13-15 Rec
Jr. Suns rec league at Deer Valley Community Center. Nine weeks of practice and eight games. Below is what we are running right now - the current playset, and the offense and defense behind it.
The Season
9
Practices
90 minutes each
8
Games
One per week from week 2
One 90-minute practice per week followed by a game that same week. Week 1 is practice only, so the first game falls in week 2.
How every practice is structured
Every practice opens with Connecticut - our name for the Pass The Circuit passing drill - and closes with 3-on-3 King of the Court. The bookends never change; the emphasis inside them does, and the King of the Court constraint each week enforces whatever was installed that day.
Current Playset
What the team is actually running right now - these two are installed and live. The offense and defense below are the foundation they sit on. Each one links to the full breakdown with video.
Overload Right
Half-court setOur go-to when we need a bucket out of a dead half-court possession. It gets the same shot - a guard sealed on the block - three different ways, so the defense taking one feed away does not kill the possession.
Keys
- •The seal is the play; no seal, no options
- •The four clears early or there is no room to seal
- •Read the help and pick the feed, do not force option 1
Box Inbound
Baseline out of boundsOur primary BLOB. Four reads in a fixed order means nobody has to improvise with five seconds on the clock, and the safety up top keeps it from turning into a turnover when the first three are covered.
Keys
- •Both weak-side players split at the same instant
- •Cutter goes to the front of the rim, not the block
- •Count the reads in order - never guess ahead
Our Offense: 3-Out, 2-In
Three players on the perimeter and two on the blocks. It keeps two scorers near the rim and two rebounders in position, which suits a rec roster where not everyone shoots from range yet. The trade-off is less driving space, so the offense lives on ball reversal, cutting, and post touches rather than isolation.
Alignment
- •Point at the top of the key
- •Two wings at the free-throw line extended, just outside the arc
- •Two posts on the blocks, ready to seal or flash to the high post
Principles
- •Space 12 to 15 feet apart - if one defender can guard two of you, someone has to move
- •Reverse the ball before you shoot; the second or third side is where the gap opens
- •Every pass is followed by a cut or a screen, never by standing still
- •The ball should touch the paint - by pass or by drive - before a shot goes up
- •Posts do not both stand on the blocks; one seals low while the other flashes high
- •When a cutter does not get the ball, they clear through and someone fills behind them
Actions we run out of it
Ball reversal
Swing from wing to top to opposite wing. On the catch at the top, the first look goes to the far side.
Give and go
Pass to the wing and cut hard to the rim off your own pass. The simplest way to score in this set.
Post entry and inside-out
Feed the sealed post, let the help commit, then kick back out to the relocated shooter.
Ball screen at the top
A post lifts to screen for the point. Roll if the defense goes under, pop if they switch.
Screen and clear
Screen for a teammate on the wing, then clear out to open the side for the drive.
Our Defense: Man-to-Man
Straight man-to-man, taught by the three positions every defender is always in: on the ball, one pass away, or two passes away. At this age it builds habits that transfer to any level, and it makes effort visible in a way zone does not.
On the ball
- •Stance: feet wider than shoulders, knees bent, chest up
- •Force the ball away from the middle of the floor
- •Contest every shot with a high hand, never leave your feet on a fake
- •Slide, do not cross your feet
One pass away
- •Deny: hand in the passing lane, thumb down
- •See your player and the ball at the same time
- •Jump to the ball the instant the pass leaves
Two passes away
- •Drop to the help line with one foot in the paint
- •Point one hand at the ball and one at your player
- •Be ready to take a charge or contest at the rim, then recover out
Team rules
- •Talk on every possession - call screens, call help, call shot
- •No middle: force everything toward the sideline and baseline
- •Help and recover; a stunt at the ball beats a full commitment you cannot get back from
- •Box out on every shot, including the shooter's defender
- •Sprint back before you look for the ball - protect the rim first
- •Foul trouble rule: two fouls in the first half means you sit until the second
Rogue Wolf Athletics is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the Phoenix Suns, the NBA, or the City of Phoenix. League and facility names are used only to identify where this team plays.