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The pick & roll is one of the simplest (and lethal) offensive tactics that a basketball coach can employ. Yet, there are a few coaches who’ve created tactics to help put a halt to this two-man play. 

One of those coaches is Lindsay Gottlieb. Coach Gottlieb is currently the head coach of the University of Southern California women’s basketball team. Prior to that, Coach Gottlieb was an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA franchise, starting in 2019. This made Coach Gottlieb the first NCAA women's head coach to be hired by an NBA team.

Coach Gottlieb’s ‘Defending The Pick the Roll from College to the Pros’ clinic from when she was with the Cleveland Cavaliers is a masterclass. We’ve compiled some of her best insights on how to defend the pick & roll, giving you the tools you need to defeat this game-wrecking play. 

General Principles

General Principles

Coach Gottlieb explains that there are three general principles when defending the pick and roll: 

1. Do we know what we’re supposed to do?
2. Are we working/communicating with others?
3. How hard are we willing to play?

The first principle is simple: do your players know exactly what the coverage is supposed to look like? If they don’t, then you must ensure that they do know before you do anything else. 

“Pick and roll defense doesn’t work if just one guy doesn’t know what they’re supposed to do,” Coach Gottlieb says. Which is why effective communication between players (and from coaches to players) is absolutely crucial. 

And the third general principle should be a core principle with everything, as it pertains to basketball. If your players aren’t giving 100% on every possession then pick-and-roll defense is the least of your worries.

Switch and Down Clips

Getting into more specific principles, Coach Gottlieb discusses that, no matter what your coverage is going to be, your on-ball defender must be playing physical at all times. 

As for the screener defender, they will need to have early, loud communication, and must be in the right spot at all times. They also must know their peel principles (which is when they’ll be taking the ball handler, and when you’re allowing the guard to get back in front). 

Show Clips

In a perfect word, the pick and roll should be defended by the aforementioned two players: the on-ball defender, and the screening defender. 

This is to say that the other defenders shouldn’t be overly eager to offer help on the pick-and-roll, at the expense of leaving the player they’re assigned to guard open. Instead, they need to trust that the on-ball defender and the screening defender will be able to execute their pick-and-roll defense. Although it’s also important for the other defenders to be available to help out, if need be. 

There will be some possessions where your opponents score, because that’s the nature of basketball. But if you can instill these principles within your players, they’ll be given the tools to not only effectively defend against the pick-and-roll, but will be adaptable enough for whatever offensive schemes and talents they might see on the court.

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