inbounds

BLOB corner entry / screen-the-screener

For this baseline out-of-bounds (BLOB) entry, start four players in a box. A screen across the court frees a receiver toward the corner nearest the inbounder. After passing in, the inbounder screens behind a defender to free a teammate toward the basket, then uses another teammate's screen to become a receiver.

How it runs

Corner entry, then screen for the first screener

Brandon Shields’ Box Elevator BLOB is a screen-the-screener example, not the conventional two-player gate. We show 3 freeing 2, then 1 screening for 4 before using 5’s screen. The added finish or frontcourt continuation is an original CoachAssist teaching choice, not a source-prescribed next play.

1–5 are players on offense. X1–X5 are defenders. Each number stays with the same player in every step; it does not lock that player into a position.

Diagram 1 of 10

3 screens; 2 moves to the ball-side corner

3 stays set as 2 travels across and out to the right corner. 1 stays outside the baseline.

Diagram key

Offense
Defense
Coach
Neutral
Ball
Cone
Cut
Dribble
Pass
Screen
Hand-off
Shot
Def. slide

Source: Brandon Shields — Box Elevator BLOB (2022): screen-the-screener action

Use Previous and Next beside the court, or choose a numbered step. Arrows on the court show where players or the ball move. CoachAssist drew this example; it does not show every way to run the scheme.

A selected throw-in example, not every play from this formation. Source mechanics are separated from original CoachAssist teaching tasks. Check the actual throw-in location and competition rules before practice.

In this guide · jump to a topic

Understand the starting jobs

Which version the court shows

Shields’s Box Elevator BLOB uses a corner entry and screen-the-screener action; its title does not mean a conventional two-player gate.

Source-backed summary; versions may differ.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

Before putting defenders on the court

Give each screen a plain description of who helps whom. Have the player who just screened identify the next screener before moving again. This reduces the temptation to race through a memorized path while the second screen is still being set. The corner receiver also needs a safe pass if neither scoring option opens.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

Play through the catch

Know the job after the throw-in

Use the diagram to identify the first secure catch, then stop before advancing. Ask the receiver to locate the basket being attacked, the nearest defender, and a safe teammate. Ask the inbounder where to enter after releasing. A completed throw-in is not the same as an available shot.

Walk the selected branch once, with each player naming the next job.
Replay it with the first option covered.
Continue after the catch into the team’s agreed offense; do not invent a forced final pass just to finish the drawing.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

Read the defender

When the preferred option is unavailable

When: The first inside cutter is available before the final outside action.

Do this: Use the visible advantage instead of rejecting it to reach the last diagram.

Then: If the early pass is unavailable, finish that cutter’s clearance before the first screener becomes the next receiver.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

What to emphasize

CoachAssist practice idea: walk through the inbound pass and player movements. Add defenders who block the first pass. Then play live, keeping another receiver available to get the ball in safely.

Correct the cause

A problem to watch for

Problem: Players treat every screen as simultaneous.

Try this correction: Practice the first screen and catch alone, then attach the next pair of jobs.

Check: Each screen exists before the receiver tries to use it.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

Compare versions without mixing them

What changes—and what does not

Changes: entry, read.

Screen-the-screener describes a relationship between successive actions. The same relationship can appear from a box, stack or open formation, but that does not make their entries or final passing angles identical.

When to use it: Name the formation, intended first catch, and next action when comparing another play. New player numbers or a mirrored court alone do not establish a new tactic. Variations mentioned only in text are not additional selectable diagrams.

Written variant · this option does not have its own walkthrough here.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

How to teach it

Choose the level that matches what your players can do now. These steps work for boys and girls. Start simpler if players need more practice.

Select level to learn

Learn it at your group’s level

Take turns being the receiver

Set it up: Three attackers and an adult, using open spaces instead of screens.

One player helps identify the first target.
After that catch, the helper becomes the next target.
Change roles so each player handles and receives.

Add more when: Players follow the change of jobs.

Check it in play

Separate spaces.
No contact task.

CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.

Brandon Shields · Box Elevator BLOB

CoachAssist wrote these teaching steps. They are not an exact copy of any coach’s practice plan.

What can go wrong and how to adjust

The source title says elevator; its visible instructions describe screen-the-screener. Index by the actual actions.

Coaches and teams that use it

We have not confirmed a specific coach or team using this version. Teams may use the same name for different plays.

Drills for this scheme · steps and diagrams

The level selector changes the teaching steps above. It does not change these drills. Check the number of players, equipment and difficulty before using a drill.

BLOB Corner Entry Screen-the-Screener

Court diagram · view the drill first

Practices this scheme: The reviewed baseline out-of-bounds pass to the corner frees an inside cutter, then the inbounder through a second screen. The actual action is screen-the-screener, not two screeners closing around a shooter.

After the inbound pass to the corner, use two screens to give the ball handler a choice of receivers.

5–15 players · 5–12 minutes · basketballs

Purpose

After the inbound pass to the corner, use two screens to give the ball handler a choice of receivers.

Set it up

For this baseline out-of-bounds play, the inbounder and four attackers in a box around the paint walk through before adding defenders. Spare balls and waiting players stay outside the active routes.

Run the drill

Agree on a short timed interval and begin at walkthrough pace. Use one active ball and one group in the playing area; add controlled opposition only when players understand the routes and can stop safely.
Screen across the court to free a corner receiver, then inbound to that receiver.
The inbounder screens for a teammate cutting near the basket. Another teammate then screens for the inbounder to get open.
The corner ballhandler looks for the cutter near the basket first, then the inbounder coming off the next screen; keep a safe alternate receiver.
End the repetition on a controlled finish, dead ball or coach stop. Clear the ball and landing area before restarting; rotate roles and rest within the planned interval, without extending it to reach a target.

Scoring

Optional: within a short coach-chosen timed interval, count sound decisions, controlled catches or completed defensive possessions. Stop at the planned time or sooner; no required makes, winning streak or exercise penalty. Rotate roles and allow rest regardless of the score.

Coach the details

Use stationary, legal screens.
Inbounder starts outside the baseline.
Time the entry and call a reset if no legal passing window develops.
Use comfortable passing and shooting distances and an appropriate ball. Progress by demonstrated control, not speed: keep eyes on the play, leave stopping/landing space, and stop if a route or loose ball creates a collision risk.
Screens begin without contact. Establish a balanced, stationary position with the time and space required by the competition rules; keep arms in and do not lean, hold, shove or step into an approaching defender. Decline the action when legal clearance is unavailable.

Ways to adapt the drill

Original CoachAssist display adaptation: these edited steps, workload limits and optional scoring are coaching adaptations, not a claim that the cited author prescribed this exact version.
The teaching-level selector does not automatically adapt these drills for age or ability. A coach must choose suitable roles, equipment, contact, space and progressions; simplify or defer anything the group is not ready to perform.
Provenance (source-based): Core teaching idea is supported by the linked public source. Coordinates, timings and rotation logistics are original SportsPlay teaching aids, not reproduced source diagrams. Coach review is required.

Brandon Shields — Box Elevator BLOB

Screen Setting Fundamentals (P.A.S.S.)

Court diagram · view the drill first

Builds a skill used in this scheme: Builds the legal set/hold/release timing needed before linking the two screens; it does not include the inbound entry.

A controlled progression teaches setting and using a stationary screen.

3–12 players · 5–10 minutes · basketballs

Purpose

A controlled progression teaches setting and using a stationary screen.

Set it up

Three players: screener, cutter and cooperative defender, plus a coach passer. Begin without contact on one side of a half court. Spare balls and waiting players stay outside the active routes.

Run the drill

Agree on a short timed interval and begin at walkthrough pace. Use one active ball and one group in the playing area; add controlled opposition only when players understand the routes and can stop safely.
The screener approaches at walkthrough pace and establishes a balanced position with legal clearance.
The cutter waits until the screen is set, then moves close enough to use its angle without colliding with the screener.
The coach passes only through an open window; the cutter catches balanced and may shoot from a comfortable range.
The screener holds position until the cutter clears, then opens toward the ball. Rotate all player roles.
End the repetition on a controlled finish, dead ball or coach stop. Clear the ball and landing area before restarting; rotate roles and rest within the planned interval, without extending it to reach a target.

Scoring

Coach the details

Do not require contact for a screen to count. Add guided defense only after the group understands positioning and timing.
Use comfortable passing and shooting distances and an appropriate ball. Progress by demonstrated control, not speed: keep eyes on the play, leave stopping/landing space, and stop if a route or loose ball creates a collision risk.
Screens begin without contact. Establish a balanced, stationary position with the time and space required by the competition rules; keep arms in and do not lean, hold, shove or step into an approaching defender. Decline the action when legal clearance is unavailable.

Ways to adapt the drill

Original CoachAssist display adaptation: these edited steps, workload limits and optional scoring are coaching adaptations, not a claim that the cited author prescribed this exact version.
The teaching-level selector does not automatically adapt these drills for age or ability. A coach must choose suitable roles, equipment, contact, space and progressions; simplify or defer anything the group is not ready to perform.

Sources and what we could confirm

The sources support the system guide. CoachAssist created the practice steps and checks; they are suggestions, not tested programs or a coach’s full playbook. The linked drills practice parts of the system.

Coaches run this in different ways. The sources below describe the versions covered here. These sources do not cover every possible version.

Box Elevator BLOB
Brandon Shields · FastModel Sports · 2022-08-02
Public instructions describe backscreen/screen-the-screener; not assumed to be a conventional elevator gate.