“Face Cut”

Term: “Face Cut”

Definition: a cut in front of the defender’s face to the basket

Synonyms: Danilovic, front (door) cut, corner cut, Corey/Maggette/blade cut (see “Semantics” below)

See Also: 45 Cut, backdoor cut, lift/shake, 90, Pierce cut, Veer

How It Works: In the diagram above, 2 cuts in front of his defender’s face to the basket (while his teammates run decoy action out of Horns).

Why It Works: Face cuts are frequently out of Horns, often to punish a defender for ball-watching or for cheating too close to the baseline. The diagram above is one way the Phoenix Suns (among others) set up a face cut, which they like to run after timeouts.

The Phoenix Suns run a number of plays out of this Horns Chest/Flip series:

If the Suns notice Booker’s defender is falling asleep during these plays, they might call for a face cut. A benefit of the face cut is that it’s quick and takes up only a small portion of the court; if it’s not open, it can easily be aborted, as it is here:

Or the cutter can post up his defender if he has a size advantage. The threat of a face cut (or Miami action) can also create an opportunity for a backdoor cut:

In the United States, this action might be best known as a face cut, but in Europe, it’s commonly called a Danilovic cut, named after Pedrag Danilovic, the legendary Serbian shooting guard who was making these cuts since the 1990s, before Devin Booker was born:

Semantics:

Whether face/Danilovic and blade/Maggette are synonyms or merely similar actions is a matter of debate. Some coaches use “face cut” to refer to any cut in front of the defender instead of behind him; a 45 or 90 cut can therefore be considered a face cut.

More often, though, face cuts begin in the corner, much like a blade/Maggette. For some people, face and blade/Maggette mean the same thing: a curved cut from the corner to the basket, in front of the defender.

For others, a face cut is shallower than a blade/Maggette and is more often a set play. A blade cut makes a deeper loop and is frequently paired with a pick-and-roll (sometimes as part of a veer screen). Contrast the above examples of Booker with the blade/Maggette cuts in the following clips:

Blade cuts are excellent pick-and-roll tools when the corner man is not a catch-and-shoot threat. If his defender leaves him to tag the roller, he can make a blade cut:

The New Orleans Pelicans will even run dribble handoffs to Zion Williamson as he makes a blade cut from the dunker spot:

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