Transition defense is an incredibly important aspect of defense in basketball, but it is also the most overlooked. Basketball coaches almost take for granted that their players will simply get back on defense and prevent their opposition from scoring. However, this is not always the case and there is a significant amount of strategy and technique that goes into how transition defense should be played. Transition defense, like any other aspect of basketball needs to be explained to the players and then drilled frequently in order for it to become habit. The following will provide simple keys to playing solid transition defense as well as two drills to use in practice in order to work on your team's transition defense.
First and foremost, it must be understood that transition defense actually begins on offense. Throughout an offensive set, players are cutting, screening, and attacking the basket off the dribble. These movement patterns cause spots on the floor to be vacated and subsequently filled by the next cutter. The most important spot on the floor, as it pertains to transition defense, is the top of the key. If the basket is attacked off the dribble or the cut from the top of the key, and a shot goes up before that spot is filled by another offensive player, your transition defense will be at an immediate disadvantage. In order for your transition defense to be effective, your offensive players must rotate into that area of the court because they actually serve as your first line of transition defense. And once the ball is secured by the opponent, your players must immediately sprint back on defense. If your offensive players do not rotate to fill the top spot on the floor, they are usually left trying to sprint back on defense from below the ball line. This gives the advantage to your opponent who can now start their attack ahead of your players. In order to slow down this attack, your players should be sprinting in order to get themselves ahead of the basketball and set themselves up in good defensive position.
Good transition defensive teams realize that their goal is not to defend a man, but to actually defend the basket. Consequently, the first man back defensively should sprint back and immediately protect the basket. In doing so, he will protect against any pass ahead toward the basket that could result in a layup. The second priority in defensive transition should be to stop the basketball. An easy way to do this is to have the man closest to the player who grabbed the rebound pressure the outlet pass. This will serve to slow down any transition attack. However, once the ball is advanced, the defensive player closest to the ball in transition must slow down or stop the person with the basketball. This could be the player closest to the basket (the first player back) but only in situations where they are the only player back. If that happens, your team is at a major disadvantage defensively. In order to slow down the guy with the ball the defensive player must hedge at the man with ball and try to force him towards the sideline. If the ball-handler is able to gain the middle of the floor, he has the advantage because he has more passing or scoring options from the middle of the floor than he would from the sideline. Forcing the player with the basketball towards the sideline will help these two defensive players achieve their primary goal which is to slow down the offense's attack long enough for their teammates to get back on defense. It should also be noted that if these two defensive players have gotten back on defense and are ahead of the basketball, they should set up in a tandem defensively in the lane. This defensive set up where one player is in the lower part of the lane and the other is in the high part of the lane will allow them to accomplish what has been previously mentioned. The high defender will stop the basketball while the low defender will cover the basket. In a situation where a pass is made, the low defender would take that first pass and the other defender would fall back into the lane and protect the basket. It should also be taken into account that for these two defenders to be effective they must be constantly communicating with each other as to whom will cover the basket, who will stop the ball, who takes first pass, etc. Without this communication, these defenders will get scored on quickly and will not give their teammates the opportunity to get back on defense.
As the remaining players transition back to defense each player has a specific spot on the floor that they should fill and a role that they need to perform. The third defensive player back should form a triangle with the other defensive players. In doing so, it will enable them to cover any pass that is thrown to their side of the court and allow the other two defensive players to drop into the middle of the lane, to protect the basket, and match up with the ball if it comes back into their area. The fourth defensive player back will fill the defensive spot on the high side opposite the ball, thereby forming a square. From this position they will be able to provide middle support from the weak side and match up with the player with the ball on any pass into their area. Finally, the last player back should run toward the middle of the lane and get below the ball with their back to the baseline. This will enable them to see the entire court and they can then match up accordingly.
Once all five players have transitioned back to defense, and ultimately match up with a man, it is necessary for them to understand that they may not be guarding their man that was assigned to them at the beginning of the game. Because of the guidelines of transition defense, they may end up guarding another player that was not their original assignment. In this situation, this is fine and they should stay on this player because the goal of transition defense is to prevent the other team from scoring, not find your man. In other words, if the defensive player who stopped the basketball in transition is supposed to be matched up with another player, they do not all of a sudden leave the player with the basketball to find the player that they were assigned to. They must stay on that man for that defensive possession or until a logical switch can be made. In the same respect, if your team is a zone defensive team and a player finds themselves in another area of the zone that is not their usual spot, they must stay there for that possession.
To recap, transition defense is about defending the basket and not a man. It all begins on offense where at least one, if not two, offensive players should rotate back to the top of their offense. This will enable them to get ahead of the basketball and prevent an easy scoring opportunity. The player closest to the offensive player who grabbed the rebound should pressure that player and prevent an easy outlet pass. The first two players back on defense need to communicate with each other to ensure that the basket is protected and that the ball is stopped. They should play in a tandem alignment with the top defender covering the ball and the bottom player covering the basket. The third defensive player should form a triangle and the fourth defensive player should form a square. Both situations will provide support from the weak side and allow someone to match up with the ball on any skip pass. Finally, the last player back should run to the middle of the lane and see who is open and match up accordingly. It is essential that these concepts be emphasized and drilled daily during practices in order for your team to be effective in their transition defense.
Two drills that can be used to practice transition defense are the UNLV "See it Fix it" drill and the Transition Defensive Scramble drill. The UNLV drill starts out with five players in one color (let's say blue) on offense lined up across the foul line extended and five players in another color (white) matched up next to them. The coach has the basketball and is standing on the baseline where he will pass the ball to a player in blue who will then start the fast break. The player in white standing next to this player must sprint and touch the baseline and then sprint back on defense. The rest of the defensive players must follow their transition defensive principles in order to prevent the team from scoring until their other player gets back on defense. A variation of this drill that will make it more challenging is to send two defensive players to the baseline, thereby creating a 5 on 3 advantage.
The Transition Defensive Scramble Drill starts with two teams playing five on five in the half court simply running their offense. When the coach yells go, the player with the basketball must leave the ball where it is and he and his teammates must immediately transition back to defense. However, they must guard a man that is different than the one that was guarding him. Once again all transition defensive principles must be followed in order to slow down your opponent and prevent them from scoring.
I am a graduate of Wagner College with a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in education. While at Wagner, I competed at the Division 1 level in track and field. Currently, I am an eighth grade history teacher and I run my own basketball specific training business called Elite Basketball Training, LLC. As a USAW certified Sports Performance Coach and skills trainer, my goal is to create the complete basketball player. In order to do so, I provide functional basketball skills training that focuses on all facets of the game as well as strength, conditioning, speed, and agility training. Through multiple methods of training, the players will develop a versatility that enables them to not only pass, dribble, and shoot but also run faster, jump higher, and last longer than other basketball players. Ultimately, this will allow the players to take their game to the next level and truly become "Elite Basketball Players."
I have been a highly successful basketball coach at the high school level for the last ten years. I was named 2005 Coach of the Year by the Home News Tribune and the Star Ledger and 2006 Blue Division Coach of the Year by the GMC Coaches Association. Since taking over at Metuchen High School, we have qualified for the state playoffs six years in a row after having only qualified once in the previous 17 seasons.
I have also branched out into the college recruiting aspect of basketball and other sports by becoming the owner and operator of The Highlight Reel (http://www.sportshlr.com) recruiting service's central New Jersey franchise. This will further enable me to help athletes achieve their goal of playing collegiate sports.
