Five spots, fifteen to eighteen feet apart, nobody inside: 1 passes to 2 on the left wing, because the offense starts with a pass and every pass starts a cut.

1 face cuts hard to the rim in front of X1, hand up, looking for the return pass; the read is X1's head, because a defender who turns to watch the ball has lost the cutter.

X1 stays with the cut, so 1 finishes to the rim and fills the far corner, 3 fills the top, and 5 fills the right wing, because an empty spot is a dead possession; everyone fills toward the ball.

2 reverses it to 3 at the top, because the ball never stops in 5-out: two seconds without a catch and the next player moves.

2 basket cuts off his pass and the scouted adjustment appears: X4 denies 4's fill from the corner to the wing so the ball can't keep moving, because the defense has decided the reversal is what beats it.

Counter: 4 plants and back cuts down the lane the moment X4 steps up to deny the fill, because a denied fill is a back cut by rule, and 2 clears to the left corner so the lane is his alone.

Counter finished: 3 throws the bounce pass to 4 at the rim, because the denial put X4 above the ball with no way back.

4 finishes the layup; two passes, two cuts, and three fills beat a denial without a single screen, which is why the rule comes before every action.

Start in balanced five-out spacing. Guards at the middle, big/forwards usually and the sidelines towards the bottom.

The 1 gets the action started, passing to either guard or making any other offense read that the spacing opens up.

This brings us to the primary rule of five out: You pass, then you either cut or screen away.

Here, the 1 passed to the 3, so he/she would screen for the 2.

The other guard reads/reacts to the screen. They can curl, or fill.

From there, it's about reading the defense. The 3 can make a pass if they're open.

If they do, both guards screen away.

Again, it's all about reading the floor while these actions are happening.

Like before, the guard who received the screen either fill, or curl.

In this case, the two may attack.

Again, each person needs to stay away and react and create space based on how the defense reacts.

If they get the drive, take the shot. Rinse, repeat.

1 looks at 2 on the left wing and X2 is in the passing lane denying; the read is made, because a denied player whose passer is looking at him back cuts immediately, never with a hesitation.

2 V-cuts one step to the ball to set X2 up, plants the outside foot, and sprints to the rim, because the lane is empty and the pass is thrown to his outside hand.

The scouted adjustment: X2 lets go of the denial and sags into the lane to meet the cut, so the bounce pass is gone; counter: 2 pops straight back out to the wing, because an underplay is a pop by rule and the defender who sagged has to close out.

1 passes to 2 at the wing, because the sag gave the pass back; 2 catches squared to the rim so the closeout has something to fear.

1 basket cuts and fills the far corner, 3 fills the top, and 5 fills the right wing, because the passer never stands and the spots refill themselves; X2 closes out short to protect against the drive.

Counter continued: X2's closeout is short, so 2 drives the gap he was given; 3 rotates to the right slot and X4 steps in from the corner to stop the ball, because help in 5-out can only come from a shooter.

2 kicks to 4 in the left corner, the shooter X4 left, because the drive drew the help and the pass goes to the man whose defender moved.

4 shoots the corner three; the denial became a back cut, the sag became a pop, and the short closeout became a drive and kick, which is why the wing reads his own man on every catch.