Youth Man-to-Man play
Youth Man: One Pass Away Deny
- Court
- Half court
- Length
- 10 steps
About this play
One pass away in a pressure defense: the defender is up the line between his man and the ball, a hand in the passing lane, his back to the basket, seeing ball and man. This play runs a whole possession against a denying defense: the point guard cannot throw the first pass, dribbles to a side, the wing has to v-cut to get open, the ball goes wing, back out, and across, and every catch happens later and farther from the basket than the offense wanted. Why deny at all: a man defense cannot stop a pass, but it can decide where the catch happens, and a catch on the wing at twenty feet with the clock running is a catch the defense is glad to concede. What the deny gives up: the backdoor cut, which is the next play. Where the advantage lies: a youth offense that has to v-cut for every catch runs out of time and patience, and the pass it finally throws is a long one. Common youth mistakes: denying with the wrong hand, losing sight of the ball while watching the man, and standing in the lane so far that the backdoor is open behind. I learned the deny the way Isiah Thomas teaches it in his Jr. NBA session, and Coach's Clipboard's man-to-man positioning drill is how I rep it; look them up if you want to go deeper.
