Tactics to Get to the Ball Inside

by
Mike McNeill, Coaching Development, Basketball BC
The following are a number of tactics that can be used to get the ball inside. Whether
they are a part of a play your team runs, or they are part of the concepts you teach
players, all teams must have several strategies to get the ball inside.
Post Triangle: This is possibly the
most fundamental of all concepts. In
this example, O5 is positioned directly
on the line from the basket to the wing.
This is called the line of deployment.
The significance of this position is that
for the defender to prevent the ball from
being passed directly inside he/she must
either be on the top or bottom side of the
post. This opens up a passing lane on
the other side of O5. It is important for
O2 and O3 to be on either side of the
line of deployment. The post player
must prevent the defender from going
over top by keeping his/her feet active
and preventing the defender from
stepping across their foot closest to the
ball.

Duck-In: The duck-in is a weak-side

low post move done whenever the post
defender plays below the offensive
player. This is why it is important weakside low post players always face in
(face the basket). When the post faces in
he/she can see their defender and will be
able to get into the defenders body more
effectively.
To correctly duck-in the offensive player
must get low, step across the defender
with his/her baseline foot, and sit on the
defenders thigh. Post play is about
footwork and for the post to attain great
position he/she must get their baseline
foot across the defenders foot that is
furthest from them. The inside elbow
should go into the chest of the defender
and form an L, with the palm of the
hand facing the passer; this will prevent
the post from holding the defender. The
target hand will usually be low to
receive a bounce pass. If there is a
significant size advantage the pass may
go high. For the passer to be able to get
the pass by the defender he/she must get
tight to their defender. To accomplish
this, the passer will usually take one
dribble directly at the elbow to close the
gap, then fake high and pass low with a
knee to knee bounce pass (passers knee
to posts knee).
When the post goes to the basket to
score he/she should go back in the
direction they came from because there
should not be any back-side defenders to

help. This is done by completing a drop

step with the foot furthest from the
passer. The finish can be either a lay-up
or a power move.

High-Low Down Screen: In this action

the post-up player starts high and screens
down. The cutter goes high and receives
a pass from the wing and looks to pass
the ball directly into the post. The post
should two stop on the down screen, and
then front pivot across the defender with
the foot furthest from the ball. As the
post front pivots he/she swims his/her
outside arm over top of the defender (the
elbow passes in front of the defenders
face). Usually the low post is not open
for very long. For this reason the pass
from the cutter to the low post should be
a two-hand overhead pass, and therefore
the pass from the wing should come to
the cutter high.

Down Screen to Post Up: This action

is similar to the High-Low Down Screen
tactic. The post will begin at the wing
and will down screen towards the block.
The technique for screening and pivoting
is the same as the high-low down screen.
When the ball is at the top a quality
defender will have jumped to the ball
and create space for the cutters defender
to get through the screen. However for
the post to attain great position he/she
must close the gap between themselves
and the defender.
Therefore, the
screener must take up the space quickly
to prevent the defender from getting over
top on the pivot. After receiving the
pass at the wing the cutter will often
have to take one dribble towards the
baseline to improve their passing angle.

small defender does not help they may

give up a lay-up.
The screener (the small) steps out of the
post and sets a back screen for the post
to go to the basket. The screener then
quickly steps out to the 3 pt. line and
receives a pass from the top. There are
three critical points on the posts cut to
the basket: 1) he/she must come tight off
the screeners shoulder to force the small
defender to help momentarily, 2) he/she
must take the cut towards the front of the
rim to force the defender higher (above
the line of deployment), and 3) he/she
must not cut past the defender and allow
the defender to easily get over top and
front or side front.
To execute a good post up the post must
swim back by taking their baseline arm
aggressively over top and in front of the
post defender and, with their baseline
foot, step across the top foot of the
defender. The passer may be able to
pass directly in to the post or may need
to take a dribble to the baseline to
improve the passing angle.

Back Screen to Swim Back: This tactic

serves two purposes: 1) to get the ball
inside and 2) serve as a pressure release.
A small to big back screen is a very
effective way to relieve denial pressure
because, unless the defence switches, the
small defender will have to help
momentarily as the offensive post player
comes off the screen to the basket. If the

curl, if the post does not help, the pass

should go to the cutter. As the defender
is helping on the curl the passer brings
the ball towards the wing to improve
his/her angle and the post steps into the
post defender to establish position.
Once the cutters defender clears the
passing lane is usually open. In many
cases the cutter may set an incidental
screen, by running into the post
defender as he/she completes their cut.
If the cutters defender attempts to go
over top of the screen then the post
should step higher and the cutter should
fade to the corner.

Curl the Post: This tactic is extremely

effective when the post defender bumps
curl cuts by offensive players. The ball
starts at the high elbow above the post.
The cutter cuts across the lane below the
post and then curls very tight around the
post to the middle of the lane. As the
cutter comes across the lane the post
defender must momentarily help on the

Flex Duck-In: This tactic has the same

principle of curling the post: the post
defender must defend a cut by another
offensive player. The cutter will flex cut
low off the post and force the post to
help momentarily. As the post defender
helps the offensive player ducks in right
in front of the post defender.
As in all flex action the ball will be at
the opposite high elbow. The post

should not step outside the lane to set a

screen for the cutter because it makes the
distance too far to get back in and post
up. The flex screen should be set with
the posts back to the basket. Then to
execute the duck-in properly the post
will drop step towards the ball with
his/her top foot and then slide quickly in
front of the defender. The ball may be
passed into the post high or low
depending on the post defenders
recovery. Similar to the regular duck-in,
the post should go back in the direction
he/she came from to score, because there
should not be any back-side defenders to
help. This is done by completing a drop
step with the foot furthest from the
passer. The finish can be either a lay-up
or a power move.

teach the players to see the position of

the post defender. So begin teaching
these tactics with only a post defender
and initially instruct the defender on
where to play. Then you can allow the
defender to be live. The next step is to
add defenders on the passers. This will
now force the passers to use their skills
while also reading the post defender.
The final step is use the tactic within the
context of a 5 on 5 environment, so the
passers must recognize the help
defenders.
With all offensive play, spacing is a
critical element. It is important to
emphasize spacing throughout the
teaching of these tactics to ensure the
post player is not crowded when he/she
receives the pass. Proper spacing will
help prevent the quick double-team on
the post and will open passing in and out
of the post.
The last aspect is timing. The anxious
post player will often get into position
before the pass is ready to be delivered.
The post often ducks-in too early or
posts-up before the ball is at the wing;
which either results in a 3 second call or
allows the defender time to get around
the post. It is important for the post
player to be patient and allow the play to
develop

Closing Thoughts: These tactics are

team concepts because they will involve
more than one player. When concepts
are taught to players they must learn to
read the defenders because the position
of the defenders will determine where
the ball should be passed. In the case of
getting the ball inside the first step is to

All teams need to have an inside threat.

Whether you simply teach the tactic or
concept, or incorporate them as part of a
play, these are steadfast methods which
will usually be effective when executed
properly. While there are many ways to
get the ball inside these are some of the
most effective and popular ways.