The Pick And Roll Play

The pick and roll play is widely used when the teams are playing man-on-man defense. It's critical that you understand it because if you're not using it, you're leaving a lot of open shots on the table.

I mean this play can totally brake a tight pressure defense and they won't know what hit them. Okay, any 2 of the 5 players in a team can do the pick & roll. Here's how it goes:

Player number 1 is the dribbler and player number 2 is his teammate. As player number 1 dribbles and the defender is guarding him, player number 2 will set a block for him (his teammate).

This part of the action is the "pick". The defender probably won't anticipate the block because he's got his eyes fixed on the ball and he has 2 options.

He either stops at the block that's been set up by player number 2 or goes around him to catch up with player number 1 (his man - the one he was guarding).

If the defender chooses option number 1, then player number 1 will have an open shot or he might have enough space to cut to the basket or pass someone else the ball. But if the defender chooses option number 2, which is to go around player number 2, then player number 2 can execute the "roll". With his foot that is the farthest from the basket he'll go toward the it and receive the pass from player number 1.

If there's a chemistry between these 2 players, they should execute the pick & roll perfectly. Sometimes the defense will "read" your intentions, sometimes they won't but every time you do it, you're getting better at it and you're becoming used to catch on those little signals that both your teammates and the "defense" are telling you.

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