Playbook Breakdown: Cross Screen to Post Iso

Getting your big man a touch on the block isn’t as simple as just dribbling down and dumping it inside. Good man-to-man defenses will three-quarter front the post, pack the paint on the strong side, and dig hard on the catch. If you want to feed the post, you have to engineer the entry.

This set, heavily utilized by the Utah Jazz, is a clinic on how to get your center deep post position. It uses a baseline cross screen to force the defense to navigate traffic, followed by immediate top-side cutting action to freeze the help defense and create a true 1-on-1 isolation for your big.

Here is the breakdown of the court movement, the reads, and what to demand from your guys in practice.

The Action: Step-by-Step Execution

1. The Setup & Cross Screen The possession initiates with your point guard (the 1) on the left slot. Your small forward (the 3) sprints from the left wing down to the baseline to set a hard cross screen for your center (the 5), who is stationed on the opposite block. The 5 comes off that screen, cuts hard across the paint, and seals their man to establish deep position on the strong-side (left) block.

2. The Post Entry & Cut The timing here is critical. As soon as the 5 gets leverage, the 1 delivers the post entry pass. The split-second the ball leaves their hands, the 1 makes a hard cut off your power forward (the 4), who is stationed at the high post/elbow. The 1 cuts straight down the middle of the paint. We don’t necessarily want the ball back here; this cut is designed to force the 1‘s defender to chase, taking them completely out of position to dig or double-team the post.

3. Spacing the Floor (The Iso) While the 1 is clearing through the lane to the opposite wing, the 3 (who set the initial cross screen) flashes hard to the top of the key to replace the point guard. Your 4 stays high.

Look at the spacing at the end of the action: you now have your 5 with the ball on the block, and your other four players spaced perfectly around the perimeter and weak side. The help defense is entirely cleared out. Your big is on an island.

Practice Focal Points

If you run this and your big gets fronted or the pass gets deflected, it’s because your guys are cutting corners. Hold them accountable to these details:

Head-Hunting on the Cross Screen: The 3 can’t just run to the baseline and stand there. They need to find the 5‘s defender, get wide, and put a body on them. A weak screen ruins the entire play.
Establish Deep Position: The 5 has to read the screen, wait for it to be set, and seal the defender high or low. Do not let your bigs drift out to the mid-post. They need to catch this with two feet in the paint.
Cut at Game Speed: The 1 cannot jog through that post-entry cut. It has to be a dead sprint. If they jog, their defender will just sit in the gap and harass the 5. Make the defense respect the cut.
Patience on the Block: Once the 5 catches the ball, they need to chin it and take a breath. Let the 1 clear out and let the 3 fill the top. Once the spacing is set, go to work.