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Bill Self Hi/Low motion

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Bill Self
1999, 2002 and 2005

True motion is hard to teach. The 3-out 2-in high/low


motion is good for shooters, and for post players
who aren't great scorers, they are sealers. The
biggest negative is that if a really creative player has
the ball, there is always a post player who has to get
out of his way, so they spend a lot of time working
on emptying the post.

1 wants to enter the offense from the chute between


the elbows. Wings 2 and 3 can be above or below
the foul-line extended, outside the arc. There are
three basic entries - pass to a wing, pass to a high
post, or dribble over.

1) Entry pass to a wing

a) Weakside corner cut

1 passes to 2 and cuts to the weakside corner, 5


steps across his defender with the inside foot and
flashes to the high post for a pass.
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5 catches with an inside (left) pivot foot, but makes a
cheat step outside with his right foot for balance,
then forward pivots to face up. If you don't cheat
step you will slow down and the defender can run
through the pass. 5's options in order are shoot,
dump inside (a two-hand pass from the forehead),
reverse.

Bigs post directly between the ball and the basket,


making their defender decide how to play them, and
opening up backdoor angles when the ball is at the
top. You aren't going to score on the first side, so
post strong, but don't fight it, let the defender go
where he wants.

You want to reverse the ball, not pass it back to 2. 3


screens for 1 to get open (or 3 and 1 can
interchange, 3 fake a screen for 1 and self replace,
or 1 fadescreen for 3 then step to the ball), 4 follows
the ball on a pass to 1. Now there is a ballside
triangle (overload situation). There is no weakside
help, 1 looks to throw the ball to the corner of the
backboard for 4.

The high post always screens away after passing, 2


sets his man up, and will bump and fade, curl into
the lane, or pop behind the arc if his man runs into
the screen.

John Brady (LSU) - a high post can follow his pass


to ballscreen.
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On a pass to 2 he takes one or two dribbles to
improve his passing angle inside to 5, 1 gets high
and wide.

1999 (shown)

4 screens for 3, who walks his man down to the


short corner.

2005

4 steps across his man and flashes high (see the


LSU fast break).

If 1 passes to 3 in the corner, 1 cuts weakside using


a backscreen from 4 who then ballscreens, except if
4 is a good post player, then he just stays and posts
without screening for 1 or 3. 5 screens for 1 exiting
weakside.

See Georgia motion, Nets offense.

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On ball reversal to 1, 3 cuts to the weakside corner.

1999 (shown)

4 cross-screens for 5, who goes under (better


chance of a layup), then 4 comes high.

2005

4 and 5 have to duck in with the ball at the sweet


spot (out top), forcing their defenders to play high-
side. There is no cross-screen on the pass to 1, 5
comes high.

If the ball has been reversed once and a perimeter


player catches it at the top, he has to go weakside
after passing.
Dennis Felton (Georgia) - have 4 cross-screen and
come high to keep 5 close to the basket.

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On a pass to 4 out top, 2 and 3 interchange, on a
pass to 3, 4 single screens weakside for 1. 5 follows
the ball.

If 1 passes inside to 5, 4 dives to the front of the rim,


other players relocate to spot up on the perimeter.
5's looks are shot, his buddy 4, fan the ball to the
other side, pass back where it came from.

On a pass from 3 to 1 out top, he would dribble to


the left wing.

Bill Self (bbhighway.com) - a low post can chase


any pass out to ballscreen.

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b) Strongside corner cut

1 passes to 2, cuts to the strongside corner, 5


comes high.
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On ball reversal to 3, 2 and 5 stagger screen for 1, 2
gets behind the arc once 1 clears his screen (the
rule for perimeter players when screening for other
perimeter players), 5 slips and finds ball after
screening for 1 (the rule for bigs when screening for
a perimeter player).

3 has to get open on his own. If he is denied, it's an


automatic backdoor, one bounce by 5, then backcut
by 3 (the key is that 4 is posting in the middle of the
lane). If there is no pass on the backdoor, 3 comes
back out because X3 has to snap his head if he is
overplaying. 3 has to get open.

A pass from 3 to 1 out top gets into 3-out 2-in


motion.

2005 - if defenders switch, probably 2 will act like he


is screening, 1 acts like he is coming off the screen
then pops back to replace himself, 5 screens for 2.

Argentina 2003 (and Seth Greenberg slice offense) -


2 shuffle cuts using 4, 4 and 5 stagger screen for 1,
3 runs the baseline on a pass to 1 using 2, 4 and 5.

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2) Entry pass to a high post (1-4 high)

Against pressure. Start in an inverted stack with the


guards on the blocks (or 4 and 5 start further out
and downscreen, shown), 2 and 3 use screens to
pop behind the arc.
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If 2 and 3 are denied, 4 and 5 flash to the elbows for
a pass. To get a backdoor, 3 has to make his man
believe he is going to get a pass, 5 catches the ball
on the move (a bounce pass most of the time), and
3 has to be above ball level so his defender has to
turn his head to see the ball.

3 steps across his defender (crossover step with his


right foot) all the way to the lane then widens out to
the ballside corner if there is no pass. 5 drop steps
(reverse pivot on his inside (left) foot, looking to
make a bounce pass with his outside (right) hand. At
the same time 2 walks or trots his man into the lane,
not too fast or his man will cover the backdoor.

If 1 passes to 3 from the 1-4 set, 1 corner cuts, 5


moves down to post, 4 comes high.

2005 - 1 passes to 3 out of a 1-4 set and cuts to the


strongside corner (he can cut weakside), 5 cross-
screens for 4 then pops out top. They love to cross-
screen the posts when they are high at the elbows.

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4 fade screens for 1, 5 takes one dribble and makes
a two-hand overhead pass over the top to 1.
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4 and 5 doublescreen for 2 then split, a pass to 2
out top gets into the high-low passing game, 4 and 5
duck in.

If 1 drives baseline, X2 is the weakside helper, 2 will


be wide open at the top.

2002 - 3 is high and wide.

See the Colour quick hitter.

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Houston (a special)

Run pinch post, 1 passes to 5 and comes off for a


hand-off. 2 stays high and wide, 5 and 4 double
down for 3 then split into 3-out 2-in.
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3) Dribble over

If no one is open after stacking and breaking, 1


dribbles towards 3, who loops (zipper cut), 5 pins
down then opens to post between the ball and the
basket (if X5 shows on 3, look to get the ball inside,
that happens a lot).

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1 gets to the foul-line extended, 3 catches above the
elbow so he has space to make a play, he will catch,
rip and go with an outside-foot pivot (he doesn't
catch, square and read).

4 ballscreens while the pass is in the air to force a


bad hedge (X4 is a weakside defender, not yet in a
position to hedge). 3 comes off the screen to shoot,
drive, kick to 2, or, if defenders switch, drag the
switch man to the point where there is a mismatch
inside (mouse in the house). 4 rolls, 5 widens out
one step off the lane then replaces, 2 adjusts,
relocating where his man can't recover..

2005 - 4 doesn't roll to the basket, he rolls to a point


where he can keep X4 above him, creating space
for a pass from 5 (shown).
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Then it's into the offense. Look for a hi-lo on a pass
to 5 out top, on reversal to 1, 3 and 5 would stagger
away.

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2005 - for a pressure-release entry, 2 and 3 cross
going half speed, 4 and 5 flash up once they clear.

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