anything! Teach your players the finer points of transition defense such as how to properly fake and retreat and also how to veer off the ball handler. 11. Smother the Passer When the Dribble is Dead: I have seen so many close games come down to the wire and the opposing team calls a timeout, draws up a play and then wins the game. A great way to FORCE the other coach to use his timeouts throughout the game, so he doesn't have an extra one in crunch time, is to pressure the ball handler when he picks up his dribble. If he doesn't call timeout then you have a chance to get a deflection and a steal or a five second count. 12. Box out the Free Throw Shooter: Don't take a chance and allow the offense to gain another key possession. Make sure you team is communicating who will assume the responsibility of boxing out the shooter. 13. Guns Out: Never lose sight of the ball and your man. The old teaching point of "pointing your pistols" is a great way to insure that your players see both ball and man and are more actively engaged in team defensive positioning. 14. Decide and Defend: There are so many different options (Fight over, slide under, switch, trap, jam, etc,) on how to defend the basic pick and roll. As a coach it is your job to decide how you're going to defend on ball screens and then thoroughly teach those tactics until your players can execute them flawlessly. 15. Front the Paint: Inspire your athletes to aggressively battle opposing post players and to front the paint. Teach various ways on how to get around the offense such as spin, swim, faceguard, and duck over in order to gain great position. Some of these points of emphasis need constant drill work while some others can be drilled a couple times a week. However, all must be discussed and emphasized in every drill, in every practice until they permeate your team's personality and becomes the basis of how you play.
3 15 Points of Emphasis in Becoming Defensively Sound-HoopSkills.com