What this version covers
Cancellieri’s teaching includes an inside release as well as a pop.
Source-backed summary; versions may differ.
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offense
Ghost screen: show a screen, then leave
The screener approaches as if setting a ball screen, then leaves before setting it. Pedro Martinez's Manresa examples use the defense's early reaction to create space.
How it runs
Fake the screen and move into open space
A ghost screen is a fake, not a held screen. This example sends 5 outside while 1 drives. Defenders are not shown; use the opening they actually leave.
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 4
1. Approach as if to screen
5 moves toward 1 as if coming to set a ball screen. 1 watches the defenders. 2, 3 and 4 keep their space outside.
Diagram key
- Offense
- Defense
- Coach
- Neutral
- Ball
- Cone
- Cut
- Dribble
- Pass
- Screen
- Hand-off
- Shot
- Def. slide
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.
Ghost describes a screen fake before the screen is held. Our drawings use an outside release and a corner-help decision. The inside-release discussion is written-only and does not claim to reproduce a team’s full sequence.
In this guide · jump to a topic
Starting jobs and useful space
Make the handler and fake screener see the same defenders
Our default uses 1 with the ball and 5 approaching as if to screen, with 2, 3 and 4 outside the immediate action. The fake is not an invitation to run through a defender. The approaching player should leave into useful space while the handler observes whether a defender actually moved.
Assign the release before the first practice repetition. An outside release gives a different pass from a short inside catch. Do not let the receiver improvise into a space the handler has already chosen to drive through. Both players need a safe option if the defense simply stays connected.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
Keep the possession going
Leave before contact, then evaluate what changed
Practice an approach that players recognize as a possible screen, followed by a clear departure. Stop and ask whether the defense reacted. If neither defender moved, do not demand a drive into a closed lane just to validate the fake.
After a kick-out, keep the fake screener and original handler in separate receiving spaces. A third teammate may have become the best receiver because its defender helped. Continue through that catch and the next decision. The screen fake is a means of creating a problem for defenders, not a complete offensive possession by itself.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
Decisions against the defense
Both defenders remain connected
When: The fake does not create an immediate opening.
Do this: Keep the dribble or move the ball to a visible outlet without forcing contact.
Then: Use another taught action from the current spacing; repeating the same fake immediately may create no new problem.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
A corner defender stops the drive
When: The help comes from outside the initial pair.
Do this: Look for the player that helper left, not automatically the fake screener.
Then: The receiver checks recovery and the original handler clears the next driving space.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
What to emphasize
- Original teaching suggestion: contrast a set screen and a ghost from the same start.
Problems, fixes and checks
The ghost becomes a moving screen
Problem: The approaching player crosses through a defender.
Try this correction: Slow the approach and establish an exit before the defender’s space.
Check: The advantage must survive a clean, non-contact departure.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
The release follows the handler into traffic
Problem: Two attackers arrive beside the same helper.
Try this correction: Assign distinct drive and receiving lanes, then walk them together.
Check: The handler sees the receiver without turning back through the nearest defender.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
Versions and diagram coverage
The third player receives
Changes: read, continuation.
- The linked example finds the corner helper’s player rather than the fake screener.
When to use it: Use to teach a real helper decision after the initial fake.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
Inside release and other entries
Changes: entry, read.
- Other entries and a short inside release are written-only. A ghost after another action still needs clear new jobs; it is not the same outside route renumbered.
When to use it: Teach one chosen addition and verify its spacing before expanding the action menu.
Written variant · this option does not have its own walkthrough here.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
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.
Practice it step by step
Approach and leave safely
Set it up: Two attackers with an adult guide, no defense.
- Walk a screen-like approach without holding a screen.
- Separate into handler and receiving spaces.
Add more when: Players distinguish fake from set screen.
Check it in play
- No running through the guide’s position.
CoachAssist suggestion—not the source’s exact practice.
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
- A ghost is not automatically a slip to the basket. Name where the player goes.
Coaches and teams that use it
Pedro Martínez · BAXI Manresa
The 2021–22 BCL examples show Manresa using fake screens after timeouts. The numbered players and routes here are our teaching example.
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.
Drive and Kick — One More Pass
Court diagram · view the drill first
Builds a skill used in this scheme: Practices reading help on a drive, passing outside and making an extra pass. The extra pass is a drill limit, not a ghost-screen rule. This supports the next decision but contains no fake screen.
A driver reads the help defender, passes out to the perimeter and practices an optional extra-pass rule.
4–12 players · 6–12 minutes · basketballs
Purpose
A driver reads the help defender, passes out to the perimeter and practices an optional extra-pass rule.
Set it up
Four players: driver, two perimeter receivers and one guided helper, one ball. Name one rebounder for the first phase and keep the other routes clear. 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 driver approaches an open gap under control while the helper shows the agreed response.
- Read the help and pass to the available perimeter receiver; stop or reset rather than entering a blocked lane.
- For the extra-pass phase, that receiver passes to the next open receiver for a balanced shot. Do not force a covered extra pass.
- The designated rebounder collects the ball after everyone has landed; rotate the driving and receiving 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
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
- Passing need not wait for an arbitrary paint landmark when help has already committed.
- An extra pass is a teaching constraint, not proof that a defender cannot recover.
- 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.
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.
- BCL Film Room — Pedro's Ghosts
FIBA Basketball Champions League · FIBA · publication date not listed
Public written 2021–22 Manresa examples. Original teaching illustrations, not reproduced game film.
- Basi del sistema di gioco del Paok Salonicco
Massimo Cancellieri · FIP Allenatori · Coach Box Magazine no. 16 · 2024-12-16
Author/title on p.36 and Ghost figures 24–29 on p.40 visually checked. Issue date verified on FIP’s announcement. Brief translated facts; not the complete article or copied geometry.