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Basketball Hudl Training and Drills

PGC Fast Break: Ball Screen Reads

1 Min Read

This installment teaches multiple ways to attack ball screen defense.

Ball screens are all over basketball today. As often as your team uses them, it’s also working against them. The fifth installment in our series with PGC Basketball teaches multiple ways to attack the ball screen defense, with a drill so quick and easy, you’ll have it implemented in no time.

It’s crucial for players to make good reads against various ball screen defenses, but too often, teams run these screens without training the ball handler to make better reads. That’s where our latest exercise comes in.

Ball Screen Reads

There are two things to focus on with every rep of this drill:

  • Head up, for good vision of the floor
  • Changing speeds according to how the defense plays

If the ball handler reads the defense but can’t see his or her teammates, they could end up missing big opportunities. Changing pace is crucial, too – sometimes you attack the defense, other times the defense should be allowed to make a mistake of its own.

Ideally, you’ll start this workout with cones or chairs in place of an actual defense. As you progress, you can use one defender, followed by a simple 2-on-2 game.

Like what you see? Don’t miss out on our other installment - The Gauntlet.

As with all the drills in this series, we want to hear from you! Comment below to give us your thoughts on Ball Screen Reads. For more training tips and videos from PGC Basketball, visit their YouTube channel, or find them on Facebook and Twitter.