Jay Wright, Head Coach of the Villanova Wildcats delivered a clinic on his famous motion offence at George Raveling’s Coaching For Success Academy in 2015 at Loyola Marymount University.
If you are interested in purchasing any of these clinics the link is here:
I have the best job in the world.
If you can find a job where you love the culture, mission of the school and it fits your mission for life. You’re the luckiest guy in the world.
Nobody promotes the game better than George Raveling.
When I met with Geno Auriemma he hit me with about 5–10 questions about my basketball team, and he has won however many national championships.
The questions he asked showed that he is still getting better, wants to learn and that is what the great ones do.
I want to give you things that will help you, not just ideas that sound really good.
Our Offence
We try to teach our team how to play basketball not run plays.
3 Quotes for our coaches on the wall
The Stonecutter Poem
A stonecutter can hammer at a rock a thousand times. When the rock finally breaks, it wasn’t just the last blow that was successful — it was because of each of the strikes that came before it. Results take time, and that it’s important to remain dedicated to the process.
2. We practice to create habits, to enable us to be successful in the most difficult situations. That is the key to Villanova basketball.
3. Success is our team playing 40 minutes of Villanova basketball to the last second. Not winning or losing, that is what we are concerned about.
Offensive Pillars
1. Move the ball
2. Move People
3. Have great spacing
Catch to shoot every single time you catch it.
“Spacing is offence and offence is spacing.” — Chuck Daly
If our players are catching on 1,2 step, inside pivot foot — ball in the shot pocket it speeds up good decisions.
When you catch to shoot and have your eyes on the rim you can see the whole floor.
All of our dribble penetration comes off shot fakes.
Footwork = pivot off both feet, jump stops, jabs, shot fakes.
I never miss an individual workout, because skill development is that important to me.
Spacing Spots
Wings = in line with the block
Slots = 3 feet back from the lane line
Post = first marker (good post player) or play at the porch (behind the backboard).
A scoring post would be scoring or getting fouled 60% of the time, 70% at the FT line and have a 2:1 assist to turnover ratio
All this comes back to “What will we do when the game is on the line?”
We tell our referees to give bad calls against our first team, we practice reacting to bad situations.
Not about playing perfect, how do you respond on the next play?
Motion Movement
Slot to wing = basket cut
Move a spot, fill a spot. Anytime you are moving to create good spacing, that is good offence.
Slot to slot = weak side exchange, post stay opposite.
Porch is midway between lane line and 3pt line, back to the basket. He can see everything happen.
Drive & Space
Every time you drive the ball, does everybody know where they are supposed to be?
Does the driver know where to look?
Post & Rip
Every time you put the ball in the post, does every body know where they are supposed to be?
Fran Fraschilla — “ Villanova has a ‘take em’ offence.”
Anytime we can’t make a pass we dribble at.
We want to be unpredictable. We don’t want to play perfect, we want to play together.
Baseline Drive Spots
Behind, Point, Opposite, Middle
We are driving to score, not looking to pass.
4 out 1 in, move the ball, random drive it.
Forgetting to space off a drive or post is just like forgetting to set a screen in a set play.
If I see help I’m coming to a two foot stop to score.
Order of reads: middle, opposite, point then behind.
Hardest Thing to Practice
When there’s drive, nobody helps. That’s what happens versus the best teams.
Drive, Jump Stop, Space, Second Cut.
It is not choreographed, it doesn’t have to be right you just have to move.
Slot Drive Stops
- Baseline guy stays, corner, behind, opposite — then second cut.
Ball Screen Concepts
Roll
2. Ace
3. Deuce
4. Flat
Allows cutting, movement to happen before the ball screen comes.
Roll = wing ball screen
Weak side slot, exchange between wing and corner
We are TRYING TO SCORE, aggressive. This is not for anybody else but the guard until help comes.
When we are thinking score we play our best.
If the ball is picked up = second cut.
Ace = wing ball screen and POP
Deuce = slot ball screen
Weak side strong exchange
Lift out of the weak side corner
Reads: Score, roll, throwback, second cut.
Flat = angle ball screen off the dribble
Great vs strong ball pressure against our point guard
If they want to extend pressure we will attack it
Same spacing as a deuce
If 5 can shoot we can pop also
Post & Rip
What do you do when your post player cannot score 1v1?
Basket cutters hit the elbow and get to the opposite corner.
Everybody knows what we’re going to do.
Passer = screen up to the slot
Weak side exchange
If we are throwing it to the post, it is to score.
Baseline to score, middle to explore.
Screening
Important especially when your 4 cannot shoot
Make him a naked screener, because nobody is guarding him.
Sprint straight into ACE and we do not want the guard to drive it because the help is not being guarded.
We take one bounce off the ball screen and shoot it, 4 man rolls to offensive rebound.
It’s not very pretty, but you know who and where is getting your shots.
This is not an equal opportunity offence.
- Use quick ball screens and DHO
Off The Ball Screening
Use naked screener to flare screen.
5 gets opposite the action.
Slot dribbles towards the action.
Zone
Vs zone: we cut and sit down just below the ball side elbow.
Porch to porch ball side, top guy plays between slots therefore 1–3–1 set.
It’s not what you know it’s what your players know.
“Flash” = hit the foul line on slot to slot pass, corner/wing exchanges.
If you have good players you must give them space to operate.
Spacing is a function of how well you shoot the ball.
Conclusion
When you’ve been doing something for a long time it seems very simple.
Moving people, moving the ball, having great spacing.
Against the toughest teams, rarely are you going to be able to run a play that will trick them.
You have to be comfortable in the worst situations.