One Mistake You're Probably Making When Cutting Through The Lane

Good observation.

It all depends on the situation. There would certainly be situations where the help defense might already be positioned by the rim. And this would be an effective defensive strategy at the youth, middle school, and even high school level.

However, based on passing and defensive philosophies, there will be times that the defense is not near the rim and closer to the offensive player.

Here are a few examples...

- Ball is at the top when the screen is set.

- The ball being passed to the opposite wing/corner and the screen has been set at nearly the same time. In Bo Ryan's swing offense, this is quite common.

- Opposing coach has a defensive philosophy of shading towards shooters in the corner - this is common at higher levels of basketball... varsity HS basketball, college basketball, and professional.

Also, if the defense is on the rim line, the cutter can stay and the screener can turn around and set a pin screen, so they can throw a skip pass to the corner for a wide open 3.

Also, you have to take the skill level of the individual player into account. If the player can't shoot on the perimeter, you're going to cheat towards the rim every time.

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Hey, you have to be a player. Must adapt and read the defense. Teach the basic and build on it. Treat player's like robots, they will be robots.

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