FLEX OFFENSE

Back in the 1970's, an offense was developed as an even-guard front version of the shuffle offense known today as the Flex offense.  This offense has found its success replicated in the international, professional, collegiate, and amateur ranks as an offense that is difficult to stop and takes advantage of the defense's mistakes.

Advantages of the Flex Offense

The Flex offense is difficult to guard when the offense is able to make the guard-to-guard pass on top.  This is because of how difficult the screen-the-screener action is to defend.  Reversing the basketball makes defenses work and the guard-to-guard pass must be denied.  When this happens, there are several counters that the offense can use to take advantage of a single-minded defense.

The second aspect of the Flex offense that is advantageous is that it can be incorporated as a quick hitter or as an inbounds play.  Several teams have found how they can flow into the offense and use it to execute the offense, especially the baseline cut.

Third, there is a counter for everything.  If the defense takes something away, the way the defense plays against the offense can be exploited for a big score.  As mentioned earlier, if the defense tries to take away one thing, the offense has an answer.

Disadvantages of the Flex Offense

In most cases, the offense requires that all five players play all five positions.  While there are variations of the Flex offense that can be run to compensate for this, the primary way that the Flex offense is run requires all players to be capable cutters, screeners, passers, and jump shooters.  All of these things have to be worked on during practice.

Another disadvantage is that the offense, because its patterned, players can become so focused on trying to get the basic movement to work that they can forget about the counters.  It is important that the players be put in positions in practice where they are forced to run the counters against a live defense.

Basic Movement

Diagram 1 shows the first action in the basic movement of the Flex offense.  On any pass from guard to guard, the post on the first side of the floor sets a back screen for the player in the corner.  Meanwhile, the post on the side opposite the occupied corner will pop out to the new ball-side corner.

Diagram 2 shows the second part of the basic movement.  Once the cutter uses the screen the player who made the guard-to-guard pass in the first diagram will set a down screen for the screener from the first diagram.  This assumes that the defense did not switch the first screen for which there is a counter that will be presented later in the article.

Diagram 1

Diagram 2

Diagrams 3 and 4 show the basic movements of the Flex offense going from the second side to the third side of the floor. 

Diagram 3

Diagram 4

Flex Offense Counters

The Flex offense has several counters that have to be taught to the players so that the offense can take advantage of the defense taking away parts of the offense.  Diagram 5 shows what we do when the defense anticipates the down screen for the first screener in the basic movement.  We will have the cutter off of the down screen use the screen again.  This time, it will be used as a back screen so that we can get the lay-up off of the defense's cheating the screen.

Diagram 5

If the defense anticipates the back screen for the corner, we set up a stagger double (Diagram 6).  The back screen becomes the first screen in the stagger while the player making the guard-to-guard pass sets the second screen in the stagger.

Diagram 6

It is also common that the defense will look to switch screens as shown in Diagram 7.  Here, the back screen for the corner is switched.  When this happens, we want the screener to turn and step to the ball and receive the pass.

Diagram 7

The defense could also switch on the down screen as shown in Diagram 8.  When this happens, we want the screener to slip to the basket and look for the lay-up.

Diagram 8

If the pass cannot be made to the guard or the corner, the help-side post can then flash to the high post and receive the pass (Diagram 9).  When this happens, the guard opposite the passer will cut backdoor and look for the lay-up.

In Diagram 10, the backdoor is not available and a number of options develop.  The blind pig can make a high/low pass, a pass to the original passer who switches sides of the floor, the back-cutting guard who comes back to the perimeter, or the remaining player (#3) who v-cuts and replaces.

Diagram 9

Diagram 10

Corner Options

When the ball is passed to the corner, there are three options that are available.  It should be noted that the coach should only choose one of these options.

The first of these is a UCLA cut as shown in Diagram 11.  If the pass cannot be made to the cutter off of the UCLA cut, the ball can be passed back to the top to the screener or to the help-side post who comes across on the away screen set by the player coming off of the UCLA cut (Diagram 12).

Diagram 11

Diagram 12

The other option is to keep with the idea of screen-the-screener as the heart of the Flex offense.  In Diagram 13, the ball-side post screens away for the help-side post and brings him to the ball.  After the help-side post clears, the ball-side guard sets the down screen for the first screener.

Diagram 13

The last of these is for the offense to pair off and screen away as shown in Diagram 14.  The players on the ball side will screen way for the players on the help side.  The ball-side guard will screen away for the help-side guard and the ball-side post will screen away for the help-side post.

Diagram 14

Maryland Flex

The Maryland Flex is a variation of the Flex offense in that it relies on reversing the basketball and only using the baseline cut.  In Diagrams 15 and 16, the ball is swung from side to side as the post sets the back screen in each instance for the baseline cutter.  The only difference from the regular Flex offense is that the down screen is not made by a guard.  This offense works well if you have three forwards and two guards.

Diagram 15

Diagram 16

Maryland Flex Counters

In the Maryland Flex, there are times when the offense will take away the guard-to-guard pass that keeps the offense going.  When that happens, there is a counter that can take advantage of this development.  The defense in Diagram 17 overplays the passing lane.  When this happens, the help-side guard will fake high then cut backdoor and look for the pass. 

If the backdoor is not available, the player with the ball will change sides of the floor with the dribble (Diagram 18).

Diagram 17

Diagram 18

When the counter has been completed, the baseline cut action resumes.  It will restart with a back screen by the post as the guard looks for the baseline cutter.

Diagram 19

Flex Offense in Transition

When running the Flex offense, the transition game can be put into practice relatively easily.  If the ball is passed ahead to the corner, the corner option can be executed.  Here, the UCLA cut option to the corner is used in transition in Diagram 20.
 

Diagram 20

The other option is to make the guard-to-guard pass to the trailer (Diagram 21).  When this happens, we get into the basic Flex action with the screen-the-screener action for which the Flex offense is known.
 

Diagram 21

If neither option is possible, we can run a high pick-and-roll play (Diagram 22).  The ball screener will roll to the basket and get replaced by the post-up man in the transition offense.  Depending on whether the ball is passed to the corner or reversed, the corner option or the Flex action can be run.

Diagram 22

Teaching the Flex Offense

When introducing the Flex offense, it is best to teach the movement with five offensive players against no defense.  This allows the players to learn the basic movements as well as the counters.  It is best to teach the basic offense then move into the counters once the offense is fully understood by the players.

There are three breakdown drills that are effective for the Flex offense.  The first is the rear screen drill.  This drill works on the baseline cut in the Flex offense.  It starts out two-against-zero so that the movements and the counter to a switching defense can be taught.  We then add the defense and tell the defense (not letting the offense know) how to handle the screen.  The offensive players should respond according to whether or not the defense switches to execute the maneuver.

The second drill is the down screen drill.  This works on the second screen in the offense.  It should be taught in the same way as the rear screen drill in that it should start with no defense against it then move to a two-on-two situation with the defense switching and not switching so that the offensive players can act accordingly.

The last part of the offensive breakdown is to work on the combination of the rear screen and the down screen.  This drill is four-against-three and starts with the guard-to-guard pass.  Once it is made, the screen-the-screener action is executed by the offense against a defense that can either anticipate, switch, or play normal defense.

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