3 point

Dated Dec 30, 2023; last modified on Sun, 31 Dec 2023

Quick Hammer Plays

A quick hitter is a play that uses a brief number of passes, cuts, screens, or dribble actions to create one or more scoring opportunities. Their typical simplicity might not be effective against a team with solid defense fundamentals.

A hammer set occurs when a weak side player cuts to the nearby corner, usually with the help of a screen. It is generally difficult for the defense to productively guard the baseline attack on the strong side and the off-ball actions on the weak side. The weak side perimeter player is the real target of the set play.

The hammer set play is named after Darvin Ham (current Lakers head coach). Ham would run the play when he played for the Bucks under George Karl.

has a detailed account of a hammer set by LeBron’s Cavs.

QUICK 12 HAMMER. 1 gets a double screen as they drive to the baseline; 2 gets a back screen as they cut to the weak-side baseline. I frequently find 1 open for the pull-up 3pt. Otherwise, a skip pass to the 2 results in an open 3.

QUICK 12 HAMMER SNAP. A variation where double hammer screen helps the 2 cut to where the 1 started. The passing angle is much better. No skip pass needed. If the elbow 3pt is not there, then there’s room for some 2-5 PnR.

A twirl is a curl cut around a screen and an immediate entry to the screener after the cutter clears. The screener pops out to get the ball. A snap is similar to a twirl, except that the ball is thrown into the cutter curling into the post.

However, the QUICK 12 HAMMER SNAP doesn’t feature a pass to the post. What does “snap” mean in this context?

QUICK 14 HAMMER. 4 gets the hammer screen from the 2. Not getting good options on this; might be due to the 2 not being strong enough to screen a 4.

A Piston or Iverson cut is when a player cuts from one wing to the other off of the two players at the high post.

QUICK IVERSON 3 HAMMER. 3 makes an Iverson cut. Can take the 3pt; need user control otherwise the catch-and-shoot 3pt is from way deep. Hitting the 2 at the weak-side baseline is pretty hard to do, especially given that the 2 comes of a single screen.

References

  1. Hammer Set Play in Basketball: Basic Information Explained. hoopstudent.com . Accessed Dec 30, 2023.
  2. 'Hammer Screen'. Term: Hammer screen | by The Basketball Action Dictionary | The Basketball Action Dictionary | Medium. medium.com . Apr 6, 2021. Accessed Dec 30, 2023.
  3. Brilliance by design: LeBron James' bounce pass to nowhere. Dave McMenamin. www.espn.com . Jan 3, 2017. Accessed Dec 30, 2023.
  4. Early Offense - Pitches And Flips. Randy Sherman. team.fastmodelsports.com . Mar 6, 2017. Accessed Dec 30, 2023.
  5. Actions/Plays. hoopschalktalk.wordpress.com . Accessed Dec 30, 2023.
  6. Quick Hitters in Basketball: Set Plays with Scoring Options. hoopstudent.com . Accessed Dec 30, 2023.