How To Defend The High Pick And Roll 

Defense came to me so easier then offense. In high scholl I was always guarding the best player no matter what position he played. Oh the memories :)

still very useful today. thanks so much coach for this on-court breakdown

Coach rockin dem Granny kicks.

Coach Nick, I love this channel and that was a terrific lesson. I played at PG position here in Bulgaria and all those years I tried to slide the high PNR and NOBODY told me that this is not right. Thanks again and keep up the good work.

chris paul has got it down!!

Coach, since you're going through fundamentals, please see if you can show us the fundamentals of passing and how to practice passing so that you get the ball to the body area of the shooter where he feels comfortable to quickly catch and shoot; even while moving on fastbreak.

It seems that if you go shoulder to shoulder off the screen, you could put the defender on your back pretty easily against this defense. The only reason he could get through is b/c you left a gap by going wide around the screener. Is this an accurate observation?

You are an excellent coach, I'm learning a lot from your videos. Thank you

Also with pick & rolls, as a coach, today's bigs disturb me. No more TRUE POST UP BIGS left, all kids want to do is Pick & Pop. Here's my solution, have the 2nd big slide across the lane " mirroring the ballhandler. Make ATLEAST 2 passes before you start your PNR. The parents used to get mad when I had my son run a straight PNR with a big. The other kids don't feel involved, so they begin to pout or slack off on defense as a form of protest.

stuff like this is why I love this channel, coach nick. just some questions so you can clarify: as the defender's stepping around (I always thought it looked sorta like a eurostep), is the defender supposed to get as tall and straight as possible, to possibly get thin so it's easier to slide around the screen, or are you supposed to get low so you have strength to fight through the screen? and what about your arms; are you using one to hipcheck the opponent (the way ty Lawson showed in his defending the pnr video), and the other to put a hand on the screener so you can leverage your way around the screen? thanks.

cp one of the best at fighting through screens.

Someone show this to the Cavs players they can't gaurding the simplest pnr.

Very clear and consise explanation for what I guess is basketball fundamentals. I used to play basketball in high school, but I don`t remember if we were ever taught this. But hey, its been a good while since those days! Great video, coach!

Sorry Coach Nick, but as a fellow coach, I like Dick Bennett's Pack Line Def. tape. His son came up with the V-Move for the x-cutter against pick & roll. Jump up quickly into ballhandler with ballside foot, then downward. Your method puts the defender in trail position vs- super quick guards !!!

Thank you Coach Nick for this video. I am a Noob but you make me smart in this game.

With all due respect coach,I really don't know about this because all the stuff you explained works if I'm just going one direction...but what happens if do a crossover or a second dribble move? For instance at 3:20 the defender is able to stay with you because you're going one direction,but when is on you,all it takes is a spin move to get by him,because since he pushed off his foot(as you suggest in your technique) but in game speed his momentum is gonna make him vulnerable to a not even so quick change of direction.Also in the clips you've showed I think it's about poor offence rather than good defence and here's why clip 1) Bad read by Lillard because Paul can't really guard him in that position,and he should have just tried to blow by DJ who I assume is slower that Lillard clip 2) In trying to stay with the ball handler CP3 trips on somebody's foot.If Lillard noticed that he could have crossed over and go...instead not only he doesn't notice that(which I know it is hard to notice in real time) but he picks up his dribble(that's the mistake IMO).Don't know what happens next,but I assume he stepped around Paul and made the pass to Lopez clip 3) That's actually good ROTATION because,owing to that player(I can't tell who he is sry) who switches to Adams denies the pass,Telfair realises that and keeps the dribble alive,but since it's Sebastian Telfair we talking about here,he ends up over-dribbling and traps himself : result turnover clip 4) Well this one is tricky because,Chris Paul actually succeeds in not to get stuck on the screen thanks to your footwork technique and applies tremendous pressure on Lin.IMO Lin should have kept his cool,and as soon as he realised that he couldn't get by DJ who plays good defense(and owing to Kobe just standing still in the corner whereas he should helped Lin deliver an handoff pass),he should have kinda backed up,put CP3 on his back a little bit and just call for another screen or even better another play who wouldn't require him having to take CP3 off the dribble,because he just can't do it Now as I broke down each clip(and believe me,I know that it's easy to make reads while watching replays,and that in game speed sometimes you just don't have the time to do all this thinking),you may notice that there is no change of direction involved,and every player who gets trapped with this technique is mainly because he's going one way...and the funny thing is that one of those players who would do a change of direction as I suggest is CP3 himself because he loves using the same pick 2 or 3 times going right,left then right again All in all don't get me wrong I think that the footwork is useful in order not to get stuck on a screen but,I think is a lot risky if you're guarding someone who knows how to use screens. Sorry for the long post,and I'm not hating or anything because I've been subscribed to this channel for a long time,I'm just speaking my mind and I like confrontation

This is EXACTLY the type of videos I need. I have skill but whats the use if you don't have IQ? I dont see a lot of tutorials on youtube of what to do when you dont have the ball

I guess "Ice" usage in this video (High School) is synonymous with "Mush". Usually, to differentiate one from the other, "Ice" or so-called "Blue", in the AUS/NZ region, is done when a side-pick is set, rather than a high-pick, going base instead of going middle. In that situation, defender on the ball is staying high on the pick, denying middle penetration. "Mush" on the other hand is when a side-pick is set going middle. Another major difference is that with Mush you can rotate (three-man rotation), whereas with "Ice" this is a limitation.

I also found a method that works extremely well. You can also do a spin move around the screen. Try it

Appreciate the level of detail on the footwork. But feel like a lot of PNR Defense tips on YT only work when the offense runs it in a sloppy manner. Yes, if there's a highschooler-sized gap between dribbler and screener, then you can fit a highschooler over. Does it still work if they actually try to go for shoulder-to-shoulder?

Great job with excellent clear instructions.

Cavs need 2 watch this ASAP.

Coach could you do a feature on different pick and roll coverages ? For example how the heat do it versus the pacers last year. And of course the spurs .

Thanks Coach. I'll try his move out tonight!

great vid coach! I was wondering which PGs in the NBA you think are particularly good/bad at this? also, is this just a technique/effort thing to guard the pick and roll or are physical traits beneficial?

That's some good coaching, coach!

Coach, this wouldn't work if the PG left little to no gap between them and the screen when trying to drive towards the basket, would it? Then the screener's defender would have to come up high and pick up the PG early to make that pass as hard as it gets.

I love it

Coach ...with all due respect there is another option...to switch defenders.Which one is better ?

Can you make a video on how to play On Ball Defense properly

Thank you so much for this vid really useful !!!!!!!!!!!

Awesome vid.

thanks a lot coach... your videos are so much good ... but there are many different types of defence screen... can you please tell me... because I know 5 types but there are 8 ... thank you so much coach again

That knowledge. I wish I had this channel growing up! I would've been a beast on JV My senior year.

You gotta really be careful with the foot plant on the high side of the screen; turn you plant foot as much as possible to point back toward the basket (the direction the ball handler is moving) or you eventually tear your knee apart. See 'By Any Means Basketball' channel - avoiding injuries.

Cleveland needs to watch this.

THANKS THIS IS PERFECT FOR TEACH TO INICIAL BOYS

Awesome video!!

Coach Nick, great as always but pls clarify: this step is done without hedging by the Big? Or both? Is it an option or are you not in favour of hedging at all? I like the Step, just need to understand how it fits in with/without ball pressure by Big. And of course, we now need "ICE 101", get 'er done. ;)

Someone send this video to Lonzo Ball

Coach that's great stuff but I wanna ask wt if the screener re-screens? It seems so hard to push back around the 2nd screen with this technique...

Kirk Hinrich is great at getting through screens.

Can you post of a video on the grizz

coach nick ur so good play coach in nba pls

Coach, how do you defend pindowns?

Thanks, I always wondered how nba teams defended against the pick and roll.

CAVS VS RAPS BREAKDOWN PLS!!!!

Coach, what does the defender of the screener movement is? Thanks

How can you defend on a 2v2 though ?

No sir. You aren’t using his screen. You are leaving a foot for the defender to move through. Bump the shoulder of your screener.

Most teams hate middle penetration because bigs can't stop guards one-on-one with shooters spread outside 3pt Arc. Guards should be taught to "fight over the screen." My favorite team, LAKERS haven't learned this yet. Coach Nick loves to hate on Kobe also.

I'll say CP or the Clippers are the best in defending the pick and roll coz they are the best at running it. They probably know every nook and cranny of that play, especially CP3 who has been running it since highs school.

The pick n roll is undefendable. The ball carrier should be cutting closer to the pick. The larger defenders tend to half ass the pick and try to roll too early or set it up too Early. Stockton and Malone told you they were executing the Pick and Roll and nobody could defend it. It's pure physics. It's an offensive foul if you go through the screen and especially in the NBA creating mismatches due to size/speed differences in different positions. A guard on a center/forward or vice versa. I think it should be used much more and outlawed from the game. It's a cheat loophole within the rules. There is a reason you can't pick a player in Football. Nobody equates that.

The ballhandler should be running off the screeners shoulder leaving NO ROOM for this defensive move. But most NBA screens are really soggy and they use their hands and push off, or dont hardly set a screen at all, so this move will work in the NBA.

Only 30 to 40 guards in the country can convert 40% from 3, 4 feet behind the line...oh how times have changed lol

Coach Nick really likes CP3 hm? :D

Coach did you get slimmer? Also what position did you play when you used to play ball?

thanks. i get a new idea.

Shouldn't the dribbler cut close to the screen leaving no room at all for his/her defender to step through?

Coach Nick are you in Socal often?

Cancel that ICE order: found the clip you did last year!

The pick & roll is not a true offense, as a matter of fact it's just one step up from "Isolation Ball." It doesn't take intelligence to go from 1 man isolation to 2-man isolation. A rookie coach can run pick& roll all day. Kids need to get out of that AAU- mentality. Sorry for venting !!!

I get most of my coaching videos off Championship Productions

please do an analysis of the south korea vs philippines game in this year's Fiba-Asia Cup.Thanks

coach are you tall or are they short

Is coach nick really a coach?

Sort of reminds me of a euro-step, but without the ball.

Nobody stopped the roller 😭😭😭

Lets be real coach, the best PnR teams in nba are allowed to get away with countless offensive fouls every quarter by 3 stooges who do ref assignments. Those teams that have gr8 outside shooters have field days vs teams with lil to no catch and shoot style players. The best way to guard PnR is designing your team with long rangy athletic guys that have the ability to recover quickly off picks and make up grounds if beat earlier off initial set screen. But I think its better when you have a long team even at guard positions, its better to switch everything and force offense into taking long 2s or 3s. The score of game also determines if you want to fight thru screen defensively usual if your team has the lead or gm is in within 2 possessions. But if your team is down 10+ you better switch everything and keep arms spread wide and make sure you feel the opponent. Not foolish contact where 1 of the 3 stooges blows whistle, but you cant let offense not feel your activity to remain close to them. If all else fails box and 1 and know who real shooters are only over commit to getting hand on their shot attempts.

you would think some1 would sponsor the coach with shoes that dont look like something a WW2 veteran would use to go out on his morning walks

MONARCHSSSS

Can be beat by a simple crossover…?

Crazy when you realize that one of, if not both of those kids are probably married now, just shooting around in the driveway after work with small kids of their own. Less than 10 years ago they were still kids in school just having fun shooting this little video after practice cause their coach asked or something. Father Time is undefeated… and an asshole. Lol

“Important! The footwork is key” Continues to film the upper body

This method is just allowing your big or the person guarding the screener to be lazy. Any guard that knows that he should first attempt to take his defender lower than the screen then use the screen with a crossover step would capitalize on this technique of defending the high pick and roll all day. These days I feel like you have to send the ball handler into the screen and make the big guy hedge. Activate proper help defense to accompany the effort.

you are not using the screen correctly , no space between the offensive players should be left during the screen play;

Coach Nick must be busy, sparse video updates now adays :(

I rispectfully disagree with you coach. This doesnt work 70% of the time or more. The reason is that when the ball handler use the screen more close to his teamate, the defender will not be able go by the screen. Is more possible to the defender to end up with 3 fouls in 3 plays or follow his man from 2 or 3 steps behind his man. we all know that means troubles. .. Watch instead the short or long step. Its a beauty, is simple, you can even execute a trap from that. I dont use the way you are telling uf because a regular point guard can adjust the spacing in the second play. Not even think about if you try it too many times. In my experience in fiba doesnt work, you can try to use it a couple of times but then the coach will call you to yell the poor screen you are making for your teammates.

What happens if the ball handler rubs you off with the screen, a la Dellavadova? He doesn't give you enough room to step around the screen man like that.

I hope i don't sound stupid asking this but, why not going under the screen with this kind of step instead of going over it.

And then come Steph Curry

That’s how you get cooked

Coach take them Caucasian dad "4's" off man.. Secondly be careful doing this method against advanced handled guards.. I use it but some time I get caught on a non screen roll away..