A short coaching breakdown explaining the concept of 'space' in basketball offense: how elite scorers control, take away, and create space by initiating contact to place themselves in the 'driver's seat.' Uses Devin Booker (and comparisons to Chris Paul and other top NBA scorers) to illustrate why initiating contact and closing distance are key skills for perimeter scoring.
Chapters
The game of basketball is all about space. It's a constant battle between the offensive player and the defensive player to either take away space or create space. Offensive players who understand how to take away space to then create their own space are very difficult to guard. And it's one of the reasons that Devin Booker is one of the best scorers in the NBA. One thing that hurts a lot of players is not understanding the concept of taking away space to then be able to create it. Devin Booker is great at putting himself in the driver's seat when it comes to space, meaning that a lot of times he's going to close that distance to his defender, create that contact, because then he can decide when to separate and be able to create a shot or a passing angle. Obviously, having size is helpful, and Devil Booker does have great size for a guard, but. But we even see this same concept with players like Chris Paul who get into that defender to control that space, because then they get to decide when to separate and create that shot. And this isn't just something that happens on shots, too. Getting into that defender to create space for finishes is a really, really important skill to have for guards. As the big takeaway is that as the offensive player, either you're going to be the one who initiate contact and determine who gets to create space or take away space, or the defender is going to initiate and that's going to put them in the driver's seat. When you think about the best scorers in the NBA, guys like Devin Booker, Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Giannis, Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant, and on and on, these guys are elite at understanding and winning that space battle. So they're the ones in the driver's seat, which is why they're able to capitalize on these opportunities so often. So if you want to be a great scorer, get comfortable with initiating contact and closing space so that you put yourself in the driver's seat and are able to create opportunities for yourself. Make sure you click the top link in the description below to get my free elite perimeter score workout and drop a like and subscribe. I'll talk to you guys soon. Peace.
