Offensive Series That Will Improve Your Clutch Time Offense

The purpose of this article is to focus on improving the quality of late clock possessions without complicating those possessions. Of course, every coach wants to generate great shots to end a period, but these situations present a unique challenge due to the variation in time. At times, the final possession will need to be delayed to secure the final shot, and others have to be rushed to beat the clock.

In this article, I will present my two favorite series for these situations. Designed to adapt in every situation without resorting to easily guarded actions. As a bonus, a collection of my favorite end of game sets will complete this article.

Ram Motion

If you have followed my Twitter account in the past year, odds are you have seen me post something about this motion from Niko Medved. It is one of my favorite series overall but it is especailly effective for late clock situations.

It moves all five players and changes each defenders responsibility before getting to the main action. Choosing the main action is where coaches have the freedom to make the decision. It can be organized through a call from the sideline to enter into a specific action or left to the players to attack an unsettled defense.

The actual motion involves a wing or trail entry with a weakside interchange. If the ball is entered to the wing, the ball handler stays on that side and the wing player reversing the ball to the other side. In a trail entry, the ball handler follows the pass and cuts through to the same side corner extended area.

The big is waiting for the ball to be reversed from the wing to the second side and for an offensive player to cut through the paint. Once the cut through happens, there is now space created for the big to flash or sprint into a screening action.

Here's an ordered list of the actions following the basic motion structure.

• Away - 0:00

• Flex Screen the Screener - 0:08

• Clear Gortat - 0:22

• Middle Ballscreen (Screen timed with the catch going towards a double gap) - 0:31

• Zoom Slip - 0:48

• Middle Ballscreen (vs 2-3 Zone) - 1:00

• Elbow High-Low (vs 2-3 Zone) - 1:17

• Elbow Rip Post-Up - 1:30

• Screen the Screener to Post-Up (vs mismatch) - 1:49

• Elbow Guard Post-Up - 2:14

For more ideas, checkout my Coaches Guide to Secondary Transition!

"Flat" Action

This has quickly become the action of the year in the NBA and college basketball. The simplistic alignment doesn't look modern but its ability to create space has made it extremely difficult for defenses to solve. Before going further, I wanted to plug Jordan Sperber (HoopVision68) who posted a great video on the skeleton of this action and its usage in the SEC.

Yet, this alignment drew my attention originally with how the Oklahoma City Thunder used it in the NBA Finals. With Andrew Nembhard trying everything short of climbing into Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's jersey to stay attached, the Thunder used SGA as the screener to unlock Jalen Williams as a driver.

With my interest peaked, I quickly found that almost every team in the NBA playoffs used "flat" to attack a variety of different coverages. In the second round, the Pacers scorched Cleveland's aggressive hedge by rolling Siakam into the space created through "flat" alignment.

To further drive home the popularity and effectiveness of this action, here's the Celtics using it to push against the Knick's weakest defensive pressure points.

Where this action fits into the purpose of this article (late-clock management) becomes obvious when viewing its usage in totality. It creates space and double gaps through the structure while providing simplified reads against every screen coverage.

Now, let's talk about the importance of the "flat" screener. Where most ball screens pick a direction, a flat screen leaves the direction up to the ball handler. This screening grey area creates an advantage from the ball handler because the on-ball defender has to worry about navigating an unidentifiable screen. Without being able to anticipate the screen and normal defensive slide being interrupted, containing the ball is extremely difficult.

Putting pressure on the on-ball defender consistently creates an advantage with the ball handler either driving into the paint, or drawing two and passing to the screener who will have space through the structure of the play. With no good options, the defense can opt to switch the screen but executing a good switch against a slip or defending against a mismatch are still good advantages for the offense.

Here is a more detailed breakdown of the video content.

• Ball Handler - 0:00

• Screener Popping (Drop, Switching) - 0:45

• Screener (Hedging) - 1:12

• Rim Duck-In - 1:47

• Roll and Replace - 2:09

• Roll and Replace Corner Gortat - 2:27

• Gortat (Drop) - 2:44

• Screener Inverted Pistol (Aggressive Gap or Stunting Defenses) - 2:54

• Ghost Grenade/Flare - 3:06

• Horns Clear Flat DHO into Flow - 3:15

• Stagger Flat - 3:40

• Flat DHO Ghost - 3:53

Special Sideline Out of Bound Sets

Late Game Sets

Through the totality of this article, I hope to convey the importance for coaches to combine movement and simplicity in these special situations. In late game situations, getting the defense to move makes decisions easier while the simplicity of the sets frees players to focus on making the good decisions.

I hope this article was as helpful for other coaches as it was for me to write. I would appreciate sharing this articles post of my Twitter (@sambourne04) and feel free to contact me through my email sbourne2020@gmail.com