Why You Should NOT Step Slide On Defense

- By Joe Haefner

In this video clip from Man To Man Defense with Jim Huber, Jim talks about the step slide and how it can make you slower and less explosive.
And he explains a better alternative that will make your players quicker and more explosive when guarding the ball.




As mentioned in the video, sliding your back leg on the defensive slide can give you two problems.

1. You won’t be explosive without pushing off your trail leg. Since you gain power from your trail leg to push and explode in the direction you want to go, sliding your back leg will reduce your ability to push off explosively and slide at an optimal speed.
   
2. Friction slows you down. When you slide your back leg against the ground, this creates friction. Friction naturally slows you down. And this is the last thing you want when you’re guarding an offensive player. You need the ability to explode in any direction.
   

That’s why we emphasize pushing or exploding off your back leg.
Hopefully, these tips will help you become a better defensive player.