With arms outstretched wait for the ball to come to your hands. As the ball reaches your hands, cushion the momentum by moving your hands to your chest. This will act to shield the ball as well and set you up for making a pass or moving the ball in the direction that you require.
Good spacing is only the start. The best modern offences teach players to attack the defence's rotations and play in a permanent 4-on-3 - here is how to coach that read.
The ball screen produces almost half of all professional offensive possessions, yet most teams still teach it as a memorised play. The modern approach trains the read - giving players a framework to decide based on what the defence does, not what the coach called.
The closeout is the most repeated defensive action in modern basketball. With fouls per game climbing in the 2025-26 season, coaches must teach defenders to contest the three without surrendering the drive or putting shooters on the line.