Drag Series by Adam Short
I got the Drag series from my head coach at Avila, Coach “P”. We ran this at Avila as well as on the AAU circuit coaching MOKAN. This offense is very effective and works when you have 4 guards and one “traditional” big. The main offense of this series is called “drag series”. You want your trail man who is the 4 man to set the ball screen in transition. Your 5 man will sprint to the front of the rim then move to the weak side short corner. After 4 sets a ball screen for 1, 1 is looking to attack. If 1 can’t create anything, he will pass the ball to 3 on the wing. 1 will cut to the ball side corner. 5 will then come set a ball screen for 3. 5 will become the designated screener in the “Drag Series”. As soon as 3 comes off the ball screen, the weak side wing is immediately cutting back door. For the diagram, 2 is the weak side wing. 3’s first look is the weak side wing cutting back door. 4 will then pop up from the weak side corner to the weak side wing. 5 will roll to the basket. 1 will fill up to the left side wing. 3 can get all the way to the basket, hit 4 for a shot, or hit 1 on the look back option. If 3 hits 4, 3 will then cut to the ball side corner. 5 will come up and set a ball screen. 1 will immediately cut back door as 4 is coming off the ball screen. Your team will continue the “Drag” action. A few keys to the offense, is, 5 must sprint as hard as he can every time he is going to set the ball screen. He can’t jog. Also, you want your 5 man to almost set a flat ball screen. You want the 5’s man chest to be at the defenders top shoulder. This will allow the player coming off the screen a better angle for attacking. You want to teach your guards to attack the ball screen just as the 5 man is setting the ball screen. This makes it hard for 5’s defender to hedge the ball screen. There are different variations you can do with the offense. You can have the 1 dribble handoff to either the 2 or 3 and have 4 set a ball screen for the wing. You can have 1 dribble handoff to either 2 or 3 and have 4 and 5 set a double ball screen for either wing. Also, you can have 4 and 5 set a double ball screen for 1 which will also get your team into “Drag”. There are multiple ways you can run the “Drag Series”. “Step Up” is very effective in the open court. You want your 5 to sprint to about half court and turn around. You want your 2 and 3 to run the wings out wide. Once your 1 man gets the ball he is running right off of 5’s flat ball screen. If you have a quick point guard, this will cause trouble for your opponent’s transition defense. You must have your 1 run off of 5’s shoulder when coming off the flat ball screen in transition.
Adam Short begins his first year as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Cowley College. Short grew up in Indiana and was a First-Team All-Conference selection as a senior at Lake Central High School. He went on to attend Joliet (Ill) Junior College and helped the team to a NJCAA Division III national runner-up finish, while being named First-Team All-Conference and a two-time Region 4 Player of the Week. After Joliet, Short spent his final two years of college basketball playing at NAIA school Avila University in Kansas City, MO. At Avila, he scored more than 1,000 points in his career and earned all-conference honors each year at the school. He graduated from Avila in 2011 with a Bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in writing. Short then served as a graduate assistant coach with the Avila men’s basketball team from 2011-2013, and earned a Masters degree in Organizational Development in 2013. He also spent the past two years working with MoKan Nike Elite Youth Basketball League out of Kansas City, MO. His job duties consisted of coaching, scouting, and breaking down film.
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