I run full court press good. I understand how to play opponents in the press and adjust according to their scoring. Zones confuse me in here. I see people play (2-3) or (3-2) -3 on teams that shoot well from perimeter. In press if a team has 2 or 3 scorers that are 85 + from perimeter playing -3 in zone would leave them open. I understand a 3-2 extends further out but just trying to get an idea of zone and when would you ever play +2 or +3, since a zone is different from man on man. Also in press if you play negative you foul more. Just looking for help or ideas before I switch.

Posted by raider45638 on 5/13/2021 3:33:00 AM (view original):
I run full court press good. I understand how to play opponents in the press and adjust according to their scoring. Zones confuse me in here. I see people play (2-3) or (3-2) -3 on teams that shoot well from perimeter. In press if a team has 2 or 3 scorers that are 85 + from perimeter playing -3 in zone would leave them open. I understand a 3-2 extends further out but just trying to get an idea of zone and when would you ever play +2 or +3, since a zone is different from man on man. Also in press if you play negative you foul more. Just looking for help or ideas before I switch.

When I use a base of 3-2 on my combo defenses, I default to a -2 setting. That means when I consider my opponent to be normal, getting a normal amount of points from guards and/or from 3pt territory, then I set the 3-2 base at -2. 3-2 defense is the best defense in the game at suppressing your opponents perimeter (guard) scoring, but it’s also the easiest to score on inside, and you’re giving up rebounding too. So if you play a 3-2 out at 0 or + whatever, you are leaving yourself really exposed to those attacks.

2-3 is different, it is a very effective defense against paint scoring, but is very vulnerable to outside scoring. So if a coach is playing a 2-3 at -setting against a good perimeter team, they are going to be very exposed to perimeter attacks. Double teaming is often a good way to make up for this, but it’s kind of a gamble, it can work great sometimes, but it can also fall flat, especially against opponents with balanced scoring. I tend not to use 2-3 as much unless I end up with a roster that is really forward heavy, just because most humans tend to get more points from guards and perimeter scoring, making the 3-2 more effective most of the time. But ideally I have teams that can move back and forth, with flexible SF who are both fast and good rebounders. When I do run a 2-3, I default to 0 or +1, depending on how good my guards are (cheating out a little if they are not both excellent).

Going negative on 2-3 is suicide, unless the opponent is one of those rare teams that shoot no 3s. Generally, I'm thinking about how well and how many 3s my opponent shoots and same for my own team when deciding on the 0 to +5 scale. Normally default to about +1 to +3.

Edit: Also need to consider who has the relative rebounding advantage. If I do, I'll send the guards out further. If they do, we are coming in. Ultimately, for the 2-3, your liabilities are the opponent's 3pt attempts, 3pt %, and offensive rebounds so it's about managing those three things.

In another Forum post (or maybe a conversation in Discord) I learned that playing a 2-3 is like automatically having a -1.5 positioning, while 3-2 is like an automatic +1.5. Assuming this to be true, you need to adjust your positioning to take this into account game-to-game.

thanks guys

thanks guys

When you run a zone you need to make a couple fundamental decisions.

1. Do you want to run one of the options exclusively or do you want the flexibility to run both? Whatever you decide, you need to recruit appropriately.

2. How much ATH are you willing to sacrifice for BLK? I treat ath as about 120% as valuable as BLK in the 3-2 but that might be a little low.

3. Are you willing to completely punt offense at a position to increase defense? If so, that allows you to sacrifice a little defense for the other 4 spots.

positioning is easy, I think the 1.5 number for the 3-2 is to low but there are plenty of guys better than me who believe in it. I more or less run a 3-2 (-2) as my base. Don’t be afraid to go 3-2 (-5). I also double a lot more in zone than I did in man.

Posted by Trentonjoe on 5/16/2021 6:48:00 PM (view original):
When you run a zone you need to make a couple fundamental decisions.

1. Do you want to run one of the options exclusively or do you want the flexibility to run both? Whatever you decide, you need to recruit appropriately.

2. How much ATH are you willing to sacrifice for BLK? I treat ath as about 120% as valuable as BLK in the 3-2 but that might be a little low.

3. Are you willing to completely punt offense at a position to increase defense? If so, that allows you to sacrifice a little defense for the other 4 spots.

positioning is easy, I think the 1.5 number for the 3-2 is to low but there are plenty of guys better than me who believe in it. I more or less run a 3-2 (-2) as my base. Don’t be afraid to go 3-2 (-5). I also double a lot more in zone than I did in man.

On 3, I do this in the 2-3 for the C. Centers stand alone in the 2-3 (Pg+Sg, Sf+Pf, C), so if you are going to give up offense, I feel it is best value to get a high D/BLK/REB center.