Basketball Offense - Attacking the 2-2-1 Zone Press

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For general advice on attacking the full court press, see "Attacking the Full Court Press".

The 2-2-1 zone press attempts to deny the offense the sideline at the half court line. This press could be the opponent's primary press, or could be an "adjustment" after you have beaten their press up the sidelines a few times. Now they are trying to deny the sideline. So, like any other situation in basketball, you take what they give you... you will attack up the middle.

Here is one way to attack the 2-2-1 zone press. Refer to the Diagrams below.

Use a 4-across set-up (Diagram A). O5 is the in-bounder. The two up front defenders will probably make it difficult for O1 or O2 to get the ball, but O2 should set a screen for O1. O5 fakes a pass to O1 or O2 but instead makes the quick pass up the side to O3 (who initially breaks long and then v-cuts back to the ball). As the defense attempts to trap O3 (Diagram B), O1 should be open for the quick pass up the middle. O1 can then pass to O4 going up the opposite sideline. O4 should get past the X4 defender. If the X4 defender goes man-to-man with O4, then O2 should be cutting up the left sideline for the pass from O1.

Now refer to Diagram C. If covered, O1 should clear out and cut to the ball-side sideline just beyond the half court line. O2 should cut toward the middle to receive the pass from O3. Or O3 could pass to O1 up the ball-side sideline. Keep O5 back for a "safety" outlet pass for O3. If the ball reverses back to O5, then O2 must stay back and get the ball from O5.

Also see the "60 Press Offense" for breaking this 2-2-1 press defense.

Helpful DVDs

	Bruce Weber: Drills for Breaking Full-and Half-Court Presses By Bruce Weber, University of Illinois Head Coach; 2005 NCAA Runner-Up. In this DVD, Coach Weber assembles the pieces that make up a successful press attack; it must be simple, provide continuity and be consistent. Features of this presentation include Press Attack by Fast Break, which requires a quick inbounds pass to the point guard up the floor. Nine drills are shown... (more info) Price: $39.99
	Secrets of the North Carolina Secondary Break By Roy Williams, University of North Carolina Head Coach, 2005 National Champions, 4X Time National "Coach of the Year," Winningest Active Coach in College Basketball. After 17 years as a head coach, Roy Williams unveils the secrets to the North Carolina Secondary Break! It all started with legendary coach Dean Smith at North Carolina and was "passed down" to Coach Williams... (more info) Price: $39.99
	Roy Williams: Tar Heel Offense & Transition Drills with Roy Williams, University of North Carolina Head Coach; 2009 and 2005 NCAA Champions. •Explore the secrets of the Tar Heel offense with four-time National Coach of the Year, Roy Williams •Get easy baskets using this tournament-tested transition offense. •Discover drills to improve your primary and secondary breaks. •This offensive system guided North Carolina to 90.2 points per game in 2009. Many of Roy Williams' current beliefs were developed in his early days of coaching high school basketball in North Carolina. This basketball DVD will illustrate the "Tar Heel Running Game" with the use of players in an impressive on-court demonstration. This style relies on running the floor and sharing the ball with teammates. Advantages of this style are that the running game negates the defense's ability to get set, which leads to many easy baskets. Coach Williams covers his three offensive rules against a set defense... (more info) Price: $39.99
	Mike Krzyzewski: Duke Basketball - Breaking the Press with Mike Krzyzewski "Coach K", Duke University Head Men's Basketball Coach; NABC "Coach of the Decade," 12X NABC "Coach of the Year," Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (2001), 3X NCAA National Championships ('91, '92,'01). •Learn how to break any press on your basketball team from the National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Decade, Mike Krzyzewski •Basketball drills for beating any press •Numerous tips and insights to all your team to enter the offense quicker and create scoring opportunities without generating turnovers More and more teams are using half-court, three-quarter court and full-court zone presses to disrupt their opponents' continuity and produce turnovers. With this in mind, Coach K takes the court at Cameron Indoor Stadium to share his effective press break drills and his revered coaching philosophy. (Examples: … "players need to acquire the basic skill of catching the ball by meeting the pass" … "most teams need to cut down on the dribbling … use passing to advance the ball quicker!"). Coach Krzyzewski guides you through a series of effective drills used to break the 2-1-2 half-court press, 1-3-1 half-court press, 2-2-1 three-quarter court press and the 1-2-1-1 full-court press... (more info) Price: $44.99
	Tom Izzo: The Numbered Fastbreak with Tom Izzo, Michigan State University Head Coach; 2000 NCAA Champs, 3X National "Coach of the Year". •Learn the numbered fast break from three-time National Coach of the Year, Tom Izzo •Tactics for having a successful fast break •Two- and three-man drills are first step in building a productive fast break Coach Tom Izzo believes in scoring quickly by pushing the ball up the floor. The numbered break puts each player in a position to score. Izzo stresses that this fastbreak limits turnover and confusion by players. Two- and three-man drills are the first step in building a productive fast break. These drills can serve as a warm-up and are good for conditioning. Other drills... (more info) Price: $39.99
	Morgan Wootten: Foundations for Successful Basketball Full-Court Offenses with legendary high school coach Morgan Wootten, De Matha High School (MD). In this video, Coach Wootten demonstrates his most effective full-court press breakers, fast breaks, and sideline inbound plays. Wootten uses live demonstration to teach each offensive set, and includes great drills to build each offense. He also demonstrates methods for being aggressive during press breaks and teaches an effective primary and secondary fast break. Great for junior high and high school-level coaches! (more info) Price: $29.99
	Billy Donovan: The Unstoppable Transition Game with Billy Donovan, University of Florida Head Coach; 2007 & 2006 NCAA Champions, 2000 NCAA Runner-up; One of only two people ever to serve as head coach, assistant coach, and player in a Final Four. Coach Donovan shares concepts for winning transition basketball that are usable at any level of basketball! The basis for his offensive philosophy is imbedded in fundamental skill and player mentality. Donovan demonstrates the drills that helped turn his inexperienced team into a "teamwork machine." Practice drills are the Two-Man Sideline drill, Three-Man Sideline drill and Five Cycles drill. A popular peer pressure drill is the "Laker Fastbreak" drill, where the ball is not allowed to touch the floor. The Gator transition game is based on concepts instead of patterns, which offers many obstacles for the defense.... (more info) Price: $39.99