Sixers need to improve their pick-and-roll play

WHETHER the NBA offensive game consists of isolation, a spread game or anything else, the basis for all is the pick-and-roll. Pretty much every halfcourt set at the offensive end begins with a pick-and-roll somewhere in the half court, with whatever comes out of that is the focal point of the offense.

The rules of the pick-and-roll used to be a little bit less complicated. When shorts were shorter and there was no three-point line, it was a case of the point guard getting a solid high-post pick from a big man, then reading the opening he had. Ideally, the picker would hold off the on-the-ball defender long enough that the big defender would have to hedge to the ballhandler. The picker would hold the small defender on his back, roll to the ball and the basket, and the mismatches would be gained.

The rule for defenders would be to hedge and recover, meaning the smaller defender would get through the pick as quickly as possible, while the big-man defender showed enough defensive presence to slow the guard with the ball, then get back to covering the offensive big. But then the slip pick came into play, where the big would fake a pick, wait for the defenders to commit, then surprisingly roll to the basket. Now, with the spread game, the picker often will step out after the contact, able to hit the 18- to 20-foot jumper.

It's really not as complicated as it might sound, because, really, none of the variations of the pick-and-roll works without a good solid pick, or the appearance of one, being set.

The 76ers right now are not a very good picking team. Too often, defenders simply slide around the screen without losing a step toward where they want to be with the defender. There are various reasons for the failed play - sometimes it's the impatience of the player with the ball to wait for the screen, other times the screener simply doesn't get where he belongs.

"I think players picked better when I first broke into the league," said Elton Brand, now in Year 17 of his NBA career. "I don't know it's a lost art, but it's certainly effective when it's used correctly, especially with the scoring guards of today. Now the big men are slipping the screens to get to their shot more, so a lot of guys are setting them as hard as they used to. When solid picks are set, it is much more effective, because guys are getting their lanes. But now it's more of a slip-and-space type of game. But a good, solid pick is always effective."

Brand made a solid scoring career off setting picks, rolling to the ball and being one of the best midrange shooters of his era. His wide 6-9 frame was the perfect picking tool, and Brand knew how to use it to his, and his teammates', benefit.

Of course, the game has changed so much since Brand started in the league, with guards able to step out to 25 feet and hit jumpers consistently, and with players even bigger than he also able to get out to 20 feet and make shots effortlessly.

But if you watch a game - no matter the level - a solid pick in which a defender's progression is, at the least, disrupted and, at the most, thwarted, still has a major impact on a good shot immediately following.

"The simplest rule that we try to give our players is that you have to try to force the defender over the pick," coach Brett Brown said. "What that does is, if you do that, you change the footwork, where, if the pick is set correctly and the player guarding the ball goes over the pick, then you have so many more options. Teams go under picks against us, surrendering the jumper, because we don't have many threats to consistently make jumpers with our ballhandlers. You can't let guys go under. The rule of the sideline pick-and-roll or a middle pick-and-roll is that if you have the mentality as a screener to force the defender over, you're going to hit (what you want to do) more than you won't.

"I think just the technique, coaches really want to go under the pick a lot, especially on people who aren't Steph Curry. The league is more not Steph Curry than it is, so you see a lot of people going under. But now people slip out of the picks for lobs a lot. So there's a lot going on. Plus, there is a responsibility of the player using the screen. It just doesn't all fall on the screener. You have to get off the pick at the right position, shoulder-to-shoulder, and deliver the defender to a picker. And sometimes you don't see the picker waiting long enough."

The game is always evolving. The more complex that simple things, such as the pick-and-roll, get, the more room for error. It might have been one of the first offensive plays invented, as simple as its name. It's expanded a lot more over the years, but perhaps the simplicity of the pick-and-roll is the magic of it.

"Both defensively and offensively, it's our game," Brown said. "So you better be able to guard it and use it. I don't know if I agree that it's as bad as you're saying throughout the league. But there is no question that a good, solid screen goes a long way to getting you into the offense that you're looking for. Sometimes is a whole lot easier than it's made out to be. Set a screen, roll to the basket and score. That's easy. But it ain't always that."

On Twitter: @BobCooney76

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