Small ball

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Small ball describes a setup variant in basketball in which the usual setup (one center , two forwards and two guards ) is deliberately deviated from in order to be able to play faster.

For example, instead of two forwards only one is used and an additional guard is brought into play instead. In other cases you do without the center and bring a forward onto the field in its place. This results in a speed advantage, which, if used correctly, means an advantage on the offensive. Furthermore, with Small Ball, players who are characterized by good ball handling and who are often able to throw well from a distance are used - this is what is known as floor spacing (creating spaces) . Conversely, if the opponent does not play in a similarly small formation, problems in defense can arise. In particular, large, powerful opponents must be doubled.

Particular importance is attached to players who are not only offensive, but above all defensively versatile and can defend various positions. Draymond Green from the Golden State Warriors is often considered the prototype of such a player . Another popular example is LeBron James . On the other hand, there are also large players against whom playing small ball is considered risky because they can use economies of scale very effectively.

history

Small ball pioneers include coaches Don Nelson ( Dallas Mavericks ) and Mike D'Antoni ( Phoenix Suns ) in the early and mid-2000s.

The breakthrough for the small ball strategy is the 2014/15 NBA season , in which a change to a smaller line-up brought the Golden State Warriors to victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the finals . In the sixth game of the finals, Warriors coach Steve Kerr did not even use his center Andrew Bogut . The Cavaliers also largely did without their center Timofey Mozgov towards the end of the series .

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