Working with young basketball players means you're going to be spending a lot of time teaching the fundamentals of dribbling and shooting before you can move on to more complicated topics like zone defense or a full-court press. Basic basketball drills help your players improve, so they can move on to more advanced skills and become better players during the game.
Full-Court Dribble Drill
This drill teaches players to see the whole floor when they're dribbling rather than focusing on the ball, a skill they'll need as defenses become more aggressive in more advanced leagues. Have players line up along the baseline, each one with a ball. On your whistle, have the player dribble down the court toward the far basket as fast as possible while keeping his head up and eyes forward. Once the first player reaches the half-court line, send the next player. Once players reach the free throw line, have them stop and shoot a jump shot, then rebound their own shot and stop at the baseline. Set a time goal for all players finishing the drill.
Red Light, Green Light
This drill helps players learn how to stop suddenly with the ball without losing it, such as if they're being trapped by a defender. Line up all players on the baseline with a ball. Stand at the far free throw line facing the players. Yell "green light" and have all the players start running at you while dribbling the ball. Yell "red light," upon which all the players must stop and dribble the ball in place. Repeat the drill by having the players stop and start again until one player reaches where you are on the court. That player is the winner.
Layup Drill
This basic drill helps teach players one of the most essential shots in basketball: the layup. Divide your team into two groups on either side of the basket, behind the three-point line. The line on the right shoots layups while the line on the left rebounds makes and misses and passes the ball to the next person in the shooting line. Make sure players are jumping off the correct foot and using the correct hand to shoot the layup. After each player has been through the drill several times, switch sides of the basket. You can also instruct players to stop short of the basket and shoot a jump shot, or back the lines up and have players shoot three pointers instead.
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