5-Out

Five on the perimeter, nobody inside. Pass and cut, fill, back cut, dribble-at, and the actions layered on top.

Five out is a basic motion offense that works on any level of basketball, but it's especially popular for younger teams to learn space and pace.

8 steps5-Out: Pass and Basket Cut, Fill

The first rule of the offense and the one everything else sits on: pass, cut hard to the rim, and fill the open spot above you. Why it works: five players…

8 steps5-Out: Back Cut on Wing Denial

The read that keeps every defense honest: a player one pass away who is being denied, and whose passer is looking at him, back cuts immediately and never…

8 steps5-Out: Dribble-At Back Cut and the Handoff

The dribble-at, the one trigger in 5-out that needs no defensive mistake. Why: when the pass to the wing is pressured, the ball handler speed dribbles at the…

8 steps5-Out: Get and Roll

The get: the ball handler passes to the trailing five at the top and sprints right back to take the handoff, so the five's body becomes a ball screen without…

8 steps5-Out: Baseline Drive and Circle Movement

What the other four do when the ball is driven, the Read and React foundation that fixes 5-out's single gaps. Why: in five-out a defender one pass away can…

8 steps5-Out: Middle Drive, 45 Cut and the Kick-Up

The reactions to a drive from the top. Why they matter: a middle drive in 5-out is driven into a single gap, so the drive-side wing shakes up to the slot to…

8 steps5-Out: Pass and Screen Away

The second layer most programs add once cutting is clean: pass and screen away instead of cutting. Why: the pin-down for the far wing gives a shooter a running…

8 steps5-Out: Weak-Side Flare Screen

The flare on the weak side after a pass. Why: when the ball goes to one wing the far side of the floor is where the help lives, so a flare screen set on the…

9 steps5-Out: Delay Get and Pop

Delay: the five takes the ball at the top in 5-out and the guards in the slots read him. Why it came down from the NBA: a big with the ball at the top is a…

8 steps5-Out: Post-Up After the Cut

How a post plays inside 5-out without breaking it. Why the post is a cutter, not a station: a player who finishes his basket cut with a mismatch may seal on the…

8 steps5-Out: Against the 2-3 Zone

The same five spots against a 2-3 zone, from Coach's Clipboard's 5-out zone offense. Why it works without a post: the zone has nobody to guard at the high post…

8 steps5-Out: Spread Drag Screen

The drag screen, the most used early-offense action at every level: a ball screen set in transition by the trailing five, just inside the three-point line at an…