As there is no defensive player responsible for this area of the court, offensive teams are able to exploit the gap.
Or, it will “collapse” the box, causing the four zone defenders to fall inside the key and, upon a second pass, yielding a wide open and uncontested look from the perimeter.
The defense was notably used in the 2019 NBA Finals between the Toronto Raptors and Golden State Warriors.
The Raptors utilized a box-and-one defense with reserve shooting guard Fred VanVleet late in Game 2 in order to shut down Steph Curry as he was the lone offensive scoring threat once Klay Thompson left with an injury and Kevin Durant was ruled out.
[4] The Raptors once again used this defense in the 2020 NBA Playoffs during the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics.
This strategy is also used in the sport of ultimate, which relies on defenses sometimes similar to basketball in its mixture of man and zone formats.