The Art of Misdirection in Baseline Out-of-Bounds Plays

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1/ Being heavily scouted? Perfect. Let's talk about the art of misdirection in baseline out-of-bounds plays. Every possession counts, but few moments offer more opportunity to catch defenses off-guard than BLOBs. A thread 🧵

2/ Basketball deception is psychological warfare. You're manipulating defensive attention, making them believe one thing while executing another. And BLOBs? They're the perfect laboratory for deceptive tactics (videos to follow).

3/ Think about it: confined space, predetermined formation, defense expecting certain actions. You can use their preparation against them. Their scout becomes their weakness.

4/ When you present familiar patterns only to break them suddenly, you create those precious moments of defensive hesitation. That split second of doubt? That's where magic happens.

5/ Want to craft deceptive BLOB plays? Start with familiar formations. Set the D at ease. Make them think they know what's coming. Let them settle into their comfort zone. Next, use your best scorer as a decoy. The defense will instinctively gravitate toward them.

6/ While they're focused on your star, initiate your secondary action. Timing is everything here. The real scoring opportunity should unfold just as the defense commits to stopping your perceived primary threat.

7/ Take the "Elevator Decoy" play. Defense sees your shooter setting up for the classic elevator screen action. Their attention locks in. But the real threat? It's developing quietly on the weak side. Virginia Tech | 4-Low | Elevator Decoy Backdoor

8/ Or consider the Elevator Slip variation. Same setup, different punch line. This time, one screener slips to the basket while the defense focuses on preventing the shooter from getting free. Davidson | 4-High | Elevator Decoy Slip

9/ Made it this far? We're not even close to being done... But if you think you're getting any value from this, I would ask you to consider joining my newsletter. t.co/dlJEcR74xn

10/ But here's the key: these plays demand precision. Crisp, purposeful movements. Convincing decoy actions. Perfect timing between elements. You can't just draw them up - you have to master them.

11/ Here are some more "Gotcha" looks to get inspiration from: Slipping right after screening is a common action. Slipping after a Step Up screen is a bit more interesting. UNLV | Box | Exit Diagonal (Wrinkle - Same Side Slip)

12/ Using your shooter as a strong-side decoy may open up a weakside backdoor cut. Hapoel Jerusalem | Box | Low Cross Gotcha

13/ When defenses see a "Stack" they assume 'screeners'. Why not test their readiness to defend a quick dive? Rochester College | Low Stack | Gotcha

14/ Using the inbounder to score can be done in many ways. The quick "step in" and get a look has hurt my teams in the past as well, as players tend to relax a bit on the inbounder. Minnesota-Duluth | Box | Elbow Choice (Flip-Inbounder Gotcha)

15/ Who doesn't need a simple Lob look? Olivet Nazarene | 31 | Gotcha Lob

16/ Last, but not least, a quick Duck-In Mount Vernon Nazarene | 31 | Weakside Duck-In Gotcha

17/ SHAMELESS PLUG: Grab some of the best Ghost, Backdoor, Slip, and Misdirection plays from around the world and "steal" some points this season! "Gotcha" (Ghosts, Backdoors, Slips and Misdirection plays): - 71 plays - NCAA, NBA, G-League, Euroleague idobasketball.gumroad.com/l/gotcha

18/ Dedicate practice time specifically to these situations. Focus on reading and reacting to defensive adjustments. Because the defense will adjust. Count on it.

19/ That's why you need multiple options built into each play. If they sniff out your initial deception, you need somewhere else to go. No dead ends.

20/ Keep your playbook fresh. Vary your entry passes. Rotate which players fill which roles. Build off established tendencies to create new deceptions.

21/ Because in basketball, like in magic, misdirection is an art. It's about making everyone look one way while the real action unfolds somewhere else.

22/ Master this art, and those heavily scouted games? They become your advantage. Because sometimes the best way to get where you want to go is by making everyone look the other way first.