The next time you see a player get fouled and head to the free throw line, try directing your attention to the head coach on the sideline. You will see the telltale signs of an after free throw play, or AFT, as it is known in coaching parlance.
Coaches have their own form of sign language, but it is only understood by a handful of people in the arena. A rub of the chest can signal a ball screen. A tap of the fists or snap of the fingers could indicate a Spain pick-and-roll is coming on the next possession. A touch of the chin may foreshadow a down screen, cut and high ball screen.
These signals occur throughout various segments of games, but they have become commonplace across the NBA between free throws.
"[Coaches] usually call something before the first free throw or between the free throws," said Steve Jones Jr., a former video coordinator for the Grizzlies and assistant coach for the Nets. "It's a good time to call a play because you're not messing up the flow of the game. ...
"Most times, they'll disguise it, or call it quick, or vocalize it as they bring it up."
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But that doesn't make it impossible for an opposing team to pick off plays — especially if that team has Chris Paul, the greatest sign-stealer in the league.
"I think [Paul] is one of the smartest point guards I've played with," Suns center Bismack Biyombo said. "It's about reading the team. He has done a tremendous job about how he goes about his business and preparation, watching a lot of film."
That intense film study has given Paul an encyclopedic knowledge of other teams' plays and the sign language that comes with them.
"He's one of the most savvy and aware players in the league," Suns guard Landry Shamet said. "We all, throughout the course of the game, know those calls to some extent. But his catalog is deeper than a lot of guys.
"He has an awareness to understand other teams' calls, what they like to run in certain situations, certain personnel."
Knowing what play is coming provides obvious advantages to the defense. Paul constantly communicates with his teammates, putting them in the proper position to defend the upcoming action.
"It's more awareness and ability to communicate it to the rest of us that sets him apart," Shamet said.
So, what makes Paul better at picking off signs than any of his peers?
"I don't know," Paul said, shrugging and pausing for a moment to think. "Because other players don't think about it."
Paul has taken his knowledge of the game one step further, using fake signals to prevent other teams from stealing the Suns' own play calls.
"I'm always playing the game,” Paul said. "When you're in the NBA for a while, you realize that every assistant coach has a [team to] scout. And so, when we're on offense, I'll also call a play that really is not our play because I know the assistant coaches from the other team are going to stand up and start telling the team what we're doing."
Jones remembers that exact scenario playing out years ago when the Grizzlies were facing Paul's Clippers in the playoffs.
"Chris Paul called the play out, but it wasn't the actual play they were running. He got someone," Jones said. "He would call for a pick-and-roll. So, now you got everyone talking about, 'Hey, get up! Pick-and-roll! Pick-and-roll!'
"And the play is really a down screen. So, now you're in your pick-and-roll coverage, but you end up giving up a lob or a pindown."
Paul doesn't just get coaches with his trickery. The chess match extends to some of his fellow stars, like when he tricked Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers with a fake play call.
One of the Suns' most-used actions starts with Paul raising his fist in the air. That triggers Deandre Ayton to set a screen for Devin Booker on the left block, allowing Booker to curl up near the free throw line and generate some space to catch the ball.
Suns running a lot of "FIST" this quarter. Usually a Book J or Ayton lob.
— David (@theIVpointplay) January 2, 2021
This being a third counter they can use going forward is huge. https://t.co/16LhXEzIpO pic.twitter.com/dW5UW4B7V6
While playing against Lillard during the 2020-21 season, Paul made sure to let everyone see his raised fist coming up the floor. Lillard raised his fist in tandem to Paul, alerting teammates to the upcoming action.
The Blazers, knowing the play sign, were ready for that Booker curl off the left block. But Booker took advantage of the defense shading him to the left, instead cutting right and finding himself open for a 3-pointer.
Paul baited the Blazers into preparing for one play, then hit them with the perfect counter.
Those fake play calls don't always work so flawlessly. And even when Paul picks off the other team's play, the Suns aren't always able to stop what they know is coming.
"At the end of the day, the players still play," Jones said. "So, you can know what's coming — that doesn't necessarily mean you're going to stop it."
"It ain't much of an advantage," Paul said. "But in a game where we talk about every point matters, every possession matters, you do what you gotta do."
