In the previous post, we went over Ball Screens as a new layer in the Read & React Offense. Well, here’s the final new layer: Corners.
Corners gives cutters a reaction when they’ve lost the basket cut. Let me explain.
Sometimes when you Pass & Cut, your defender wins the battle, stands you up, and prevents you from finishing your basket cut. This “chest to chest” position not only prevents you from scoring, but if you continue to struggle, it will slow up the offense, and clog up the lane – preventing your teammates from getting to the basket. You want to forget this battle and clear the chute for your teammates.
So, I’m stealing a motion read from Coach Knight. (I’m sure this is not the only thing that I’ve stolen from Coach Knight – but you know the basketball coaching rule, if you use it three times, you can call it your own!) Coach Knight would say if you find yourself sternum-to-sternum with your defender, just make a Corner and screen for a teammate. Well, this dovetails nicely into one of two layers in the Read & React. If you’ve only covered Pass & Cut, then make your corner and fill out to an empty spot. If you have the Back-Screen Layer under your belt, then make a corner and set a back-screen for a teammate.
Regardless of which one you choose, making a corner will insert your action directly into either Pass & Cut or Back-Screens. The problem is solved and the action continues from a familiar Layer.
Don’t let your players cop out with this layer, though. This should only be used when they meet a defender “sternum to sternum”. The last thing we want is for every cut (or even a significant percentage of them) to be a Corner.
