Weak Side Positioning

Another important point of emphasis when playing defense is weak side positioning.  Before we begin explaining how to play good weak side defense we should explain what we mean by it.  Weak side defense takes place when the player you are covering is more than one pass away from the ball.  It is imperative that you are able to quickly determine when you are weak side as your responsibilities involve helping the strong side whenever possible whether it be by double teaming, helping a teammate that has been beat off the dribble or a screen, or simply communicating to the rest of the players what you see going on in front of you.  Good weak side defense can make a man to man defense great.


Weak Side Help Positioning
The first step in teaching weak side defense is  the stance that a defender should be taking when he is located on the weak side.  Remember that weak side is the area of the floor which is located away from the ball and more than one pass away.  The key to a successful man to man is to push the offensive player away from the middle of the floor to limit the offenses options.  Once this happens the side opposite the ball side is the weak side.

Getting back to our discussion on weak side positioning, the key is to put yourself in a position where you can see both the ball and your player.  This is the ball, you, player principle.  You want to sag toward the paint but you want to be close enough to your man that if a cross court pass occurs you will be able to close out on your man as he catches the ball.  Another key is that you want to be far enough away from your man to be able to get a head start on help defense which you will be responsible for.  This is the tightrope that weak side players need to walk on.   Remember help cannot come from teammates that are covering strong side opposition so when rotation needs to happen to cover a penetration it will come from the weak side players.

Weak side help.  Ball, you , player.

Defending Weak Side Cutters
Defending your player from cutting from the weak side to the ball is another important task for the weak side defender.  When defending a cutter from the weak side you want to make sure that he does not get behind you and close to the basket.  You want to force him high and around you.  Keep the player from making a sharp cut by making yourself big and by beating the player to a spot on the floor thus forcing him to go around you.

Help Defense From Weak Side
Help will always come from the weak side and is usually going to be predetermined by the coach.  There are many options involved to weak side help.  Some of the most common are:

• Double team on the dribble.
• Double team on the catch.
• Double team at a certain spot.

There are certain times where a weak side defender should always be prepared to help.  The most obvious one is when a teammate who is covering the ball gets beat and the penetration is into the paint.  This player should never be left uncontested.  In general terms the most dangerous part of the floor that the offense can attack is the center of the paint.  This area should be defended but it should be defended smartly.  Help will come from the weak side but from an area of the floor which is the least dangerous.  Specifically, rotations should not come from players who are covering players near the basket.  Help should rather come from the weak side wing with the player who got beat trailing the play and trying to get to that wing in a recover tactic.  This will be discussed in a later blog entry on rotations.

Close Outs
When playing a good man to man defense close outs are such an important part of the game.  Whether you are closing out a shooter or you are closing out on a player who is one pass away it is important that you close out properly.

From a weak side perspective you should always remember that just because your weak side at this moment it does not mean you will always be weak side.  One cross court pass changes the dynamics of your defensive perspective and forces a player who was a weak side defender into close out mode and converts him into a strong side defender.  Once the strong side has been flipped all defensive responsibilities have been flipped as well.  The person responsible for the player with the ball is now the on ball defender and needs to close out on his player quickly in order to avoid a wide open shot.  Remember though that as you close out shorten your stride to baby steps so you can control your momentum and prevent your player from going around you on the dribble. 

Other items that need to be re-established defensively are the players who are one pass away from the ball.  The defensive players who are responsible for these players need to close out quickly and establish good deny position to keep the offense from beating the defense by quick ball movement.

So there you have it.  Weak side defense does not mean that you can relax.  As a matter of fact a good weak side defender is one who can read the play and react and cheat accordingly.  Guys like Larry Bird who are slow of foot and are not great on ball defenders are always factors on defense because of their ability to play good off the ball defense, anticipate plays, and be disruptive.  There is always room for such players on a good defensive team.