Legal Screen Requirements
A screen is a legal basketball action in which an off-ball player positions their body between a defender and their teammate, creating separation.
Individual Skills
Screening Fundamentals
A screen is a legal basketball action in which an off-ball player positions their body between a defender and their teammate, creating separation.
Direct answer
What is Screening Fundamentals?
A screen is a legal basketball action in which an off-ball player positions their body between a defender and their teammate, creating separation.
Quick facts
| Category | Individual Skills |
|---|---|
| Source volume | Basketball Knowledge Vault/vol2_intermediate_building_your_game.md |
What it is
- A screen is a legal basketball action in which an off-ball player positions their body between a defender and their teammate, creating separation.
How it works
- A violation of any of these rules results in a moving screen foul.
- The stationary requirement is the most frequently misunderstood; a screener may move to the screen location but must stop and establish position before the ball handler or off-ball player uses the screen.
- The feet-set requirement means the screener's stance must be stable enough to absorb contact without moving.
- A screener with narrow feet, shifting weight, or leaning into the screen is not truly set and will foul if contacted.
- Legal positioning means the screen is established in the defender's path naturally (not by extending an arm or stepping into them).
Bilingual terms
| English | Screening Fundamentals |
|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 掩护基本功 |
| Traditional Chinese | 篩選基礎知識 |
Learn before and after
These graph neighbors help place Screening Fundamentals in the larger basketball map.
Related concepts
Re-Screening and Secondary Actions
If the ball handler's defender avoids the initial screen (by going under, pushing through, or switching), the screener must be ready to re-screen or execute a secondary action.
Re-Screening and Sequential Screening
Re-screening occurs when a screener, after setting an initial screen that is avoided (defender goes around or under), immediately sets another screen for the same ball handler or a different teammate.
Screening Actions in Inbounds Plays
Screens (down screens, back screens, cross screens) are the primary method for creating space in inbounds plays.
Screening Within Zone Offense
Screening in zone offense is different from screening in man-to-man because zone defenders cannot switch on screens without abandoning their zone responsibility.
Basket Cut and Fill
Both actions are read-based and must be executed at the right moment.
Dribble Retreat and Reset
A dribble retreat occurs when a ball handler, recognizing that the primary action won't work, retreats backward (away from the basket) using the dribble to reset the offense.