I want guys playing for me that love to play defense. I want defenders who take every component of every possession as a personal and team challenge. I want players who don't wait to react to what the offense is doing, but force the offense to react to what they do. Players who relentlessly make their opponent uncomfortable every inch of the floor, end up owning their guy, forcing him to just give up, more and more as the game goes on.
When you have a team of guys like that, a constant wave of one defender after another, and the other team realizes it, you can see it in their eyes. That look of defeat, when guys get touches and are immediately looking to get rid of the ball, when possession after possession sees the shot clock winding down, bad shots turn into fast breaks, coaches start calling timeouts to settle their teams down, and 5 defenders seem like 8.
Pressure defense is not reaching for steals, it is not gambling in passing lanes, it is not hedging to get a highlight block. It is relishing when your guy gets the ball. It is forcing him to his weak hand, making him pick up his dribble in panic and throw the ball away. It is baiting him and taking a charge when he drops the shoulder. It is riding the cutter so physically, that he ends up 10 feet from where he intended to cut. It is trapping hard from the blind side after fighting over a screen, and ripping the ball-handler before he even knows your coming. Pressure defenses do not give layups, dribble penetration, or uncontested looks. Wave after wave of rotations, traps, and physical play, no matter what the offense is trying to do, the defense forces anxiety.
check out this 3 minute clip of VCU, playing pressure D:
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