The Principle of Passing Lines

Note: This was originally posted on my old blog on Sunday, July 12, 2009.

For me, daydreaming pretty much means thinking about basketball. Sometimes I imagine myself performing amazing feats of skill and athleticism on the court. Sometimes I think about the NBA, who was good, who is good, and who is going to be good. And sometimes I just try to make sense of the game or some aspect of it. This post falls into that third category. There isn't really a particular structure or purpose to this post. It's basically just a slightly more organized and grammarized version of my scatter brained thoughts. Hopefully it will astonish and amaze you nonetheless. With that, I present to you the principle of passing lines. (gasp!)
 

The Principle of Passing Lines: When you don’t have the ball on offense you should always be trying to create passing lines between you and the ball. If there is not a practical passing line on which a pass could come from the ball to you, then you should be moving to create one either for yourself or your teammates.

This principle of passing lines means that just because you are open does not mean that you are doing the right thing for the offense and are allowed to stop moving. If a pass cannot reach you in a timely manner, then the fact that you are open is irrelevant. This does not mean, however that you should resort to playing amoeba ball and run towards the man with the ball because that is seemingly the only way to create a passing line. You have to be clever in recognizing how to move to get yourself open and your teammates. Yes, your teammates. You cannot accomplish this alone.

Coaches so often install set plays and offenses because they realize how to create scoring opportunities but their players do not, so the players must be given specific jobs that if done right will result in a good shot. This situation (the coach using the players as puppets) is not optimal though. The optimal situation is when the players “get it.” They realize the big picture of the play or offense. That is the point at which they can really play and are most effective, combining the discipline and structure of an offense and the freedom and intuitiveness of individual play. This point is not easy to get to. Some players never reach it. For most it takes 1-2 seasons of playing under a specific coach and in a particular system.

But before a player can truly “get it” in a particular system he/she must “get” basketball. A natural and intuitive sense for the game regardless of set plays and offenses is crucial for success.  Again, this point of “getting it” is not easy to get to. Some players, even professionals, never reach this point. Many players reach this point eventually given enough practice. And some players are seemingly born with this court sense and natural feel for the game. Players like Steve Nash and Chris Paul come to mind. As evidenced by the rather obvious examples of Nash and Paul, it is often point guards who are described this way. But one player who “gets it” is practically useless if he is all alone. Wings and big men can “get it” too, and that is when offenses become devastating. So no matter what position a player plays he/she must be a basketball player, not just some robot or puppet. And one of the simplest ways to be a basketball player is by practicing the principle of passing lines. Make yourself available. Be a basketball player.

One of the best opportunities to create passing lines is in transition. Quickly transitioning from defense to offense is essential to scoring. A set defense is always better than a defense in transition.

Against a good defense these passing lines may only be present for a split second, which is why it is important to have a ball handler (usually PG) who can quickly recognize and capitalize on these passing lines.