Craig LeVasseur

FastModel Sports Contributor since 12/05/14 Follow

About Craig LeVasseur

Prior to joining the FastModel team in September of 2014, Craig was a member of the Detroit Pistons coaching staff for 5 seasons. In his time with Detroit, he worked for the staffs of John Kuester, Lawrence Frank, Maurice Cheeks, and Stan Van Gundy. Craig was responsible for video scouting of all opponents, on-court player development work, and pre-draft workout scouting and preparation.

Before working in the NBA, Craig was a Volunteer Assistant and then a Graduate Assistant at Eastern Michigan University under head coach Charles Ramsey from 2006-2009.

Craig is a Michigan native and alumnus of the University of Michigan. He currently resides in Chicago, IL.

Craig's Playbank (99 Total) More

Utah Jazz EOG Need 2

Craig LeVasseur 04/06/2016

The Utah Jazz ran this ATO play against San Antonio down 2 with just under 3 minutes to play. This play can be used to free up a shooter for a 3pt shot, but the more likely option will be the 2 man on the slip, which in this case was Rodney Hood for a wide open dunk. See More

Favorite

Rockets SOB ATO

Craig LeVasseur 03/23/2016

Houston ran this play against the Clippers on 3-22-16 with 28 seconds left in the game. After the 2 circles under the basket and 1 clears to the near corner, the 5 sprints at the 3 as if he is setting a backscreen. This is fake action, though, as the 5 stops short and pivots into a downscreen for the 2 in the corner. The 3 is on his own to get open coming towards the ball, and in this case James Harden is able to break free from Russell Westbrook. He catches the ball with a head of steam and is immediately a threat to attack the basket. Meanwhile the 2 comes off of the downscreen, and Harden is able to throw a left hand hook pass to Jason Terry for the 3. See More

Favorite

Iowa - ATO Get It In

Craig LeVasseur 03/18/2016

Iowa ran this play against the press with 11 seconds left against Temple and protecting a 2 point lead. It's hard to tell if Iowa anticipated that Temple would not guard the inbounder, or if this was an audible on the fly, but the result was a wide open inbounds pass for Iowa. See More

Favorite

Iowa - Stagger Slip ATO

Craig LeVasseur 03/18/2016

Iowa ran this play after a timeout with 8:43 to play in the first half against Temple. It's a very simple play, but location and execution make it difficult to defend. 2 does a good job of setting up his defender away before running off a stagger screen by 4 and 5. This forces x5 to stunt against the shooter, and that split second of opportunity allows 5 to slip to the basket for a dunk. See More

Favorite

Temple - Stagger Elevator

Craig LeVasseur 03/18/2016

Temple ran this set at 17:20 in the first half against Iowa. In contrast to the common Wheel action involving consecutive stagger screens, Temple switches things up and sets an elevator screen instead of a second stagger. I also like the first option of the play with 3 coming off a rip screen, giving him two different scoring options on the play. See More

Favorite

Dayton - ATO Zone Lob

Craig LeVasseur 03/18/2016

Dayton used this ATO play against Syracuse at 11:51 in the first half for a successful lob conversion. The ballscreen by 4 occupies both guards at the top of the 2-3 zone, which 5 sets a backscreen on x5 in the middle of the zone. This gives 3 a path to the basket for a lob. See More

Favorite

Syracuse - ATO Angle Flare

Craig LeVasseur 03/18/2016

Syracuse started the game against Dayton with this play. In typical pick and roll coverage, x2 is responsible for nail/FT line coverage to prevent a drive by the ballhandler. This makes x2 susceptible to a flare screen, which Syracuse was able to use to start the game with a good 3pt look. See More

Favorite

Yale - 3/4 Court Get It In ATO

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

Yale ran this play out of a timeout protecting a one point lead late against Baylor. Understanding that Baylor would be trying to deny all passes with only 9 seconds left, this play makes it hard for x2 to both deny the inbound pass and also defend against the home run ball. See More

Favorite

Baylor - 1 Down ATO

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

Baylor used this ATO quick hitter against Yale. The action is very similar to the longtime Dallas Mavericks play "1 Down", which is designed to free up Dirk Nowitzki for a jumper. See More

Favorite

Baylor - SOB Low Clock

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

Baylor ran this SOB set against Yale in the first half with 4 seconds remaining on the shot clock. A bad pass disrupted this play, but a good downscreen by 1 was able to free up 2 at the top of the key. See More

Favorite

Duke - Full Court ATO (6 secs)

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

Duke ran this play with 6 seconds leff in the first half against UNCW. As the 1 attacked, he drew two defenders, leaving 4 open after the second screen. Ingram was able to dribble into an open 3pt shot to end the half. See More

Favorite

UNCW - Loop Slip

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

UNCW ran Loop action several times against Duke in the 1st half, and this was one play I particularly liked. After two runs off the stagger and receives the ball, 5 cross screens 4 into a side pick and roll. The 4 slips early to the corner for a look at a 3pt shot. This puts a lot of pressure on x4 defensively, but in this particular case, Duke's Ingram just had so much length that he was able to closeout in time to prevent the 3pt shot. See More

Favorite

Duke - SOB Corner Action

Craig LeVasseur 03/17/2016

Duke used this option in the 1st half against UNCW, and it has the potential for many counters. The 5-2 fake DHO starts the play, while a DHO would set a potential stagger away. 1 takes the DHO and can attack, or look for the 4 coming off of the downscreen. See More

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