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Lift 21

A quick-hitting zone set designed to free your best shooter for a catch-and-shoot three on the wing through a simple but well-timed lift and screen sequence.

OFFENSE

Zone Offense

FORMATION

3-Out 2-In

CORE ACTIONS

Pin Down

PLAY DESCRIPTION

“Lift 21” isolates the weak side of the zone by combining a middle drive with synchronized inside and baseline screens. The quick lift of the corner shooter perfectly times with the ball screen and dive action, freezing the top zone defender and producing a clean look on the wing.

Why It Works
The play attacks the shifting points of a zone’s top defenders. The inside screen and baseline pin-down pull the defense in opposite directions, forcing one defender to cover two players. The result is an open catch-and-shoot three from the wing — the hardest spot to contest in zone coverage.

Key Teaching Points

  • 1 must drive at the top defender to freeze the zone before kicking out.

  • The lift from 2 must be delayed just enough to align with 1’s penetration.

  • 4’s screen angle on the top defender is crucial — inside shoulder screen.

  • 3’s pin-down on the low outside defender must occupy help coverage.

  • Timing over complexity — every cut and lift must align seamlessly.

PRIMARY ACTIONS

  • Alignment: 1 right slot (ball), 5 right short corner, 4 left short corner, 3 left wing, 2 left baseline corner.

  • 4 sprints up to set an inside ball screen on the right top zone defender for 1.

  • 1 uses the screen, attacking the left top zone defender off the dribble.

  • Simultaneously, 3 dives down and pins the left low zone defender.

  • 2 lifts from the left baseline corner to the left wing.

  • 1 drives to engage and freeze the top defender, then kicks out to 2 for a wide-open wing three.

MEDIA

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