level play. It will be at the cost of wins though because it is not the best way to stop another team. If your 11-13 year olds are advanced, it is important to understand different defensive strategies.

QUOTE]Originally posted by Hawks Coach
If you can teach an effective trap, 1-2-1-1 or 1-2-2 works really well.[/QUOTE]
This is true.

QUOTE]Originally posted by Hawks Coach
And welcome to the coaches' forum [/QUOTE]
Huh?

[LDUB]

A 1-2-1-1 prees is really the same as a 1-2-2. I would sugggest the 1-2-2. If you go with the 1-2-2, you have to trap right away. What I would suggest is putting one of your taller players as the 1 spot. Have him force the inbounds pass to a predetermined side. Then the 1 player and the player on that side in the second row can trap the offensive player.

A 2-2-1 press works well also. It is pretty much the same as the 1-2-2 but you move the man who was in the 1 spot all the way to the back. When you are doing this one, just have the players shift from one side to the other on the court. This is hard to explain with out actually seeing it. Also, the offense will have a man stand in the middle of your 2-2 box. Make sure this man is covered. If the offense gets the ball here they have broke the press. Try to get the player on the side opposite the ball to cover the middle man. Either the man in the first or second row, but usually the first row. Also tell the player all the way in back to watch out for a pass deep up the sideline. The deep player must Be able to intercept these passes.

At such a young age, a man to man press might work best. Some people guard the man who is passing the ball in. I would not suggest this. I say slide him back and have him play "centerfield". Then he is able to help out on cuts and picks with the other 4 defenders. If done right you should be able to get a 5 second call.

[TigerBball]

I hope this is not against the rules. Go to coachingyouthbasketball.net, this is a great site for coaches. Many of the coaches there come here to get opinons about ref issues. We use you guys to clarify our misunderstandings. It is a great site, not nearly as cynical as this one. Did I spell synikal correctly?

[Snake~eyes]

Also one thing I forgot to mention cause I was on the run. At that age they can't press very well. Very rarely do I see teams effectively press, here's what I see. Full court press but someone is wide open under the basket and they pass them the ball for a wide open layup.

[ttownterp]

I have a 15 and under team,and we have always used a 1-3-1.just like anything else it really depends on your personel as to what will work best for you.I have had these guys since they were 11 or 12 though and we have really refined it,weak pg play or poor coaching adjustments and we can score very quickly out of it.

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by TigerBball
It is a great site, not nearly as cynical as this one.

Actually, it can be just as cynical. Just like this, there's good discussion and occasionally, tempers flare.