Coach ,

Coach Jim Boone knows Defense.

Coach Boone has won nearly 600 games, has been to 2 Final Fours, 6 Sweet 16’s, and has taken four different schools to NCAA Tournaments. 

Currently, Coach Boone is the head coach of Delta State University. 

Coach Boone has had a lot of success running the Pack Line Defense.

The Pack Line Defense was created by former Wisconsin Head Men’s Basketball coach Tony Bennett. 

The Pack Line defense is designed to stay within a designated area - with helpside principles. It constricts the floor making it harder to score.

It has proven to be effective at all levels from elementary teams to the NBA.

]The Pack Line Certification Course is designed to go into greater depth into the Pack Line Defense and how to implement the system with drills and tactics.

The DNA of Championships

The DNA of Championships is rooted in a coach's defensive approach. A coach needs to have a passion for teaching what they are teaching. If you are a pressure defensive coach - then have passion towards it.

Coach Boone explains that his passion comes from teaching the Pack Line Defense. He explains that teaching defense is an all out-commitment. If your players sense that you’re not all-in while teaching it, then it will be hard for them to buy-in on the defense in this video (click on image for video).

Defending a Side Ball Screen within the Pack Line - Hard Show

Coach Boone explains that one of the ways they guard a side ball screen is a hard show.

A hard show is when the defender guarding the screener in the pick and roll steps out during the screen forcing the ball handler back to half court. 

His teams execute the hard show 2 different ways depending on if the corner is filled or empty.

If the corner is filled, the guy guarding the corner player would take the roll man after the pick and roll due to being in helpside. The player who was guarding the ball handler then takes that corner man.

If the corner is empty, then the player at the bottom of the helpside, Bottom of the I, would take the roll man. 

This video illustrates “Hard Show” (click on image for video):

Post Trap Keys & Teaching Points within the Pack Line Defense

The #1 goal of post defense in the Pack Line is keeping the ball out of the post. One of the main keys of keeping the ball out of the post is pressuring the passer. 

On the flight of the ball the post defender slides behind the post player. On the catch, the goal is to trap on airtime meaning want to trap when the post player catches the ball.

In Coach Boone’s defense, they are looking to trap big to big. 

As the trap is happening, Coach Boone teaches for the bigs to be toe-to-toe and have their hands active. They do not want a skip pass or a cutting pass.

The rule is to be as physical as they can be without fouling (click on image for video). 

These clips are stolen from Coach Boone’s Pack Line Certification course includes over 3 hours of teaching the Pack Line defense.

There is no better teacher of the Pack Line Defense than Coach Boone.

Thank you to Coach Jim Boone for sharing.

Never get out-coached, 

-- The Coaches Clinic Community of Coaches Helping Coaches