Tom Izzo

“The Anatomy of a Timeout”

-Players in tough situations don’t respond how you wished they would.
Use timeouts to rectify this.

-Save your timeouts in the 1st half, utilize them in the 2nd.

-Utilize your timeouts: how are they playing us? At times it’s something
we need to adjust to, but at others, it’s simply putting it down on the
board and explaining it to our players.

-Izzo refers to dead ball

situations as Basketball Special Teams basketball
version of Jump balls, BLOBs, SLOBs, ATOs, AFTs football’s
special teams.

-Why the importance on “Special Teams”? Lost 14 games by 1-4 points

in his first 2 seasons and thought, “how could we steal a couple of
points a game?” The important part was selling the emphasis to his
players. “The main point of all this isn’t necessarily the plays we run,
but the commitment we make to it. You can substitute any of our x’s
and o’s for your own, but the important piece is that it needs to
become incredibly important to you and your players. Convince them
that those extra points will separate you”

-We see these situations as times where we can’t let up. While the
other team is relaxing, we’re going 100 miles an hour with total
concentration.

-If we get one basket every 2 games in each one of those 5 situations,
we’ve gained 5 points a game.

SLOBs

“1”
Left Diagram: 3 seals for catch. 1 sprints to the right wing on 3’s
catch. 2 follows his pass.

Right Diagram: 1 pivots and reverses direction to come off the

double set by 4 and 5.
“2”
Left Diagram: 1 breaks out of the stack for a catch from the
inbounder. 2 runs off 3.
Middle Diagram: 4 and 5 set a double ball screen for 1

Right Diagram: 4 and 5 now turn to set a double for 3.

“Golden”

Left Diagram:
Against teams that
pressure SLOB
situations, Izzo likes
to inbound to a big
(with the thinking,
the defense can’t
pressure 1-5). 1
screens down for 5.

Right Diagram: 2
screens down for 1.
1 comes off the screen to get a DHO from 5. On the DHO, 4 flares for 2.

“Jackson”
Left Diagram: 1 comes off 4 and 5’s double zipper. 3 sprints to
screen for 1 on his catch.
Middle Diagram: 4 and 5 set a double flare for 3.
 Right Diagram: After setting the flare, 5 steps in to screen for 4 to

step off for a jump shot.

BLOBs
Izzo loves running the same play out different sets because he believes
it’s easier for his players to understand.

“Chips”

Left Diagram: 3
passes to 4 on his pop.
On 4’s catch, 1 moves
to the perimeter to
receive reversal from 4.

Right Diagram: 2
moves down to screen
for 3. 3 curls into the
paint looking for a pass
from 1 for a layup. 4 screens in for 2.

“Chips Box”
 “Chips Line”

“Wide”
Great to use against a
team that really
pressures the BLOB.

Left Diagram: On 3’s

slap, 4 and 5 x to the
opposite short corner.

Right Diagram: 2 and 1

move back as outlets. 1
must really sell this
outlet before quickly changing direction and diving at the rim.
Set Plays

“Horns”
4 and 5 flash to the elbow. 1 hits 4. 2 back
cuts and looks to receive the pass from 4
either in motion on the back door cut or by
button hooking into a post-up.

“Horns Down”
Left Diagram: 3 AI cuts over the double screen set by 4 and 5. 2 goes
through.

Right Diagram: Once 3 clears his body, 4 steps up for a catch from 1.
On his catch, 4 looks to make a quick pass off his knee to 3 cutting to
the hoop.

“Chest”
Great against pressure
Ds
Left Diagram: 4 and 5
clear as 3 steps up for a
catch in the middle of
the floor.
Right Diagram: 2 and 1
go through and cross to
come off 4 and 5’s
screens.
Jump Balls

“1”
When we know we’re going to win the tip:
5 tips it to 4 (work with 5 on tipping the ball
UP). 4 leaps to catch the tip and turns in the air
to throw to 1 who has broken out to the left. 1
wants to catch and throw a lob to 3 streaking
to the hoop.

“2”
When we’re not sure if
we can win it.
 Left Diagram: 5 tips back to 1 as 2 and 3 sprint wide.

Right Diagram: 1 dribbles to the left wing as 4 and 5 sprint into a

double stagger for 2.

“2 Plus”
When we’re not sure if we
can read it and we think a
team might be clued into
“2”
Left Diagram: 5 taps
back to 1 and again 4 and
5 sprint into a double
stagger like in “2”.

Right Diagram: 2 curls

the stagger right into the
paint. 3 comes right
behind him.