Two guards on the same side of the floor in transition. The point guard pushes the ball at the wing, and what follows is a handoff, a ball screen, or a fake of either. The trailing big arrives a beat later and gives the pair a third option behind the ball.
Why coaches use it
It is early offense you do not have to call. Two players who know the series can start it off a rebound, and by the time the defense has matched up, the action is already happening.
It is also a family rather than a single play, which is what makes it hold up over a season. The same start produces a handoff, a keep, a flare for the guard who gave it up, or a ball screen from the trailer. Defenses that have scouted one of those are still wrong about the other three.
The naming is not universal. Some programs number the variants — 21, 22 and so on, usually after the two guards involved — and others just call the whole thing pistol. Do not assume a coach from another gym means the same thing you do.
How it is guarded
The handoff is guarded like any handoff: over, under, or switch. The harder question is the trailing big. If his defender steps up to help on the exchange, the flare or the ball screen behind it is open, and the skip pass is a long closeout away.
Most teams push the ball toward the sideline early so the pistol has less room to work, then switch the guard-to-guard exchange to keep a body in front of the ball.
שאלות
What is pistol action in basketball?
Early offense between two guards on one side of the floor: the point guard pushes the ball at the wing into a handoff, a ball screen or a fake of either, with the trailing big arriving behind it.
What is 21 series in basketball?
Another name for the pistol family in programs that number the variants, often after the two guards involved. Ask what a coach means by it; the naming is not universal.
How do you defend pistol action?
Guard the handoff like any handoff, over, under or switch, and push the ball to the sideline early. The harder job is the trailing big, whose flare or ball screen opens when his defender helps on the exchange.