You are the coach – how do you want to start the game?

As a basketball coach – what do you do / how do you want to start the game? Do you want to build up a consistent lead right from the start? Or do you hope that during the game, you will start building an advantage and then gradually keep increasing it?

Let’s look at some real-life situations first:

• Semifinal B of the Euroleague Final Four in Berlin (Germany) in May 2024. In the game between Panathinaikos Aktor vs. Fenerbahce Beko, the score was 12-0 in the first 5 minutes of the contest fact that determined coach Sarunas Jasikevicius to request a timeout and try to find a solution for his Turkish side! Fenerbahce managed to get back in the game in the second quarter and reduced the deficit to 2 points only: 38-36 at half time; and made it 1 point game 51-50 after Tyler Dorsey 2 points attempted with 3:37 left in the third quarter; but Panathinaikos eventually won 73-57 and advanced to the final!

• Round 5 of 2024-2025 season in Kaunas (Lithuania) in October 2024: an identical with previous example 12-0 run in the game between Zalgiris Kaunas vs Maccabi Tel Aviv with 5:46 remaining in the first quarter, left the visiting team wondering what can be done to limit the proportions of the score! It then became 24-7 with 1 minute left in the first quarter, and finally 26-7 at the end of it. The hosts increased their lead to 32-7 and then 32-12 with 7:30 left in the second quarter – eventually it was 44-24 at halftime, and the game seemed to be over! Final score 78-63 for the Lithuanians after 40 minutes of play!

• The game between Bristol Flyers vs. Dinamo Bucharest in January 2025 in Group B of European North Basketball League (ENBL) during 2024-2025 season: after initially exchanging baskets (2-2), the score difference increased to 18-2 in favour of the home side within the first 6 minutes of the game! The visitors managed a 3-point shot to make it 18-5, but then it was 21-5 and 24-9 at the end of the first quarter! Bristol ended up winning the game 76-58.

• Real Madrid built up a comfortable 15 points advantage in the first 5 minutes of their Round 30 Euroleague encounter against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne on 20^th March 2025 – benefiting from Campazzo’ made free throws; Tavarez’ 10 points and Dejan Musa’ 3 pointer (but also from ASVEL several missed shots and their 3 turnovers during this time): 15-0! With 5:18 left ASVEL scored and opened their account on the evening: 15-3! But then later in this opening quarter, Sergio Llull’s triple made it 28-8 with 1:18 minutes left, B. Fernando one free throw 29-8 and then another Sergio Llull triple 32-10 with 2 seconds left in the first quarter !!! 32-10 at the end of the quarter, in which ASVEL could not find a solution to stop Tavares and the 3-point shooting from Real. Add 8 turnovers, then 29% on 2-point shooting and 20% at 3 points, and you have the complete picture of the 1^st quarter and of a disastrous start! Although ASVEL won the 2^nd quarter 24-20 and also the 3^rd quarter 19-16, it was Real Madrid who eventually won 81-70.

And similar examples can continue. Coaches must deal with these type of situations – either a slow start or a very good start. Now, on one hand, the question is how do you respond, as a coach, to this type of start of the game if your team is trailing? What do you do – what do you tell your players? Using timeouts, making substitutions, using specific tactics as part of your man to man defence, zone or combined defence could be a solution for sure for the team that has a slow start. The answer is not an easy one, especially when nothing seems to be working (your players miss shots, turn the ball over, the defence does not stop opposite players from scoring, etc.).

And, on the other hand, from the perspective of the coach whose team is winning, do you want to build this lead so early in the game? According to the late Serbian coach Dusan Ivkovic (1943-2021), building a lead of 10 or more points is not something that he wanted from his team. As part of his article published by FIBA Assist Magazine (for full article read FIBA Assist Magazine issue from 18 January/February 2006, pages 19-23), Ivkovic stated that “as a rule, there is a drop in concentration of your players (when this happens – build a lead of 10 points or more) and it’s only a matter of time before the opponent starts to score baskets and ties the game”. This is obvious in some of the examples illustrated above, when teams managed to get back into the game and close the initial gap. Ivkovic also spoke about the fact that he never used a newly designed offensive or defensive action right from the beginning of the game, mainly because he knew “the opposing coach will read my strategy and quickly make changes in his offense or defense”. He then added: “The easily achieved points from the new offenses or defenses are ones that I want to save for key game moments, when the game has slowed down, for example. In this way, I have a new solution when a basket is desperately needed”. Another interesting finding from his advice, as part of the same article, is that he preferred “pick-and-roll plays not to be the chosen offense at the beginning of the match”. Which is quite an interesting choice considering that pick and roll actions are so widely used at any moment in the game mainly due to their effectiveness!

Taking into account all these arguments presented above, one thing is clear – coaches have plenty of things to consider and to implement in their games. Lots of questions to answer for sure, and these answers relate to your own coaching philosophy as a coach and to what you expect your players to do not only at the beginning of the game but for its whole duration too!

Alex Radu is a Senior Lecturer in Sports Coaching Basketball at the University of Worcester (England/UK). He has coached various teams at different levels of the game at both club and national team level, including: Romania U20 Women National Team and Romania U18 Women National Team (Assistant Coach – at European Championship Division B); Romania U16 Women National Team (Head Coach at European Basketball Balkanic Games 2023); Wales U18 and U20 Men National Team (Head Coach) and Wales Senior Men National Team (Assistant Coach – at European Championship for Small Countries); Romania Women National Team (Assistant Coach – at Women Eurobasket 2015; Cardiff Archers (Associate Head Coach – in WBBL/Women Basketball League, UK); Worcester Wolves (Assistant Coach – in BBL /British Basketball League, UK).

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