Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense Notes by Wes Kosel

Written by Coach Peterman

I have coached at the NCAA Division 2 (Southwestern Oklahoma State University), NAIA (USAO), and JUCO Levels (Blinn College and Carl Albert State College) as well as high school. I just felt that fellow coaches especially young coaches need to constantly work on their “game”. Just like the basketball players that we coach. We as coaches need to improve ourselves. That is my story and why I do this blog.

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October 19, 2014

Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense Notes by Wes Kosel

Here are some notes on the Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense. Coach Pinholster is credited for the innovation of the wheel offense. He created the wheel in the late 1950s while coaching at Oglethorpe University (Georgia). He coached 10 years at Oglethorpe compiling a 180-68 record and was 276-89 during his career as a college coach.

In these notes, Coach Pinholster notes that he didn’t create the Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense, but that his opponents created it for him. The offense came out of a need for a single formation to attack both man to man and zone defenses. Opponents would alternate defenses against his teams, and Pinholster didn’t like the way his teams had to reset into either a man or zone offense. The Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense got the name “Wheel” because it has a hub (the pivot man), spokes (the 4 other players), and the spokes rotate around the middle and revolve like a wheel. Also, the wheel can be run at different speeds and can be stopped and reversed. This is a continuity offense that moves the players in a circular, or wheel, pattern to create scoring opportunities. Pinholster had great defensive teams, and used this offense to keep possession so that the opposing team had fewer possessions and therefore fewer opportunities to score.

The first formation shown is an overload 1-3-1, with 3 players in a line down the side of the key and one player on each wing. Pinholster presents several cutting options and strategies for running this offense. The second formation shown is a 2-1-2 with 4 players out and 1 player inside at the high post. Pinholster does a great job explaining his thought process throughout the article. I hope you enjoy these notes on the Garland Pinholster Wheel Offense.

Wes Kosel is an assistant coach for men’s basketball under Head Coach Andy Partee at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, CO. Kosel joined the staff at Colorado College after serving two seasons as an assistant coach at Texas Lutheran University and one season at Haskell Indian Nations University. Kosel has an undergraduate degree in Exercise Science from the University of Kansas, and is pursuing a Master’s degree in Physical Education from the University of Houston. The Bartlesville, OK native is also a NSCA Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), a certified personal trainer (NSCA-CPT), and taught weight training and aerobic fitness courses while coaching at Texas Lutheran. He has coached AAU programs, volunteered with elementary and middle school basketball teams, and has worked basketball camps for various programs including the Houston Rockets, University of Houston, Texas State, and Texas A&M Corpus Christi.