Getting your team together for their first practice is an exciting opportunity, but knowing what to have them do can be mind-boggling. Drills are one of the most common practice activities, and using a few simple drills at your first basketball practice will help you learn the skills of the individual players on your team and give you an idea of the areas you need to have them work on.
Lay-Up Drill
One of the most fundamental drills in basketball, the lay-up drill involves all the players on the team. Divide your team into two lines on either side of the basket behind the 3-point line. The first two players in the line on the right should have a ball. Blow the whistle and have the first player in line dribble the ball to the basket and shoot a lay-up. At the same time, the first player on the left runs to the basket and retrieves the rebound after the other player shoots and throws it to the next person in the lay-up line without a ball. Have the second player with the ball start dribbling to the basket around the time the first player starts his layup. This continues until all players have shot a layup and retrieved a rebound. Then, have players repeat the drill in reverse, with players in the left line shooting and players in the right line rebounding.
Passing Drill
A simple full-court passing drill will help you assess the passing skills of your team. Have players form three lines on the baseline spaced about 10 feet apart, and give the first player in the middle a ball. The first three players in each line begin running down the court as the player in the middle chest passes the ball to the player on her right without traveling or dribbling. That player passes the ball back to the middle in the same manner, after which the middle player passes to her left, and so on until the players reach the other end of the court. Have them turn around and repeat the drill back to the beginning side of the court, then send the next three players. Have players focus on throwing sharp passes without traveling or dribbling. You can also change it up and have players do bounce passes instead.
Dribbling and Defense Drill
For a drill that will help you evaluate your players' defense and ball handling skills, try the dribbling and defense drill. Have players line up single file behind the baseline in the right corner. The first two players in line start the drill, with the first player playing defense and the second player with the ball. The defensive player gets in a standard defensive stance and must move backwards while playing defense as the player with the ball dribbles in diagonal zig-zags to the far end of the court. Instruct players with the ball to dribble from the corner to the middle of the court and back. After a player has dribbled the ball, have them switch to defense and send the defender to the back of the line.
Member Comments