How to Break a Full-Court Press in Basketball

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1. Inbound the basketball quickly after a made basket. The best asset you have is time. If the defense can't set up a strong press, then you can easily inbound the basketball and blow right by them. This means your team must recognize that the defense is setting up for a press instantly. Most defenses press toward the end of a half or the end of the game when they are slightly behind or ahead. Teams don't usually press the whole game, because it's quite tiring to cover the whole floor on defense on every play. Also, by spreading the floor, the defense is slightly vulnerable to a half-court offense. Look for the correct situations and recognize the press early.

2. Move up the floor. Remember that a defensive player will get called for a blocking foul if you are dribbling up the floor and their feet are back pedaling while you make contact. This doesn't mean that you should steamroll the defense (because you'll then be called for an offensive foul) but you also shouldn't be afraid to make contact with them either.

3. Instruct your team to set screens, freeing themselves from their men. On offense, there are 4 other players without the ball. Two screens should be set so that 2 offensive players break free of their men and are open to receive the basketball.

4. Trail a man behind the basketball. The defense is trying to trap you and force a turnover. By placing a free man behind the basketball, the man dribbling the ball always has someone where he can pass back. This is the old "sometimes you must move backward to move forward" mentality. Just make sure you get across the half-court line before the 8- or 10-second violation (depending which league you're in).

5. Avoid dribbling toward the sidelines. A popular defensive trap tries to force the dribbler to the sidelines. Two defensive players then descend on the offensive player and trap in a triangle (using the sideline as the third man). If you stay in the center of the court, the defense can't accomplish this move.

6. Look up the floor to your teammates to break the full-court press. The offense has a huge advantage in that the defense is spread apart over the whole floor. This means that while things are hectic in the back court, there's going to be someone open in the front court. Find the open man and throw the long pass.

7. Hustle down the floor quickly. Many offenses get tentative when they see the press. They become cautious with the basketball and proceed slowly. If you want to be successful in breaking the full-court press, you should do exactly the opposite. Move the basketball up the floor quickly with crisp clean passes. If you can make 3 passes with limited dribbling, you're putting your team in a great position on the offensive end of the floor. A ball traveling through the air will always move faster than a player running the floor.