If 3-point shooting is the signature of the Portland Trail Blazers offense, then the flare screen is the ink in Terry Stotts’ pen. A common sight all over the league but a critical part of the Trail Blazers’ scheme, the flare screen is how Portland gets its shooters and star players attempts beyond the arc and racing toward the rim.

So what is a flare screen?

At its core, a flare screen is set away from the ball, typically by a big man, on the defender of one of Portland’s wings. The screen is set with the screener standing parallel to the sideline, and it creates a two-man game without the two main offensive players having to worry about dribbling the ball in the way they would if it were a classic pick-and-roll.

For Portland, flare screens usually happen around the elbow (or perhaps a touch higher) and can either be the substantial action of a quick read-and-react play, or the start of a longer set.

Flare screens are really an offensive interaction between three players. That is, the player running off the screen, the screener, and the ball-handler, typically the point guard at the top of the formation.

If opposing defenses decide to cut under Portland’s flare screens, both the point guard and the player being screened for will read-and-react, often with the off-ball player floating toward the sideline and behind the 3-point line for an attempt from deep.

Likewise, if defenses decide to play over the top of the flare screen, Portland will play long, and run vertically up the floor off the flare screen as the pass comes either toward the basket or to the corner.

In the video above, several examples of how Portland reacts to defenses guarding the flare are shown, and it's a good look into the basics of a screen that is part of Stotts’ offense. Check out the video for the full breakdown.