`Vance Walberg – Full Court Pressure Defensive System

Philosophy:

  • “Pressure, Pressure, Pressure”.
  • He wants to keep pressure on the opponent on both offence and defence. If you don’t pressure on defence they can make you play defence for up to 35 seconds. Then on offence you take a shot within 7-10 seconds – therefore you are on defence most of the game unless you pressure.

Court:

  • The court is divided into 4 quarters – 2 inside quarters and 2 outside quarters. The quarters are divided by the volleyball sidelines extended to each baseline and the split line (from basket to basket).

General Rules:

  • It is 2-2-1 until the ball is dribbled – then becomes a trapping, run and jump defence.
  • When the ball is in an outside quarter all defenders are in that ½ of the court.
  • When the ball is in an inside quarter all defenders must be in the inside quarters.
  • Take away the middle and take away gaps – you can only do this if there is ball pressure.
  • Force the ball-handler to use an attack dribble.
  • Always get to the level of the ball.
  • Be on the line and up the line – allow no straight line passes. Force lob passes.
  • The more pressure on the ball – the more everyone else can cheat.
  • Anticipate, look for steals.
  • Play with active hands.
  • If ball-handler moves to his weak hand you can cheat even more.
  • Passes back don’t hurt us.

3 Hard and Fast Rules:

  1. Pressure the ball hard
  2. Get to your quarters
  3. Make them dribble

Defensive Keys:

  • Defence begins when the ball is dribbled – they want to force an attack dribble (a dribble where offence tries to beat defender).
  • Do not want a 1-dribble and pass.
  • Want offence to dribble not pass – it is more tiring to dribble vs. pressure as opposed to passing.
  • Wear the opponent down with constant pressure.

Outside ¼:

  • Take away the middle.
  • All defenders have a least 1 foot in that ½ of the court.
  • Take away gaps.
  • You can only do this if there is hard pressure on the ball.
  • X1 hard pressure on the ball.
  • X2 is to the level of the ball.
  • X3 is on line between ball and his man.
  • X4 and X5 are on line between their man and the ball and one foot on that ½ of the court.

Inside 1/4:

  • All defenders are in the inside quarters when the ball is in an inside quarter.

Teaching:

  • Teach understanding of the quarters 1st
  • Teach 1 position at a time. The positions are:
  • Controller
  • Gapper
  • Taker
  • Reader
  • Teaser
  • 1 on 1, 2 on 2, 3 on 3, 4 on 4, etc.
  • Demonstrate each player’s role before going 5 on 5.

Positions:

  1. Controller – the man on the ball. Controller is the only player who guards 1 player. Don’t care where you force them.

Responsibilities:

  1. Don’t let the ball-handler see the floor.
  2. Force the ball-handler to dribble.
  3. Force him to turn in the back court – get a turn!
  4. Get 1 turn – you did your job!
  5. Get 2 turns – great job!!
  6. Get 0 turns = sit on the bench!
  7. Don’t foul – be tough and smart. If you’re slow take a good angle.
  8. Usually this is the toughest player – not usually the best scorer because he may in foul trouble more than anyone else.

2. Gapper – is one pass away on the same horizontal plane as the controller. Be below the ball.

Responsibilities:

  1. Don’t get gapped – split on the dribble.
  2. If you get gapped you come out of the game
  3. If the controller doesn’t get a turn he comes out of the game
  4. Gapper becomes a trapper on the dribble.
  • If the ball-handler picks up his dribble = trap
  • If the ball-handler passes = run and jump
  • Have active hands.
  • Keep a record of deflections.
  • You must communicate who has the ball.
  • On guard to guard pass the controller and gapper switch roles.
  • Once the ball goes down the sideline the “gapper becomes a trapper” and goes and traps the dribbler down the sideline.
  • Trap from behind.
  • When trapping: 1) do not foul and 2) do not get split.
  • The more the ball-handler has his back to the basket, the more we can cheat.
  • Only run from behind to trap when the ball is advancing up the floor – not when it is going across the floor.
  • Anytime you see a lob pass = you did a good job.
  • Anytime you see a straight line pass = bad job.
  1. Taker – takes the pass away down your side.

Responsibilities:

  1. Be on the high side (above) – when the dribble comes down your lane you must not let your man catch the pass.
  2. Can be a slower player.
  3. Taker does not come up to trap the ball.
  4. Taker never elevate up the floor to stop the dribble.
  5. Take the “up the sideline” pass away or form umbrella.

Terrible 3’s:

  • Never want 3 on the ball. Taker does not come up to the ball.
  • Never want 3 behind the ball.

Zones:

  1. Reader- is the best anticipator and is aggressive.

Responsibilities:

  1. Be on the line and up the line.
  2. Recognize when to come up and intercept and when to stay back.
  3. Stop any flash into the middle.
  4. If taker takes cutter to the corner become the taker on that side.
  5. If reader sees a “bad beat” he goes back and forms the umbrella with the taker and the teaser. “Bad beat” is when the offensive man blows by the controller.
  • Umbrella – get back but stay on the high side to take away the pass. Don’t run under the basket. Still anticipate and play on the high side. Don’t let them pass ahead.
  • Want them to dribble full-court and take a pull-up jumper off a speed dribble.
  • Don’t have 3 behind the ball.
  • Don’t be a hugger or a sniffer.
  • Hugger – you are too close to your man. Huggers open up gaps – get to the quarters.
  • Sniffer – you are behind the ball-handler.
  • Try to get a tip from behind.
  • If you run this defence right, you will get more steals from behind than the other way.
  • If ball-handler goes down sideline and you see a turn coming move on the turn and look to get an interception.
  • Good players move on the pass, great players move on the pivot and sprint on the pass.
  • On the pass up the floor, get to the level of the ball and get to your quarters.
  • Every player should move on every pivot.

When the Ball Goes Down the Sideline:

  • Taker takes the pass away down the sideline – be on the line, up the line and allow no straight passes.
  • Controller and gapper trap.
  • Reader reads when to go intercept and when to stay.
  • If the pass is too far back and you can’t get it – stay and become a taker.
  • If X4 can’t steal so he goes back and becomes a taker:
  • X1 takes the pass
  • X3 moves up towards the middle and becomes reader – take away the middle
  • X2 becomes a gapper
  • Reader – 1) if trailer O2 is way back don’t go for steal or 2) if trailer comes up look to steal.

Up Middle:

  • If O2 leaks up then X4 should go for the steal.
  • If O2 stays back – run and jump and X4 becomes a taker.
  • Reader - if ball-handler goes hard sideline and you see a “bad beat” = form umbrella.
  • If he goes down sideline and we have a trap – if you see pivot, and trailer leaks up, move up and pick it off.
  • If trailer is too far back = become taker.
  • If ball-handler goes middle and trailer moves up = pick it off.
  • If ball-handler goes middle and trailer stays = stay back.

5. Teaser – Tease the in-bounder into throwing a full-court pass. The more the teaser moves up the more we shut down the middle.

Responsibilities:

  1. Teaser should always be long and opposite the ball.
  2. Don’t be a hugger.
  3. Move when inbounder’s arm cocks back.
  4. When the ball is held low move up to ½ court.
  5. Don’t have your shoulders square to the ball – you won’t have vision and will need to turn. Point pistols at man and ball.
  6. Teaser must recognize when the ball-handler has the ball in the weak hand – move up because unlikely to throw overhand with left hand.
  7. Usually he is the big.

Vertical Traps:

  • The player in the lane of the ball, X2 in this example, sprints ahead for the vertical trap.
  • X1 gets to the level of the ball and gets to his quarter.
  • X2 and X4 form vertical trap.
  • X4 can’t come up and pressure so much that he gets beat in the cushion zone because you will have the second of the “terrible 3’s” – “3 behind the ball”.
  • Play a cat and mouse game by jabbing and retreating until X2 gets there. Give a cushion.
  • When sprinting to the level of the ball, X1 will look to pick off a pass, if X2 and X4 have a good trap – “See it and fix it”
  • X3 guards 2 players on the weak-side when the trap is on.
  • Vertical trap anytime the ball goes by in the same zone.
  • X1 and X3 get back and form umbrella and must get to your quarters.
  • O4 catches in an outside quarter so get on that side of the court.
  • X3 sprints ahead and gives a cushion in the cushion zone.
  • X2 sprints ahead for the vertical trap.
  • X1 sprints backto “see it and fix it” – this means get back and then be ready to make a play based on the quality of the trap.
  • If O3 blows by X3 then X5, X4, and X2 form the umbrella.
  • Anytime the opponent catches the ball in the cushion zone, player on the ball will play catch and mouse waiting for the trapper to come – ball-side will “vertical trap”, weak-side high will “see it and fix it”, and the other two “form the umbrella”.

Vs. Bad Beat dribble down the sideline

  • X3, X4, and X5 – form umbrella
  • X1 – look to tip from behind
  • X2 – try to squeeze the ball-handler

Phasing:This happens when your man leaves his area and cuts through to the opposite side – don’t go with your man when he leaves your area. Go with him and then let him go.

  • If O3 clears out, X3 stays and X5 covers 3 players. When O1 dribbles, X3 sprints to cover O3.
  • Teaser always has long and opposite.
  • Have active hands and go for steals.
  • Reader needs to be aggressive.
  • Once you get beat – “see it and fix it” – get to your quarters.
  • It doesn’t matter if we have mismatches – keep pressure on them.

Defending In-Bounding Situations

1 Up: Full denial if offence has one guard up. The other defensive guard will back up and protect.

2 Up: Force Corner – vs. 2 guard front

  • Vs. 2 Up – Force to the corner.
  • X1 – strong; play on the inside and force to corner.
  • X2 – weak; if O2 goes to the other quarter don’t hug X2 must play the angle

Weak’s Responsibilities:

  1. Must play high-side and phase with your man on the weak-side.
  2. Must be ready to take the inbounder on pass to strong-side corner.
  3. Weak becomes strong when inbounder runs the ball to his side. Therefore, if inbounder runs the baseline then X1 and X2 switch roles.
  4. When they switch roles it is important the weak (old strong) does not drop back – instead come straight across the floor. This still makes inbounding difficult.
  5. If O1 goes long then X1 stays and X3 takes O1

Drill: Both teams run the circle – coach calls out “score!” and the bounces the ball and everyone goes to their spots

  • In trap 1) don’t foul and 2) don’t get split
  • If you are in the right positions 25% of the time you’re going to be very good
  • If you bust your tail to get in the right positions – you’re going to be successful
  • Get to your quarters

3 Up: Keep the ball out of the middle

  • Leave the furthest away pass.
  • This is only after a score – on a dead ball we would man to man it.
  • If the pass is made to the furthest player then X2 becomes the controller and X1 becomes the gapper.
  • On the dribble to sideline, the taker retreats. Don’t come up and create one of the “terrible 3’s” – “3 on the ball”.

4 Up: This is after a score, otherwise we would play man to man

  • X1 and X2 play 2 players.
  • If O3 goes long it is the taker’s, X3’s, responsibility.

Drill: Run circle drill – and have offence get into 4 across and then play live.

  • Carry over the quarter rules into the half-court. Therefore when the ball is in an outside quarter everyone gets to that half of the court.

2 Up into 4 Across:

  • Taker and reader come up with the cutters.
  • Teaser should move up as well.
  • Don’t mind if they catch the ball in the corner.
  • If takers man gets in the corner then the reader can rotate behind the taker. The gapper would likely drop back.
  • The more they jam it up, the more chances for steals.
  • No straight line catches – keep ball pressure on.
  • If they throw straight line pass it means there is not enough pressure.
  • Would rather get beat with the dribble.

When teams flash into the middle – the reader takes it all the way.

General Thoughts:

  • Everyone guards 2 people except for the man on the ball.
  • Getting to your quarters solves 99% of your problems – move on the pivot, sprint on the pass.
  • If you press you will get beat at times – you must be able to handle it.
  • Coaches must ask themselves “Who’s hard are they going to play – your hard or their hard.” Coaches dictate this.
  • Same defence in the half-court w/ a few exceptions.
  • This is their primary defence.