Switch & Bump
Breaking down how to "bump" out of a switch that is a bad matchup
NBA Season is underway. As I was watching the Los Angeles Lakers vs. The Golden State Warriors to start the season, I loved the defensive adjustment I saw from Golden State midway through the game.
The Lakers were targeting ball screen situations that got Steph Curry switched on Luka Doncic. The Lakers scored twice in a row exploiting this mismatch and Golden State knew that they had to make an adjustment.
This concept is called “Switch and Bump”. Let’s take a look at the video and then break it down.
Switch and Bump
As you see in the first clip, the Lakers get Luka switched on Curry and Luka scores shooting over top of Steph with a clear size advantage. The warriors adjust and run switch and bump. Curry gets switched onto Luka, and Draymond sprints over and “bumps” curry out to a help side defender that is 2 passes away.
Later in the possession, the Lakers try and rescreen to get the switch again and the warriors run a quick 1 step hedge and recover Curry back to his man.
Final Thoughts
This defensive concept is a great technique you can use to quickly get out of bad matchups if you run a switching defense or switch on ball screens. It requires communication, focus, and effort, but can be extremely effective and disruptive to matchup exploiting offensive tactics.