EOG: When to Speed Up a Game When Winning

One of the biggest problems that coaches have in general is closing out a game.  Many times a coach will want to take the air out of the game by slowing things down too early.  This causes his team to get out of their rhythm and takes the intensity out of the team.  There are two questions that need to be answered when addressing when to close out a game when leading. 

1. Is it worth taking the air out of the ball at all? 
2. If it is when is a good time to do so?

The answer to the first question is "it depends."  I know it sounds like a cop out but stay with me for a second.  As a coach you need to read the vibe of the game.  Specifically you need to ask yourself the following question:  Which team has momentum at the end of the game?  The way I see it there are 3 different scenarios in a game when your team is winning a close game:

1. Your team is winning and has the momentum.
2. Your team is winning but the lead has shrunk and the momentum is with the other team.
3. Your team is winning but you're stuck in a grind of a game where neither team can really capture the momentum.

What you do as a coach depends on which of the 3 above situations you find your team in.  Let's tackle all 3 one by one.

1. If my team is winning and has momentum then I prefer not to slow things down.  I have my team run our offense and defense and will not gift the other team the precious gift of momentum.  Please keep in mind that if the team you're playing is not up to your team's caliber then this rule does not apply.  We do not aim to embarrass other teams.  Blow outs can serve other purposes by giving you the opportunity to increase the minutes of players that need valuable game minutes to help in their development. 
2. If my team is winning but we have lost momentum and the lead is dwindling I will try to break momentum and use up precious time off of the clock.  I will do this by playing my best ball handlers and force the other team to spread out their defense and play man to man.  Once I have them spread out I will have my ball handlers try to break them down 1v1 or call for a ball screen.  I will instruct the team to work for a quality shot which I consider a shot at the basket.  At this point in the game not even a wide open shot from the perimeter will be considered a good shot.  We will try to continue playing our defense and try to keep everything in front of us.  The more passes we force the other team to make the better for us.  We need to contest every shot and if the other team finds themselves ready to make a layup we need to contest aggressively, even foul if you have to but try not to give up the and 1.
3. If my team is stuck in a grind of a game where the 2 teams are just exchanging blows but we are winning a close game, I will try to do something similar to point 2 where I will put my 2 best ball handlers in the game and force the opposition to spread out and cover man to man.  Once in man, we will try to break down the defense by going 1v1 or by using ball screens.  We will try to continue playing our defense and try to keep everything in front of us.  The more passes we force the other team to make the better for us.  We need to contest every shot and if the other team finds themselves ready to make a layup we need to contest aggressively, even foul if you have to but try not to give up the and 1.

At the end of the day, ball games are won on the defensive end of the floor.  Regardless of what the score is you need to play aggressive defense.  In order to close out a game properly, you need to smother and disrupt the opposition especially at the end of the game.  I keep telling my teams that against a good team when we're winning you will get the following:

1. Their best players...
2. Running their go to plays...
3. The best they can.

To win the game we need to match the other teams intensity and desire to win.  All else being equal, to the most determined go the spoils.

To answer the second question of when it is appropriate to take the air out of the ball the answer depends on which of the 3 momentum situations described above your team finds itself in.

1. If momentum is on your teams side then keep doing what your doing.  Don't go into EOG mode.
2. If your team has the lead but they are losing momentum, spread the opposition out the moment you feel you have lost momentum. Keep in mind that the spread game should be run in practice often.
3. If your team is stuck in a grind of a game then getting into the spread offense early might not be a bad idea.  Remember to teach your team to be patient.  If they have the lead, they can pass the ball around the perimeter and force the other team into a man to man which is what we want when running our spread offense.

So in a nutshell, if you have the lead and momentum keep doing what your doing.  Don't gift momentum to the other team.  If momentum is not on your team's side then there is nothing wrong with going to a spread game offensively to change things up, especially if the other team is playing a zone or a pack line man which is giving your team problems.  Remember that you hold the cards because you hold the lead.