AVOID Pass and Cut Motion Offense in Basketball

Alex Sarama discusses the problems with "pass and cut" motion offense in youth basketball, proposing an alternative approach. He argues that the pattern-based nature of the offense does not align with an ecological dynamics rationale. Instead, Alex suggests focusing on principles of play such as spacing and advantage creation. Alex also highlights many of the limitations behind automatic "pass and cut”, such as reducing affordances for off-ball cuts and driving opportunities. He highlights the need for coaches to think differently rather than resorting to the same old methods that have been repeated over multiple decades.
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Key Takeaways:
2:15 - "The "pass and cut" offense is pattern-based and does not align with an ecological dynamics approach to basketball."
6:58 - "Pass and cut removes advantage-creating off-ball cuts and affordances to drive through one-on-one."
9:35 - "We should not continue to do the same old things just because of tradition."
12:44 - "We can instead develop players who are far better than the robotic tendencies encouraged within a pass and cut framework.”
14:37 - "Once you've identified your principles (of play), see if you can think of creative analogies to bring them to life."
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[@samadams6174]

As a coach who has experimented going away from the pass and cut and trying to incorporate what Alex is talking about, here are some ideas that might help if you are trying to make the transition. 1. Try to get into dynamic 1v1 (going 1v1 where you are moving to catch the ball). Many of your dynamic 1v1 opportunities can be done off blast cuts (same idea as filling towards the ball but focus on the speed of the cut). If you use blast cuts as a trigger to create an advantage, then you just have to help your team learn how to create a double gap (where a spot away from the ball is open). Some ways our 8 and 9 year olds learned to create blast cut opportunities was by basket cutting, cutting towards the weakside dunker, or interchanging with a teammate when the ball was 1 spot away and it was neutral (no advantage, stagnant, etc). When the player getting the ball off the blast cut didn't attack there are times where what we do looks similar to pass and cut, but the intentions of the players is a lot different than when we taught pass and cut. 2. For static 1v1, if you are worried about the ball sticking in one players hand, you can use dribble handoffs as a protection plan. If the player going 1v1 can't get by their defender, they can dribble towards a teammate. This could be thought of as "My turn, Your turn". The handoff could also help players keep their dribble alive against pressure vs picking it up early. Another consideration is that younger kids might struggle to make further passes and the handoff gives them an affordance to get the ball to a teammate when it might have been difficult to make a more traditional pass. These are just my two cents and some ideas I have discovered when working with beginners first learning the game.

[@TransformBball]

Very insightful, thanks for sharing!

[@tdubz1154]

I agree with you 100%. In youth basketball especially U14, the 5 out offense without a shot clock is as pointless as a 2-3 zone. Kids won’t even make a basket run for an easy layup setting up for a 3 first. Without at least 3 shooters and two decent ball handlers on the floor, it results in a bad shot or turnover most of the time. A decent, rule-conscious defensive team needs only to defend the drive, bump cutters, and force the ball into the hands of the lesser skilled players. This forces mistakes and quite often leads to shots from poor long range shooters that jack up low percentage 3’s.

[@enegue1101]

I think a lot of good concepts are covered in this video, and I agree that pass-cut motion offense has its limitations. I would push back by saying that pass-cut as a concept can be useful because almost all youth players tend to disengage from the offense the moment they no longer have the ball. Watch any game (at almost all levels), players pass the ball up but they keep their eyes on the ball handler and don't look for advantages anywhere else on the court. Pass-cut (and pass-screen away, pass-space) as a concept can be useful to develop the mentality of constantly looking for advantages and staying engaged, even without the ball. And I don't know that pass-cut is a much worse option to start with than pass-space, if our goal is to develop that mentality.

[@TransformBball]

Appreciate that coach! We find that the problem always surfaces when players start running a pattern vs running actions for the sake of scoring. It's so tough for young players to have a scoring intention when they have a pattern in the back of their mind!

[@SteveZingsheim1970]

I agree with both lol. My two cents: been coaching a long time...a key for me is to give players choices and pairing that with teaching them what we are trying to accomplish. If they are new to this stuff patterns initially help with choice overload but I then use that to also teach the WHY. Instead of just a pattern/you're a robot, I like to teach for example that the reason we cut/space after a pass is to create a double or triple gap for your teammate and you with the ball HAVE to attack that because "look at that space!". From there you teach reactions to all of that...how/when to back cut, handoff, what to do if no advantage etc. Some initial rules/patterns are okay IMO if you are teaching WHY they are doing it and pretty soon they don't need the pattern anymore, they just play. Teaching a pattern with no context is nearly useless IMO. Then you might as well teach plays. Treating younger players with respect that they are sponges, they want to and can learn, I have found they can grow really quickly, even with conceptual/complex ideas!

[@enegue1101]

@@SteveZingsheim1970 Yeah, I don't think I disagree with anything in the video, really. What we can all agree is important is to teach decision-making, and not just following a pattern. The biggest problem I've encountered is the ball-watching after the pass, and not actively seeking out other scoring/advantage opportunities.

[@alexprice5479]

I wonder how this applies to the Rick torbet read and react offense.

[@TransformBball]

You can also read about our thoughts here! transformingbball.com/why-pass-and-cut-motion-offense-is-harming-youth-basketball/

[@ShareefusMaximus]

This is aimed at that, and offenses like that. I prefer it when people don't directly @ other personalities and use their name for clicks. So I appreciate the way this counter view presented here.

[@alexprice5479]

@@ShareefusMaximus the reason I asked is because Rick’s system is based on making reads and responding (hence the name) it isn’t the typical pass and cut. It can flow seemlessly from 5 to 4 to 3 out all based on what players see from the defense.

[@ShareefusMaximus]

@alexprice5479 The system has what rick calls layers, and the initial layer is a simple pattern of passing to a five out perimeter and cutting to the basket. What is seen on the very lowest levels is the first layer. A lot of kids will be playing for different coaches in the future and will never see the higher levels. I'm not at all a critic of Rick's approach. My own approach is even less fundamentally sound than pass and cut basketball. My experience has led me to prioritize wins over fundamental development of players.

[@TransformBball]

@@ShareefusMaximus Greatly appreciated coach! We want to be respectful of other coaches and present alternatives/ challenges without personally attacking coaches.

[@cachemilli]

In a true motion offense the players have the choice to pass & cut OR pass & ball screen OR pass & screen away, the offense reacts to the player’s decision after passing. Anytime a pass is received the player should attack the rim trying to get 2 feet in the paint. 3 point shots ONLY come from kick-outs off drives when both feet are set and the shot is open. Poorly coached motion offenses will tend to revert to a pattern of only pass & cut.

[@TransformBball]

We wrote a detailed blog about our thoughts here - transformingbball.com/why-pass-and-cut-motion-offense-is-harming-youth-basketball/

[@cachemilli]

@@TransformBball still you are fundamentally misrepresenting the 5-out motion offense by assuming that it is nothing more than a simple pattern of pass & cut. Players should pass & DECIDE to cut, ball screen or screen away. The other players react accordingly. Once the pass is received, players should always look to drive and score. Constant pressure on the interior defense combined with spaced-out shooters is a great way to attack man-to-man defenses. I have had struggles against zones occasionally, so i usually switch to a 4-1 villanova style offense. The most harmful way to coach young kids is to ONLY teach them fixed plays. They never learn the fundamentals of the game other than just like screen here, screen there, only let Joe or Jim touch the ball every possession, prioritizing short-term winning over player development.