Westfield HS Lacrosse

5 Rules for a Sound Offense

As adapted from Tex Winter's (mind behind Phil Jackson's triangle offense) "7 Principles of a Sound Offense.".... 

 
1. The offense must penetrate the defense. This is the cornerstone of our offense. Our success will be a direct result of our ability to beat a man one-on-one and force the defense to rotate. To be successful, we must dodge from the correct places, at the correct angles, and at a high speed in order to beat our defenseman and/or draw a slide. As soon as this happens, you have two options: shoot or pass. 
 
2. The offense must provide proper spacing. Being properly balanced and spaced will allow the dodger the space necessary to beat his defenseman and the time to decide whether to shoot or pass, and who to pass the ball to. We all must be in our proper spaces off the ball. If one man is out of place, it has the potential to disrupt our entire offense. 
 
3. The offense must ensure player and ball movement with a purpose. Each player will spend most of his time without the ball. This means each player must get to his spot, make himself a target, and think ahead to know what he's going to do when he gets the ball. You must start in your proper position and then move with a purpose to your new position. This will force your defenseman to rapidly make decisions, thus providing you and your teammates the time and space for scoring opportunities. 
 
4. The offense must give the player with the ball the opportunity to pass to any of his teammates. Again, proper spacing, off ball movement, and always being prepared to receive a pass. All of our motion offenses are designed to follow this principle. It's the duty of each individual to make this a reality. 
 
5. The offense must utilize the players' individual skills. Our motion system requires everyone to be an offensive threat. We are doing this because we have the talent to do it. However, beyond talent, each player must know his own strengths and get himself to the right places to capitalize on those strengths. Each player must be self-reflective about what he does best and find ways to capitalize on his strengths within the flow of the offense.