Simple 5 Out Motion Teaching Progression

4th Grade Spacing and Cutting
When choosing to teach 5 Out Motion we typically initiate this around the 9 to 10 year old range or 4th grade.  Below is a numbered pathway to introduce the offense influenced by Harry Perretta, retired women’s coach from Villanova University.

1. Show 5 Out spacing and name areas in a way that fit your entire program (i.e. top, wings, and corners or top, flats, and stretches, etc…).
2. Show and practice 5-0 full court transition offense off missed shots with dribble penetration in transition with spacing reads off dribble penetration.  You can utilize pushers and fillers or a numbered break and outlet to designated point guard.  At the youth level we prefer pushers and fillers as allows greater diversity to your offense and the opportunity for a greater number of your players to handle the ball.  If a pusher gets the rebound they are their own outlet and look to advance the ball up the floor.
3. Show and practice 5-0 made shot full court transition offense with designated point guard and in-bounder with one to two entries 5-0 (can build up to three entries) such as down screen entry, dribble at entry, or v-cut entries.
4. Demonstrate and practice 5-0 cutting (this can be called option 1) with 2nd cuts out away from ball to balance floor along with dribble at back cuts.
5. Play 5 on 5 half or full court with entries and cutting.
6. Demonstrate and practice 5-0 cutting with addition of slice cuts (cutting towards ball to create double gap).
7. Play 5 on 5 half or full court with entries and slice cut actions (this can be called option 1-slice).

5th Grade Screen Away with Curl Cut

1. Review 5-0 and 5-5 cutting with entries in full and half court setting.
2. Add in screen away actions with curl cut (this can be called option 2) when team can perform cutting and spacing actions as initially reviewed with 70 to 80% accuracy.
3. Player screening away can screen away from top and wing areas but not from corner.  Screener raises fist to pair up with cutter and sprints to screen with wide and balanced base.
4. Cutter’s rule is an automatic curl when first learning this offense to remove any indecision and keep simple.  Cutter is patient and takes defender one to two steps away and then comes off screener shoulder to hip setting match on fire.
5. Normal entries can be used to initiate offense after made buckets or on dead balls.

5th Grade Screen Away with Slip

1. Add in screen away with screener slipping to rim when your team can perform screen away with curl cut with 70-80% accuracy (this can also be a called action on a dead ball such as 2-slip).
2. In this action the screener sprints to screen away and then when within arms distance of cutter quickly cuts or slips to rim.  The cutter cuts opposite the screener and cuts high to the ball on the perimeter.

6th Grade Pass and Ball Screen

1. Two players are designated ball screeners with the other three players being cutters (this can be called option 3).  When the ball screeners receive the ball on the perimeter and make a perimeter pass to a cutter they follow their pass and set a ball screen.
2. After setting a ball screen the screener can roll hard to the rim.
3. Cutters, after making a perimeter pass, cut to the rim and second cut out as in option 1.
4. Normal entries can be used to initiate offense.

6th Grade Slip the Ball Screen

1. This is the same as pass and ball screen (option 3) but instead of the ball screener setting a screen on the defender guarding the ball they quickly slip to the rim when within arms distance of the defender (this can be called option 3-slip).
2. The person with the ball can pass it to the ball screener slipping to the rim, drive the gap vacated by the ball screener, or pass to another teammate on the perimeter and then cut to the rim.

There are a lot of ways to teach 5 Out Motion and various options can be emphasized based on your personnel.  We have found that this numbered teaching progression and working on one aspect at a time has simplified the teaching process for youth coaches and players.  Email us at [email protected] with any questions and as always feel free to share our content.