Breaking Down Yago Santos’ EuroLeague Pick and Roll Game Yago Santos EuroLeague Pick and Roll Breakdown vs Baskonia
Yago Santos pick and roll ability is one of the most effective weapons in the EuroLeague, both with his club and the Brazilian National Team.. In this learning video, we break down some of his offensive and defensive possessions from a game VS Baskonia:
His passing ability is one of the most notable areas of Santos’ game. The old saying of “eyes tell lies” is most evident seeing Santos handle in the pick and roll. The skill of being able to look away before making a pass, faking a pass to make a pass, or creating distance from the defense to pass over and around them are all ways Santos can manipulate a coverage.
EuroLeague: Baskonia vs. Crvena Zvezda:
- Rub - drop/over - curl
- Rub vs. 2-3 zone
- Shoot
- Side short - drop - crack and roll
- Set play - ghost flare
- Rub - flat show - curl
- Runway - wheel under
- Transition principles - lag-free reaction
- Transition principles - high outlet
- Side - show - short roll
- Scram switch
- Foul to not give up mismatch
- Scram switch
While Yago's stature may be a constraint, his ability to manipulate defenses by using deception and anticipating, is what makes him truly world-class.
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21 SSGs for your next practice.
A free PDF of small-sided games you can run right away. A practical first taste of the approach.
Manipulating Defensive Affordances: "Eyes Tell Lies"
By looking away or faking a pass, Santos introduces "noise" into the defender's perceptual field. This subtle fake forces the defender to commit to a non-existent threat, momentarily compromising their balance or positioning and opening a passing lane that was previously "closed".
This is something Luka Dončić does extremely well. In the clip below, his momentum looked like he would shoot or attempt the lob but he lasers the pass to the corner, giving the shooter time and space for the ROB (rhythm, open, balance) shot.
Yago’s game is a masterclass in navigating a shifting landscape—and that’s exactly what we should be training.
The Yago Santos EuroLeague pick and roll is a perfect example of how modern guards manipulate defensive coverages in high-level competition.
To train these reads with your own players, our basketball pick and roll guide breaks down the coverages and options, and how to teach deception ecologically builds on the eyes tell lies idea.
Coaches can find SSGs and drills for players to read the help side defense here:https://transformingbball.com/small-sided-games-book
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