Pick and Roll Spacings: The 4 Pillars. How to use them?

The pick-and-roll is a key offensive weapon, but its effectiveness depends on proper spacing. To keep it simple, this post breaks down four essential pick-and-roll spacings—Rub, Side, Clear, and Angle. Each spacing impacts how the defense reacts and helps create better scoring opportunities in 5-out or 4-out, 1-in systems. Let’s dive in!

So what are the 4 most common pick and roll spacings we see today?

If you were to search for pick-and-roll spacings on the Internet, you would find a myriad of different spacings. I want to keep this post simple and present four different spacings with examples. 

Why Spacing Matters in the Pick-and-Roll

Before diving into the four spacings, briefly explain why spacing is crucial in pick-and-roll situations. Proper spacing:

✅ Creates driving lanes for the ball handler
✅ Forces defenders into tough decisions
✅ Opens up passing options for the roller and shooters
✅ Prevents help defense from collapsing easily

4 Pick and Roll spacings: 

1. Rub: middle PnR with the ball going to the single side. 

2. Side: Side PnR with the ball going to the double side. 

3. Clear: Side PnR with the strong side corner empty. 3 players on the weak side.

4. Angle: Side PnR with the ball going to the baseline.

 

Rub: high pick-and-roll or top pick-and-roll

Side: wing pick-and-roll or side ball screen or drag

Clear: Empty side ball screen

Angle: Empty side ball screen

 

 

Real-Game Examples & Teams That Use These Spacings

Both the NBA and EuroLeague utilize pick-and-roll spacing, but their execution varies based on pace and style of play. In the NBA, teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls use Rub spacing, running high pick-and-rolls to create space for ball handlers while keeping shooters positioned for kick-outs.

In the EuroLeague, the matchup between AS Monaco and Paris Basketball showcases Side spacing, where a wing pick-and-roll or side ball screen is used to force defensive rotations. Monaco frequently runs this action for Mike James, leveraging the double-side alignment to create passing options or open driving lanes.

How to Use These Pick-and-Roll Spacings in Your Offense

We’ll dive deeper into each pick-and-roll spacing strategy in future posts, discussing how to:

• Recognize and attack defensive coverages

• Use proper spacing to exploit gaps

• Adjust formations for different player skill sets

• Apply these pick-and-roll principles in 5-out and 4-out, 1-in offenses

Stay tuned for more breakdowns on how to use pick-and-roll variations to punish defenses effectively! Also, check out our Pick and Roll Offense Course to gain more knowledge on this topic before the next post!