Prepare with purpose

Game Prep.Win before the opening tip.

Opponent tendencies, coverage choices, matchup planning, and the details that make a scouting report usable.

31 briefsNewest first

Start here · Latest brief

How to Defend the LeBron James 76ers

11 min

Category archive

Every Game Prep brief

02
10 min

Scouting the 2026-27 76ers Offense

LeBron, Brown, Maxey, and Embiid give Philadelphia four shot creators and a spacing problem. Here is the offensive identity and how to game-plan it.

Read analysis
03
10 min

Scouting the Paul George Celtics

Boston swapped Jaylen Brown for Paul George next to Jayson Tatum. Here is the new Celtics look, what changes offensively, and how to defend it.

Read analysis
04
10 min

Los Angeles Lakers 2026-27: How to Defend the Luka Doncic Offense

With LeBron gone to Philadelphia, the Lakers run everything through Luka Doncic. Here is the scouting plan to slow a pure Luka-centric attack.

Read analysis
05
9 min

Milwaukee Bucks 2026-27: Scouting the Post-Giannis Bucks

The Bucks traded Giannis to Miami and reset around Tyler Herro, Myles Turner, and young pieces. Here is their new identity and how to defend it.

Read analysis
06
9 min

How to Attack Drop Coverage in Basketball

Drop coverage tells you exactly what it will give up. Here is how the ball-handler and screener read the pocket pass, the pull-up, and the short roll to punish a big who sits back.

Read analysis
07
10 min

How to Attack a Switch: Switch Hunting in Basketball

Switching kills most actions cold, unless you go looking for the mismatch it creates. Here is how to hunt a switch on purpose, attack the slower foot, and score before the help arrives.

Read analysis
08
9 min

How to Beat a Hedge in Basketball

A hard hedge tries to stall the ball-handler and take away the pull-up. Here is how to split it, hit the short roll, and turn a two-on-two into a four-on-three before the big recovers.

Read analysis
09
10 min

What Is ICE Coverage and How to Beat It

ICE refuses the screen and forces you to the sideline. Here is what ICE (also called blue or down) actually does, and the reject, snake, and re-screen counters that beat it.

Read analysis
10
10 min

How to Beat a Blitz or Trap on the Pick-and-Roll

When the defense sends two to the ball, you are playing 4-on-3 behind it. Here is how to get the ball out, short-roll into the numbers, and score before the defense recovers.

Read analysis
11
9 min

How to Defend in Transition

Transition defense is decided in the first three seconds. Protect the rim, stop the ball, then match up. Here is the order and the reads that stop easy baskets.

Read analysis
12
9 min

How to Defend the Dunker Spot and Baseline Cuts

The dunker spot and the baseline are where drives turn into dunks. Here is how to tag the roller, guard the cutter, and take away the backdoor without giving up a three.

Read analysis
13
10 min

How to Guard a Stretch Big: Drop, Up-to-Touch, and Closeouts

A big who shoots threes breaks your drop coverage. Here is how to defend the pick-and-pop, choose your coverage, and close out without giving up the drive.

Read analysis
14
10 min

How to Guard a Slasher: Angles, Walling Up, and No Middle

A downhill slasher lives at the rim. Here is how to take away his best angle, wall up without fouling, and force him into the help instead of the paint.

Read analysis
15
10 min

How to Guard a Knockdown Shooter: Top-Lock, Chase, and Closeout Short

An elite off-ball shooter never stops moving. Here is how to top-lock him off his spots, chase over screens, and close out short so he never gets a clean look.

Read analysis
16
10 min

How to Guard a Ball-Dominant Lead Guard: Pressure, Coverage, and Gaps

A high-usage lead guard controls the game with the ball in his hands. Here is how to pressure him, pick your pick-and-roll coverage, and use gap help to shrink his floor.

Read analysis
17
12 min

How to Scout an Opponent Before a Game: A Player's Checklist

A lean pre-game scouting checklist for players and small staffs with no video coordinator, covering tendencies, personnel, and sets.

Read analysis
18
9 min

LaMelo Ball to the Timberwolves: A Backcourt Scouting Breakdown

LaMelo Ball now shares a backcourt with Anthony Edwards in Minnesota. Here is how the fit works on offense and how to defend the two-guard look.

Read analysis
19
9 min

How to Defend Ja Morant in Portland: A Pick-and-Roll Coverage Guide

Ja Morant is a Trail Blazer now. Here is how defenses take away his downhill attack and what changes when he runs Portland's pick-and-roll.

Read analysis
20
9 min

Caleb Wilson's 35-Point Summer League Debut: A Bulls Rookie Breakdown

The Bulls' No. 4 pick opened Summer League with 35 points and seven threes. Here is the scouting read on what is real, what to watch, and how he fits.

Read analysis
21
10 min

Jaylen Brown to the 76ers: How to Defend the New Maxey-Brown Wing Pairing

A film-room look at how the Brown for Paul George swap reshapes Philadelphia and Boston, plus a concrete plan for guarding the Maxey and Brown backcourt.

Read analysis
22
9 min

How to Guard Darryn Peterson: A Scouting Breakdown

A defensive game-plan for the Jazz's No. 2 pick Darryn Peterson, from his three-level scoring to the coverages that make him work for his points.

Read analysis
23
9 min

Cameron Boozer Scouting Report: How the No. 3 Pick Projects

A film-room breakdown of Cameron Boozer, the Grizzlies' No. 3 pick, from his Summer League tape to how his game translates to the NBA.

Read analysis
24
9 min

Giannis on the Heat: How Defenses Adjust to Him in Miami

Giannis Antetokounmpo is a Miami Heat now. Here is how NBA defenses re-scout him in a new system and what Miami's thinner spacing changes for opponents.

Read analysis
25
9 min

How to Guard AJ Dybantsa: A Scouting Breakdown

The No. 1 pick punished single coverage in Las Vegas but went 1 of 11 from three. Here is how a defense actually game-plans him.

Read analysis
26
10 min

How Much Time Do Coaches Spend on Film? (And How to Cut It)

NBA staffs watch 6 to 8 hours of film on a non-game day. Most of it is collection, not coaching. Here is where the hours actually go, and the specific ways to cut them without cutting the quality of your prep.

Read analysis
27
10 min

Opponent Scouting Report Template (What Every Coach Should Include)

A scouting report players ignore is wasted work. Here is the template that actually gets read, the sections that matter, what to cut, and a step-by-step way to build it in under an hour.

Read analysis
28
9 min

How NBA Scouting Reports Evolve from Game 1 to Game 5

A scouting report isn't a static document, it's a working file that gets thinner, sharper, and more opinionated each game.

Read analysis
29
8 min

Game 1 Is a Recon Mission (NBA Playoffs 2026)

Game 1 isn't a flex, it's a feeler. Here's how staffs use the first 48 minutes of a series to set the next 240.

Read analysis
30
12 min

Pick-and-Roll Coverages: Drop, Switch, Blitz, ICE (2026)

Every pick-and-roll defense is a choice about what you give up. Here is how drop, switch, blitz, and ICE actually work, the math, the personnel fit, and the read for the ballhandler.

Read analysis
31
6 min

Late-Game SLOBs That Work at Every Level

Side out-of-bounds plays with under 10 seconds left. The principles that translate from high school to the NBA.

Read analysis

Browse another coverage desk

Get started, $9.99/mo