with Dale Wellman,
Nebraska Wesleyan University Head Men's Coach;
4x American Rivers Conference regular season champions;
2018 NCAA Division III National Champions;
2019 HoopDirt.com NCAA Division III Coach of the Year;
2018 NABC/NCAA Division III National Coach of the Year;
4x American Rivers Conference Coach of the Year;
over 200 career wins
The Princeton Offense is one the most iconic and game-changing systems in basketball history. It has been a staple in college basketball and its concepts are used in just about every major professional basketball league in the world, including the NBA.
In this video, Dale Wellman, head coach at Nebraska Wesleyan, takes an in-depth look at the principles and primary actions of the Princeton Offense. Using his own players, Coach Wellman dissects the options, reads, and counters that have led his teams to average over 90 points per game! You will love the level of detail and execution throughout this video. Even if you choose not to run the offense in full, the concepts and quick scoring actions will surely be adaptable to any system of play.
Princeton Offense Sets
To begin, Coach Wellman discusses his experience and evolution in coaching the Princeton Offense and how it is truly positionless basketball. He starts by outlining the positions, spots, and some of the basic terminology. He then goes into detail on the Point series, which is their primary set.
Once the opposite guard cuts through the lane and brings up the post, the point guard chooses the next action. After hitting the post, the Away or Over actions can be run. Coach Wellman first goes over the Away option. With this decision by the point guard, the offense now has a multitude of options and reads, which Coach Wellman covers in detail. After the pass and choice to go away, the split screen action occurs which results in six options: reject, tight curl, break off, turn, screen the cutter, or pick & roll. Within each option, different reads can be made by the screen/cutter and post player. Once an action is described, it is then run through by players on-court to give you a better picture of how it looks.
Next, the Over action is shown with its various reads and cuts. Little details that make the offense special are essential when learning and teaching the offense. The point guard must get to the "plug" spot when making a high post entry. After entering the ball to the high post, the point guard cuts over and initiates a screen with the player in the corner. Similar options to the away screen are shown. The "screen option" in this play is when the cutter receives a DHO with the 5-man, which has several reads and scoring opportunities. Within this play, the weak side has its own set of reads too. The guards on the weak side can down screen, flare/pin screen, or space out. Several counters to the Over action are then detailed by Coach Wellman, like the "Oh no fake" which is a fake DHO by the post player.
To keep the offense going, many reads and options are shown and discussed in case the first few reads are covered well by the defense.
"Diversify the Offense"
In the concluding segment, Coach Wellman shows more counters and ways to put different players in multiple spots within the Princeton Offense. All of these actions can be put together to create even more looks and scoring opportunities, which will keep any defense honest and on its toes. Options include: Twirl, "Use the other guard", Coop's Corner, Aways, Push, "Return it", and Throwback. Each one can be run together in any combination and can also be used to initiate or continue the Over and Away sets.
You will never run out of things to teach with the Princeton Offense because it teaches players how to play the game instead of how to run plays. Coach Wellman holds nothing back when showing you the ins and outs of each set and option run by his program. If you are ready to use the Princeton Offense, or run some of the actions, this video will provide a solid foundation for your success!
68 minutes. 2021.