I do a stick pass is the sweet spot the same as a brush pass?
about 2in from the wall.
From my experience, the sweet spot is the opening just inside (towards the wall) the 2nd to the last 5bar player, or just inside the 52 or the 54 player. Any pass that goes through that spot of the defending 5bar can only be reached by the 5bar player nearest the wall, ie the 55 or 51 player depending on whether you are passing from nearside or topside. The second player in from the wall stops short of, or is deadbar'ed, at that point.
This limits the defending 5bar, forcing the defender to commit to either blocking and shutting down passes at or near the wall, or blocking all brushes from the wall or stick passes through that "sweet spot". Of course, right next to it is the "stupid lane" or black hole, about 1 inch from the wall. Most good 5bar defenders are at any point in time either blocking the wall or blocking the "sweet spot". Getting frozen at the black hole is the worst position for the 5bar defender, of course.
Blocking either the wall or the "sweet spot", and switching from one or the other, is your basic commit philosophy in 5bar D. Pretty much the same as defending a tennis passing shot at the net, or when you're way out of position on the baseline. You commit to one or the other side, and you give yourself at least a 50% chance. The black hole, or rookie lane, is the one spot that the defender can easily jump to from a position at the wall or way on the other side, the "sweet spot".
Going back to your question, most higher ranked players will have a brush where they brush the ball from a position near the wall, or immediately off the bounce, through that "sweet spot" of yours. Some who don't brush that well will actually "chip" or use the front inside edge of their 51 player to go through the "sweet spot". Or they stick the pass straight through it, like you probably do. Having a pass series that can either go along the wall or the other way, farthest from the wall but just before the next player can be used to block it, is your basic option series from either wall. A weak or shallow brushup or angle option, one that can only go through the black hole, is prone to getting bricked. It's the same as the ability to hit a tennis ball to either end corner: defense is either there or not. Only being able to hit the ball back through the middle of the court means it can be gotten to from either side. Bad habit, bad technique.
So the "sweet spot" is the 2nd of two best points on the defender's 5bar line to pass through. A good passer will have a very fast click-pass on the wall (miniature pullkick, 52 to 51) or a brushdown pass. He/she will also have a brush "up" that goes the farthest angle up and going through the "sweet spot", or a stick that goes through that same point on the defending 5bar.
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