Step and Slide Footwork Fundamentals

Would you please provide tips on how to drill the step and slide defensive footwork fundamental?

Coach Jim Trope

Coach Trope,

The basics are fairly simple.  Teach your players to keep their center of gravity (mass) over their base of support (area between their two feet) as they move. The basic slide begins with a short "drive" step of the lead foot while pointing the toe slightly in the direction they want to move.  The trail foot is then "dragged" behind closing the distance between the drive and drag foot.  

This technique is taught just about everywhere.  The biggest problem is to have your players keep their feet from closing too closely together creating a Caterpillar type motion by the defender.  Caterpillaring forces the defender to stand up and get beaten because they are raising and lower their center of gravity thus making the defenders body unstable and less able to react and move in any direction and any time during the slide.  

I want to point out here however, that dragging is sort of a misnomer.  I want my players to stay primed on their toes as they move and not drag. The term drag is used to signify to the defender that their first step should never be with the trail foot but always with the lead foot.  Defenders who step and slide with the trail foot ALWAYS get beaten on penetration.  The drive foot move quickly either even or outside the initial penetration step by the offensive player with the ball if you are to force them laterally where you have time as a defender to slide and recover you position.  

Teach your players to keep their chin even with where the ball is being dribbled and they will get beat much less often than if they chase movement of the offensive players body.  Also important is to teach your players that the hands should not reach outward pulling the body forward but should instead flick at the ball and be kept as much as possible in the same vertical plane as the trunk of the body.  I teach my offensive players to penetrate forward whenever a defender sticks that hand out.  Have you ever seen a defensive player who can reach forward and move backward at the same time.  Point made!

The one part of step and slide that I think is undertaught is the turn and sprint movement.  In many cases coaches in the past have screamed at their players to slide faster when they have no chance to recover their beaten position.  I was taught never cross your feet on defense.  This is a good goal, but when you are trying to guard an Allen Iverson or Stephan Marbury try sliding and keeping up with them.  In reality you will have to crossover with your feet in order to spring to catch up and recover position against a speedy and talented dribbler.  

The technique for the crossover is very similar to that of a baseball player wanting to steal second base.  They are low to the ground and cross-over with the trail leg pointing the shoulder and sprinting to a position down the court where they can again regain a defensive buffer zone against the attacking player.  The best defenders can change between the slide and sprint steps without losing their balance.  This requires the head to be over the base of support during the crossover and sprint by the defender to avoid losing their balance.  You can find a good drill for this in our Coaches Playbook called 1000 MPH Recovery, which can be used to teach
Both the step and slide and crossover sprint recovery steps.

Thanks for asking the Coach.  Hope we helped you cut down on offensive penetration with better technique.