Biggest Defensive Takeaway from the Bubble - Halfcourt Paint Protection

The 2020 bubble season. Loved it or hated it, teams displayed great defense. 

In order to have had ultimate success in the bubble, teams had to have been defensively in sync. There were big defensive takeaways from the bubble that teams could learn and implement into their own.

The bubble postseason demonstrated great talents from teams but particularly from the big men. They effectively used the pocket pass hands to deflect and intercept passes in the paint. Deflections are a clear indicator of how active your players and defense are. Great use of hands were shown by multiple teams. Its a term coaches love to preach. When you show hands you create the illusion that you're in space. In all defense is about condensing space. It also forces non direct line drives. Coaches in the league know that energy and effort are the sole two biggest factors in a strong defense.

Boxes and elbows were a major take away from the bubble as teams showed great use of the practice. The half court protection starts with “boxes and elbows”. The term boxes and elbows means there are two defensive players in the boxes (blocks) and another two defensive players on the elbows (baselines). It's a concept used to look like a zone. A selected player guards the ball handler at the top of the key, while having four team mates behind him on each side in the box and elbow. It works successfully to protect the paint and corner threes. It's extremely critical to protect and defend corner three’s as they are the highest percentage three’s made. In order to protect the paint, the corners must be covered. 

Everyone knows defense is the core of every team. Coaches have to do their best incorporating a defensive mindset in order to compete at the highest level. Steve Nash told the team “Defense is our no.1 priority. Protecting the paint and guarding the basket is going to be the bedrock of our defense. We realize to win a championship we have to be a strong defensive team.” 

It's never easy being an elite defensive team. We know great teams and elite teams do hard things very well. They have the ability to make offenses scramble around the paint, force shots, make bad passes and ultimately turn the ball over. The best teams in the NBA  defend collectively and contest individually. 

In this course, Coach Ryan Richman details all things about the bubble defense. He emphasizes how hard work and effort are the most important factors when playing defense. Have you ever wanted to see live NBA clips with a breakdown about what they are doing to learn? This course has it all and you will learn how to perfect the bubble defense.