2-3 Top

Purpose

2-3 Top is a defensive shell drill for teaching how the top of a 2-3 zone handles a ball at the top/right slot, a high-post flash, and the first pass down to the right wing or corner.

Use this when your zone is giving up clean catches at the nail, when both top defenders are chasing the ball, or when the bottom-line defender is late closing out to the wing. The goal is to keep the ball contained at the top, bump the high-post flash with the correct top defender, and transfer the ball to the right-side low defender without opening the middle.

This is a good next step after teaching 2-3 Base Rotations, and it connects directly into 2-3 Wing once the ball is passed down the sideline.

Setup

The defense is in a 2-3 zone.

1 is the Point Guard and starts as the lower/right top defender, closest to the ball.

2 is the Shooting Guard and starts as the higher top defender, responsible for protecting the high-post area when the offense flashes a player to the nail.

3 is the Small Forward and starts as the right-side low defender. 3 must be ready to close out to the lower right wing or corner when the ball is passed down.

4 is the Power Forward and starts as the left-side low defender, staying attached to the opposite-side wing and lane area.

5 is the Center and starts in the middle of the zone, protecting the paint and rim.

Offensively, 1 has the ball at the right slot/top area. 2 is spaced on the lower right wing or corner. 3 is high on the opposite side. 4 is on the left wing area. 5 begins low and flashes up toward the high post.

Execution

1. The ball starts with offensive 1 at the right slot/top area. Defensive 1 closes to the ball with an angled stance, taking away a direct drive into the middle.

2. Defensive 2 stays connected to the top line but shades toward the high-post area. 2 cannot stand flat beside 1. The job is to protect the nail and be ready for the high-post flash.

3. Offensive 5 flashes from the low interior area to the high post. Defensive 2 bumps that flash and takes away the easy catch at the nail. Defensive 5 stays in the paint instead of chasing the flash out of the lane.

4. When the ball is passed from offensive 1 down to offensive 2 on the right wing or corner, defensive 1 sinks with the pass for a temporary bump. This prevents an immediate inside pass while the bottom-line defender rotates out.