A zipper cut runs straight up the lane line. The cutter starts low, near the block, and sprints vertically off a screen set at the elbow or just above it, catching the ball in the slot or at the top of the key. Nothing fancy: it is a pin-down turned ninety degrees, run up the middle of the floor instead of out toward the wing.
Why coaches use it
It is an entry, not a scoring action. When a team is denying the wings and your guard cannot get a catch, the zipper gets him the ball facing the rim with his defender behind him. That alone is worth a play call.
What makes it valuable is what comes next. The same big who screened is already standing above the ball, so he turns straight into a ball screen and the defender who just chased the cut has to fight over a second screen with no rest. You get the pick-and-roll with the on-ball defender already a step behind, which is most of what a set play is trying to buy you.
It also works as an inbounds entry. From a box, the ball-side big runs the lane line off an elbow screen, catches in the slot, and the screener follows him down to seal on the block.
How it is guarded
- Chase over the top. Standard. Takes away the shot on the catch, concedes the drive and whatever screen comes next.
- Under. Fine if the cutter will not shoot from the slot. He should re-screen or turn it into a drag.
- Top-lock. Face-guard him above the screen and make him go backdoor. The rim cut is open if the weak side is empty.
- Switch. Leaves a big at the top of the key on a guard. Attack it before help arrives.