In the modern NBA, where pace is often king and passing comes at a premium, motion offenses are all the rage. The read and react game plan preached by Steve Kerr for the Golden State Warriors mixes a lot of every type of play, but one massive component in a system like his is cuts.
Cuts are a type of off-ball movement based on fakes and bursts away from the defender. This does not always mean breaking towards the hoop, as the Warriors often show.
The idea is to position yourself close to your man, move away from your shooting spot, and to suddenly break, or “cut” to an area where you will receive a pass for a quick shot in space.