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Wikipedia / Princeton offense

The Princeton offense is an offensive basketball strategy which emphasizes constant motion, back-door cuts, picks on and off the ball, and disciplined teamwork. It was used and perfected at Princeton University by Pete Carril, though its roots may be traced back to Franklin “Cappy” Cappon, who coached Princeton in the late 1930s, and Bernard "Red" Sarachek, who coached at Yeshiva University from 1938 to 1977.

Concept

The offense is designed for a unit of five players who can each pass, shoot, and dribble at an above-average level. These players hope to isolate and exploit a mismatch using these skills. Positions become less important and on offense there is no point guard, shooting guard, small forward or power forward. However, there are certain rules that players running this offense are expected to follow.

The offense usually starts out with four players outside the three-point arc with one player at the top of the key. The ball is kept in constant motion through passing until a player without the ball cuts toward the unoccupied area under and around the basket, and receives the ball for a layup. The post player is a very important player in the offense. He or she sets up in the high post and draws attention to their positioning. When the ball is received in to the post the players main objective is to find back door cutters or defenders who have fallen asleep on the weak side.

The hallmark of the offense is the backdoor cut, where a player on the wing suddenly moves in towards the basket behind a defender, receives a bounce pass from a guard on the perimeter, and (if done correctly) finds himself with no defenders between him and a layup. Alternatively, when the defensive team attempts to pack the paint to prevent backdoor cuts, the offense utilizes three point shots from the perimeter. All five players in the offense—including the center—should be competent at making a three-point attempt, further spreading the floor, and not allowing the defense to leave any player unattended.

The offense is often a very slowly developing one, relying on a high number of passes, and is often used in college basketball by teams facing opponents with superior athletic talent in order to maintain a low-scoring game (believing that a high-scoring game would favor the athletically superior opponent). As a result, Princeton has led the nation in scoring defense 19 times, including in every year from 1989 to 2000.

Use at Princeton

During his tenure as head coach of Princeton University (1967–1996), Pete Carril compiled a 514–261 record, a .658 winning percentage. His teams won 13 Ivy League championships during his 29-year tenure with the Tigers, and received 11 NCAA Tournament bids and two National Invitation Tournament berths. Princeton captured the NIT title in 1975. Perhaps Carril's greatest win was his final upset victory, a 43 - 41 win over defending national champion UCLA on a backdoor cut at the end of a first-round game in the 1996 NCAA Tournament. The win extended Carril's retirement by one game and is ranked as one of the best NCAA upsets of all time. Former Princeton coach Sydney Johnson and his predecessors Bill Carmody, John Thompson III, and Joe Scott have all employed the Princeton offense.

Other examples of use

National Basketball Association

After his retirement from Princeton in 1996, Pete Carril served as an assistant coach for the National Basketball Association's Sacramento Kings until 2006. During his time with Sacramento, Carril helped Rick Adelman, who became the Kings' head coach in 1998, implement the Princeton offense. Carril returned to the Kings during the 2008–2009 season as a consultant.

Back in 2012, the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets, New Jersey Nets, and Washington Wizards ran versions of the Princeton offense. Rick Adelman introduced a modified version of Pete Carril's system to the Houston Rockets during the 2007–2008 season. Coach Alvin Gentry also implemented an altered version of it that shows similarities to the triangle offense during the Phoenix Suns′s 2012–13 season. Eddie Jordan implemented the Princeton offense as coach of the Washington Wizards (from 2003 to 2008) and the Philadelphia 76ers (from 2009 to 2010). Mike Brown tried to use the Princeton with the 2012–13 Los Angeles Lakers for five regular season games (four losses) before he and the coaching staff were fired.

College basketball

NCAA Division I

Besides Princeton, some of the NCAA Division I college basketball teams best known for using the offense are:

NCAA Division II

NCAA Division II colleges that have used the Princeton offense include:

NCAA Division III

NCAA Division III colleges that have used the Princeton offense include:

NAIA

NAIA colleges that have used the Princeton offense include:

NJCAA

NJCAA colleges that have used the Princeton offense include:

High schools

High school basketball teams that have used the Princeton offense include:

  • Northridge High School (Johnstown, OH) 2008-2012 under John Wheeler

  • Oak Forest High School (Oak Forest, IL) 2008-2020 under Matt Manzke

  • Regent Prep (Tulsa, Oklahoma) under Kerwin Dees

Canada

United States

AAU, YBOA, and USBA

Amateur Athletic Union, Youth Basketball of America, and United States Basketball Association teams that have used the Princeton offense include:

References

Footnotes

Sources