Basketball Coaching Guide 2024Coaching Basketball

Coaching BasketballBasketball, whether it is skills, 3x3 or team, utilize the same basic training: Dribbling; Shooting; Passing; Rebounding; Footwork; Defending
DribblingIn basketball, dribbling is a fundamental skill in which a player uses one hand to continuously bounce the ball on the court. Dribbling helps you control the ball, advance it toward the hoop, and create distance between you and your defender. dribbling 1Basics of DribblingBend over, keep Head Up and Protect the ball with opposite-to-dribbling arm.

Dribble the ball with one hand 10 times.

Change to the other hand and dribble the ball 10 times.

Alternate hands (right-left-right-left) and dribble the ball 10 times.

Dribble the ball around and alternating each leg (in a figure “8”) 10 times.

Key Words

Head Up

Protect

Dribbling Drills
Faults and Fixes for Dribbling:F&F Dribbling
Tips for Practice

Assist the athletes by letting them put their hands on top of yours to feel the rhythm of dribbling. Start by using guided discovery. Allow the athlete to feel the roundness of the ball, the dimples and the weight. Ask the athletes what the ball feels like.

Ask them to drop the ball and catch it. Direct them to place the ball on the floor, the dribbling hand on top, and the other hand to the side and almost under the ball. In this way, when the ball is picked up, it is in proper position for them to begin and continue dribbling.

When dribbling the ball, the lower the bounce, the easier the control. Dribble the ball three times and pick it up.

Reinforce proper position of hands, head and body.

Play games where dribbling is a core focus — e.g. Dribble Tag

TASK: Practice each hand separately. Conduct a mini competition to see if the athletes can keep the ball dribbling for 15, 30, 45 and 60 seconds.
ShootingBasketball shot - throwing the basketball toward the hoopWhat are 4 types of basketball shots?Shooting 1Here are a few commonly used types of shooting in basketball.

Jump Shot (A jump shot is most frequently used for a mid to long-range shots, including shooting beyond the arc).

Hook Shot (A hook shot is when the shot is made while your body is not directly facing the basket).

Bank Shot.

Free Throw.

Slam Dunk

Shooting is the most important skill in basketball. To win, you have to score points. All the other skills are tools a team uses to get the ball and its players into position to score. If your athletes can develop confident, accurate shooting skills, they will be hard to stop on the court!
Shooting Drills
Faults and Fixes for Shooting:F&F Shooting-
Tips for Practice:

It is important that the athlete feels power for the shot coming from the legs. The movement sequence begins with the knees and is followed by the elbow, wrist and fingers. Physical prompting may be needed to assist the athlete in preparing for the shot as well as shooting it. Proper hand placement on the ball is critical.

Younger athletes can practice by shooting to a partner, at a target on the wall or at a lower basket. Demonstrate putting an arc on the shot by lifting the shooting hand’s elbow so the ball has a better chance of going into the basket. Explain that it is best to use the backboard. The backboard softens the shot and allows a greater margin for error.

Demonstrate lay-up; then have the athletes practice the motion without a ball while facing, but positioned away from, the basket. Practice jumping off one foot and landing on two feet. Instruct the athletes step by step through pretend shooting and landing.

Repeat sequence with a ball before actually shooting a lay-up at a basket. The lay-up can also be done from a two-foot jump.

Practice the motion of the shot without jumping and without the ball. Next, practice the motion of the shot with jumping but without the basketball. Finally, add and complete the jump shot.

Use an adjustable basket with backboard to help athletes build confidence in their shooting ability. Remind the athlete to lift his/her elbow to put arc on the shot so that it has a better chance of going into the basket.

Set up an imaginary wall (hanging a blanket or using an opponent with hands up) above which the athlete must jump in order to see the basket and shoot the ball. Practice the jump shot close to the basket and banking it off the backboard, gradually increasing the distance and using only the rim as a focus.

PassingTYPES OF PASSES:There are essentially two types of passes:

Air Pass - The pass travels between players without hitting the floor.

Bounce Passes - The pass is thrown to the floor so that it bounces to the intended receiver

Each type of pass comes with its own variations.Basic Variations:

Chest Pass

Bounce Pass

Overhead Pass

Wrap Around Pass

Basic PassesCHEST PASSThe chest pass is named so because the pass originates from the chest. It is thrown by gripping the ball on the sides with the thumbs directly behind the ball. When the pass is thrown, the fingers are rotated behind the ball and the thumbs are turned down. The resulting follow through has the back of the hands facing one another with the thumbs straight down. The ball should have a nice backspin.When throwing a chest pass, the players should strive to throw it to the receiver's chest level. Passes that go low to high or high to low are difficult to catch.Passign 1BOUNCE PASSThe bounce pass is thrown with the same motion however it is aimed at the floor. It should be thrown far enough out that the ball bounces waist high to the receiver. Some say try to throw it 3/4 of the way to the receiver, and that may be a good reference point to start, but each player has to experiment how far to throw it so it bounces to the receiver properly. Putting a proper and consistent backspin on the pass will make the distance easier to judge.OVERHEAD PASSThe overhead pass is often used as an outlet pass. Bring the ball directly above your forehead with both hands on the side of the ball and follow through. Aim for the teammate's chin. Some coaches advise not bring the ball behind your head, because it can get stolen and it takes a split-second longer to throw the pass.WRAP AROUND PASSStep around the defense with your non-pivot foot. Pass the ball with one hand (outside hand). It can be used as an air or a bounce pass. You will often see the wrap-around, air pass on the perimeter and the wrap-around, bounce pass to make an entry into the post.
Advanced Variations:

Baseball Pass

Dribble Pass

Behind-the-Back Pass

Pick and Roll Pass

Advanced Passes

BASEBALL PASSA baseball pass is a one-handed pass that uses the same motion as a baseball throw. This is often used to make long passes.Be careful with young kids. You don't want them throw their arms out.DRIBBLE PASSThe dribble pass is used to quickly pass the ball with one hand off of the dribble. This can be an air or bounce pass. You'll see Steve Nash do this all of the time.BEHIND-THE-BACK PASSA behind-the-back pass is when you wrap the ball around your back to throw the ball. It is used to avoid the defender when making a pass across the front of you would be risky. It can also be used to throw the ball to a player trailing on the fast break.I would not recommend to use this pass during a game until heavily practiced.PICK AND ROLL PASSThis is a pass that is used when the defenders double-team or switch on the pick and roll. If dribbling to the right, your left side is facing the target and you bring the ball up from your right side to throw the ball overhead to the screener who has either rolled to the basket or popped to the perimeter. The pass is used to shield the ball from the defender, and many times is thrown in "hook shot" fashion. Advanced players can do this while slightly fading away from the defender.Tips for passing

Passing Drills
Faults and Fixes for Passing:F&F Passing
Tips for Practice

Assist an athlete with lower ability by standing behind him or her. Put your hands over the athlete’s hands and guide the athlete through the chest pass motion.

Mark a target on a wall and ask the athlete to chest pass the ball to the target. Gradually increase the distance between the athlete and the wall as the athlete’s skill increases. Progress to starting at the same spot and asking the athlete to chest pass the ball to targets placed in several different locations, at varying heights and distances.

Demonstrate passes that bounce before, on and well beyond the halfway spot.

Allow the athletes to experiment with both short and long bounce passes to teammates standing at various distances.

Encourage games of “tips” or just “catch,” to give athletes practice handling the ball.

Encourage families to play passing games at home between practices.

ReboundingIn basketball, a rebound occurs when a basketball player misses a shot attempt. As the ball rebounds—or bounces off the rim or backboard of the net—players from the offensive and defensive teams try to gain possession of the ball and score a field goal, three-point goal, or free throw.ReboundingRebounds are divided into two main categories:

Offensive rebounds - in which the ball is recovered by the offensive side and does not change possession.

Defensive rebounds - in which the defending team gains possession.

Key Words

See the Ball

Go Get the Ball

Rebounding Drills
Faults and Fixes for Rebounding:F&F Rebounding
Tips for Practice

Rebounding is the most challenging of the basic skills, because it involves positioning, tracking the ball, timing, moving (jumping), catching and balance.

Break down rebounding into its component parts from the skill progression and build one upon the other. In that way, the athlete can work toward effectively rebounding the ball during a game.

Going for the ball is the concept put into concrete terms. Reinforce in all drills and game play.

Being able to reach higher than the opponents is very helpful in rebounding, so work on vertical leap and reaching up to grab a loose ball.

Rebounding is one skill that is used on both offense and defense, so it is worth extra time in practice to build this skill.

The keys to rebounding include: quickness and strength, to jump; endurance, so jumping doesn’t wear you out; peripheral vision, to see what and who is around you; and balance, to maintain control during and after the rebound.
FootworkFootwork is an essential part of both offense and defensive movement on the court. The ability to move and change directions or stop quickly is critical to success on the basketball court. While specific footwork is outlined in several drills, this section gives some basic drills that will also be helpful.FootworkTeaching Footwork

Key Words

Head Up

Elbows Bent With Hands Up (Ready)

Run On Balls of Feet

Get Low To Stop

Pivot

Slide

DefendingWhy is defense an important skill in basketball?Good defense puts great pressure in the opponents' offensive strategies. Breaking these offensive strategies induces a higher rate of turnover, resulting in a change of possession of the basketball. Once the ball is changed from the opposing team to your own team, it allows your team to employ offensive strategies.Defending What are 3 defensive strategies in basketball?While there are a number of defensive strategies that a team can employ over the course of a game, they all ultimately fall into one of three categories:

Man-to-man defense,

Zone defense or a

Combination defense.

Defending Drills
Faults and Fixes for Defending:F&F Defending
Tips for Practice

Ball focus and movement are essential, since the goal of defense is to stop or to limit the offense from scoring. Specific tasks help a defender know what to perform and how to perform it.

Work on both man-to-man and zone defenses so athletes know different strategies for different situations.

Teaching footwork and hand placement while on defense will help athletes focus on specific skillsBasketball CoverDocument NavigationAcknowledgementsFIBA FoundationICKWelcomeBenefits of Special OlympicsSpecial Olympics Basketball EventsBasics of BasketballFitness for BasketballThe Role of the CoachSport PsychologyCoaching BasketballRules & Regulations 5v5 & 3x3Rules & Regulations Individual and Team Skills ContentPlanningGlossary of Terms