The Golden State Warriors have mastered the down screen action and have continued to perplex teams with it. They have the incredible ability to make the correct reads off the down screen. In the video below we will break down 3 quick and effective ways to score off the down screen. Through diligent work on these basketball drills, players can become automatic when catching the ball off of the action.
In these basketball drills, we have the Dr. Dish All-Star pulled away from the basket at the top of the key to deliver game-like passes. There's no other shooting machine in the world designed for game-scenario passing!
Hesitation Dribble Into Running Floater
The first move we will break down is the hesitation dribble into the floater. Oftentimes the screener's man will help to prevent the curl action from happening. The defender will step out and try to deter the player from curling and will buy time for his teammate to recover back. One quick way to combat this is to use the hesitation dribble. When you catch the pass off the down screen you want to take a hard dribble as if you are retreating from the hoop. This will fool the screen defender into thinking he has done his job. As soon as you see that defender release, you want to take one more hard dribble towards the hoop and float it over that same defender. Your defender will be trailing you or will be on your hip. Make sure to protect the basketball with your body when attacking and focus on executing the floater. The key is staying patient and reading the defense.
Turn Around Fade-Away Jumper
The second move is one of my personal favorites. The turn around fade away jumper is more of an advanced move, but with proper technique and practice it can be a terrific way to score off the down screen. One important piece to this move is coming off the screen hard. You want your defender to try and fight through the screen because this will lead them to be off balance. You want to set them up with a hard dribble as if you are curling the screen and then spin back off the defender, pushing off on your back foot for a fade away shot. You only need a second of separation for the move to work, so its important to focus on the shot after doing the move.
Quick Change of Direction to Running Fade-Away Shot
The last move I will break down is probably the most difficult. This move requires great footwork, burst, and technique. Once again you want to come off the down screen hard so that you defender tries to fight through the screen. As soon as you catch the basketball of the down screen, you are going to do a quick behind the back towards the direction you just came from. At this point the number one option is to score at the rim, but if your defender gets back to you or the help side steps in you can use the running fade-away jumper. Kevin Durant does an amazing job selling the hard dribble to the hoop. This gets his defender off balance once again and allows him to create separation for the shot. This is a difficult shot because you are moving in one direction and fading to another.
These are all effective options out of the down screen/pin down action but ONLY if worked on diligently. It's essential to work at game speed with any basketball drills that you use. Focus on the your balance, footwork, and reading your defender and there's no doubt that you'll improve. Here at Dr. Dish basketball we train hard, train smart, and train with a purpose!
