HOW PICK AND ROLL WORKS
1. The screen creates pressure
In pick and roll, a teammate sets a screen on the ball handler's defender.
This does two things:
- it slows down the on-ball defender
- it brings another defender closer to the ball
Now the defence is under pressure.
2. Attack the screen to create a small advantage
Using the screen does not mean dribbling around it slowly.
Attacking means:
- turning the corner
- going toward the basket
- with the intention to score
If you turn the corner and get your defender on your hip, you have created a small advantage.
If you don't attack, the defence recovers — and the screen does nothing.
A small advantage is created when:
- you get past the on-ball defender
- or you force them to trail behind you
At this point, one defender can no longer guard you alone.
What you are doing here is the same thing you learned in the Advantages section. You are still attacking the paint, getting past your defender, and forcing the defence to help. The difference is how the advantage starts. The screen helps you turn the corner more easily, get into the paint faster, and force help sooner. At the same time, the screener is rolling toward the basket, pulling another defender with them, and adding pressure on the help defence. That means the defence has less time to recover.
3. Reading the help
In pick and roll, the defence must protect the basket.
That means help usually comes from a defender not guarding the ball.
Most teams are trained to:
- help from the weak side
- send the low man to the paint
Because skip passes are harder than short passes, this help is predictable.
As you watch, notice that the ball handler:
- plays with patience
- slows down instead of rushing
- looks for rotating defenders, not just open teammates
- gets into the paint to force full help
The goal is not to move fast.
The goal is to make the defence commit.
4. Make two guard one (the first problem)
When you use the screen and turn the corner, the defence has an immediate problem.
Your defender is behind you.
Now the screener's defender must get involved.
This creates a 2-on-1.
The screener's defender must choose:
- stop you
- or stay with the screener
If they don't step up, it's an easy layup or dunk.
That's why they are trained to help.
Most teams are taught to switch or step up to stop the ball.
When that happens:
- two defenders are now guarding you
- the screener is temporarily free
This is the first big advantage created by the pick and roll.
But the defence isn't done yet.
To stop the screener, another defender must rotate.
This help usually comes from:
- the weak side
- the low man near the basket
Now the defence has turned the situation into a 3-on-2.
They are trying to solve one problem —
but they are creating another.
You are not just reading the screen.
You are reading how the defence solves the screen.
You are asking:
- Who stepped up to stop me?
- Who rotated to stop the roll?
- Who did they leave?
The defence shows you the answer.
- No help on the roll → pass to the screener
- Help comes to the roll → pass to the open shooter
Pick and roll works because the defence is always one step behind. They fix one problem and create another one somewhere else. This is not a defensive mistake. It is what happens when good offence forces too many decisions at once.
5. Keeping the advantage going
When you pass out of the pick and roll, the defence has already been forced to rotate.
That rotation usually creates:
- an easy shot
- and a hard closeout
Both are good outcomes for the offence.
Now the advantage has moved to a new player.
When your teammate catches the ball, the defence has already shown its hand.
There are two correct options:
- If the shot is easy, take it. The kick-out or skip pass created the shot you wanted.
- If a defender is closing out hard, attack it. Closeouts are often late and out of control.
Attacking a bad closeout means:
- going toward the basket
- with intent to score
- trying to get past your defender
If the next player gets past their defender:
- the defence is tested again
- help must come again
- another teammate becomes open
This is the same process repeating.
Drive → help → pass
Closeout → drive → help → pass
The advantage keeps moving until the defence finally breaks.
Pick and roll works because it:
- creates gaps
- forces help
- turns rotations into closeouts
It doesn't rely on tricking the defence.
It works because the defence cannot guard everything at once.
Pick and roll is not a play you run. It is a situation you read. If you attack the screen, get into the paint, read the help, and take the shot or attack the closeout — you are doing exactly what good offence is supposed to do.