How To Develop a Winning Offensive & Defensive System

3 Keys To Playing Synergistic & Seamless Basketball

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Hey, it's Mark Brase here...

One of the constant questions I get asked over and over is "how do I develop a basketball program that can consistently win?"

For an answer to that question I turned to a coach who has done exactly that....WIN CONSISTENTLY year in and year out.

Some of you are probably familiar with Coach Rob Brost. Coach Brost's teams are known for playing at an EXTREMELY fast pace and running a unique defensive system - The Man Left Defense - that speeds opponents up while holding them to a low shooting percentage because they are forced to take shots they normally wouldn't.

And once you take away a team's strengths, you're on the way to a victory.

He has had a lot of success during his 14 years at Bolingbrook HS, Illinois. He is now the winningest coach in school history with a .747 winning percentage (287-97).

While at Bolingbrook, Coach Brost:

Has won 20+ games for 7 straight seasons (large class Illinois)
Has had his team ranked in top 20 in the nation
Coached for USA Basketball 8 years

Today he shares advice on developing a program that is a consistent winner.

Developing Winning Systems and
Synergistic & Seamless Basketball

By Coach Rob Brost

Winning consistently is the goal of all coaches. In order to do this, ALL basketball teams should play synergistic and seamless basketball. Teams who are not playing like this are leaving wins on the table...and no one wants to do this.

Playing synergistic and seamless basketball doesn't guarantee that you will have a great season. However, it can help you maximize the number of wins for your team each season.

What Is Synergistic and Seamless Basketball?

First of all, synergistic and seamless basketball IS winning basketball. This means your offense, defense, and transition pieces all complement each other and are all working cohesively as one unit...for 1 goal.

I know, I know....some of you are saying, "Well isn't the goal to win??"

Well, your on-court basketball philosophy had better not simply be "Let's Win!!" If it is, you are likely in for a long season. Your basketball philosophy on the court should revolve around the style of play your team will use. This includes your offense, your transition, and your defense. Your on-court basketball philosophy should result in wins.

Philosophy At The Brook

At Bolingbrook High School, synergistic and seamless basketball has been an enormous part of our success. And our success has come from a philosophy of playing at a faster pace than our opponents. We want to play at a pace that the opponent is not used to playing at- leaving them in disarray on the court.

I want to give our team the best chance to win year in and year out. I know that to play winning basketball means I need to have a philosophy that meshes all parts of our game together: offense, transition, and DEFENSE.

I've seen many coaches over the years who want to play uptempo. They use it as an excuse to have a defense that is less than stellar. They don't put as much emphasis on the defensive end of the floor. They try to outscore teams and HOPE teams have off shooting nights....and teams RARELY have off shooting nights against teams that don't play good defense.

You will have a tough time reaching your team's potential consistently if you aren't playing synergistic and seamless basketball.

You need to play a defensive system that HELPS YOU WIN by complementing your offensive approach.

Playing Uptempo Offense (And Defense???)

At Bolingbrook, we want to play the game at an extremely fast pace. Why? We believe playing uptempo gives us the best chance to win. So our philosophy on the offensive end is to play at a speed and tempo our opponents can't keep up with for the entire game.

On the offensive end:

Our philosophy is to play faster than our opponents.
We attack the basketball at a furious pace.
Our practices are designed for our team to get comfortable playing offense at an UNCOMFORTABLE pace.
Our in-game philosophy is to play at a pace that WE are comfortable with and the opponent is not.

So how does our defense play uptempo as well?

At Bolingbrook we make sure our defensive philosophy meshes perfectly with our offense. We want to go up and down, we want to have as many possessions on offense as possible in the game. We accomplish this with our Man Left Defense.

Our Man Left Defense is designed to :

Force teams to take shots they don't want
Take teams out of their offense (and sets)
Force turnovers
Force teams to shoot a low %
Force quick shot
End the other teams' possession as soon as possible

Quite frankly, our Man Left Defense might be one of the biggest keys to the success of our offense. It gets us the ball back quickly and is tough for teams to score against!

Our Man Left Defense COMPLEMENTS our uptempo offense perfectly! And is one piece of the puzzle at The Brook.

3 Keys To Developing Synergistic and Seamless Basketball

Start by developing an on-court basketball philosophy.

What is your philosophy for your basketball team on the court? What style of basketball do you want your team to play?

Will you be a grind-it-out team who runs clock each possession or takes the shot clock down under 5 seconds each possession?

Or will you be an uptempo team trying to beat your opponent down the floor and looking to push the pace of the game?

There are a lot of different things to consider here. Maybe you will be somewhere in between the two examples above.

Whatever the case is, it doesn't necessarily matter. What really DOES MATTER is having an on-court game philosophy...and your team understands it!

Evaluate team personnel yearly.

Take a look at the personnel that you have or will have for the upcoming season on your team. What will be your team's strengths? What will be their weaknesses? How will your team be different from last year to this year?

Unless you are a college coach, you will not be recruiting - meaning this...your hand will be dealt for you.

One year you may have an all-state post, the next you may have a team that would fit well in a 6' and under league. As a coach, you must take what you are given and tweak things each year. That doesn't mean you have to completely change things. But don't be stubborn either. Look at what you have and try to figure out the best situations you can put them in to be successful.

Does this complement my philosophy?

This is a question you need to be asking yourself as you add pieces to your coaching system. Take a close look at everything you are doing on the court. Make sure all pieces of the puzzle complement each other. Evaluate your:

Offense
Defense
Transition Offense
Transition Defense
Baseline Inbounds
Sideline Inbounds
Presses

See if everything you are doing fits with your team's on-court philosophy.

Maybe you are looking for a new press this season. If you are looking to speed up the tempo, a full court man press may be what you need. If you are looking to slow down the tempo, then maybe a 3/4 court 1-2-2 press will help you accomplish your goal. 3 Keys to Synergistic Basketball

My point is this, with each piece of the puzzle, make sure you are asking yourself, "Does this complement my philosophy?"

Working As One

Make sure your basketball philosophies for your offense, transition, and defense are working together in a complementary fashion this season and not against each other. You want them to be synergistic and seamless.

Your offense and defense should be working seamlessly together to help you accomplish your goals.

Good luck this upcoming season!

Coach Brost

Offensive and Defensive Resources From Coach Rob Brost

If you're looking to learn more about the offensive and defensive systems that Coach Rob Brost utilizes, you can learn more at the following pages:

Get Comfortable Playing Offense At An Uncomfortable Pace - This Unique Offensive Approach Helps Teams of All Talent Levels Win More Often

The Man Left Defense - Disrupt Your Opponent's Offense & Eliminate Their 3 Best Shots With This Simplified Defensive Approach