What is give and go in basketball?
Give and go is a tactic that occurs when one particular offensive player in possession of the basketball, typically near a perimeter area of the court, passes it to a second player, which is then followed up by a cut towards the basket from the first player, ultimately to receive the ball again for a possible scoring opportunity near the rim.
Why is it called give and go?
It is generally referred to as give and go because as the name implies, an initial player will give the basketball to another secondary player.
Following that, the initial player will immediately go towards the basket, ultimately to score points after receiving the ball again from the second offensive player.
How to understand the diagrams on this page
In relation to any diagrams below, each of the players do not have specified roles at this time and are simply denoted via numbers such as 1, 2, or 3.
Furthermore, in terms of a brief legend for the diagrams:
- Black Dot or Small Circle: The black dot or small circle represents the basketball.
- Solid Arrow: The solid arrow indicates movement or a cut on the basketball court.
- Dotted Arrow: The dotted arrow represents a basketball pass.
- Wavy Arrow: The wavy arrow indicates dribbling.
- T-Shaped Symbol: The T-shaped symbol signifies a screen, also known as a pick.
- Double pipe symbol: The double pipe symbol denotes handoff action.
What is an example of give and go action initiated from the top?
This basic action begins with 1 at the top with possession of the ball and 2 on the right side wing.
Afterwards, 2 receives the ball via a pass from 1. Next, 1 simply cuts straight to the basket. Following that, 1 could receive the ball from 2 and score via a layup.
What is an example of give and go action initiated from the wing?
For this basic action, 2 starts with possession of the ball on the wing and then passes it to the top with 1 as the recipient.
From there, 2 cuts to the basket, receives the ball again from 1, and scores via a layup.
What is an example of give and go action via a high post handoff?
For this action, 1 begins at the top with possession of the ball while 2 and 3 occupy the high post elbow areas respectively.
Next, 1 has the option to pass to either 2 or 3. For this case, 2 receives the ball from 1. Afterwards, 1 cuts toward 2 on the outside, and receives the ball via a handoff, represented by the double pipe symbol.
Additionally, as soon as 1 has possession of the ball again, 1 immediately dribbles toward the lane to attack the rim and score via a layup.
What are general benefits of give and go action?
Give and go action could be a practical method of developing the fundamental skills of passing and cutting.
Passing is generally important because it promotes ball movement, which could also lead to defensive breakdowns.
Cutting is generally important because it promotes player movement and that could potentially lead to one or more mistakes by the opposing defense, which could also result in high percentage scoring opportunities.
Give and go action could also be an effective way to build chemistry between the two players involved in the primary passing and cutting activity as well as within the overall dynamics of the team altogether.
Basically, passing the basketball to teammates and receiving it from teammates builds trust while also promoting good teamwork alongside providing positive contributions to the team as a whole.