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George Washington's Chris Caputo emphasizes the importance of Transition Defense and breaks down the main priorities while picking up defense in transition:

Transition Priorities

Stop the Shooters

As Coach Caputo mentioned, in this new era of basketball, most of the players can shoot the 3 and are not afraid to shoot the ball in transition. One of the most important things is to locate shooters as soon as possible, right after securing the paint. Take a look at the break down of Coach Caputo’s philosophy on locating the 3 point shooters in transition:

Locate 3pt Shooters

Guard the Secondary Offense - Drag Screen Defense

Another key in transition defense is to stop and eliminate the secondary offense, usually in the form of a drag ball screen. As Coach described in the first video, the key here is to have the paint packed with as many players possible (while also respecting the 3 point shooters, of course). Watch the full breakdown in the video below: 

Trail Up Link

How do we put it all together? 

Let’s take a look at some practice drills. 

Van Gundy Conversion Drill is a 5-on-4 drill Coach Caputo learned from NBA Coach Jeff Van Gundy, which makes the team focus and emphasize all the principles of transition offense.

Let’s take a look at the drill below:

Van Gundy Drill Link

Hope you found at least 1 idea to improve your transition defense.

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