• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

  • Basketball Plays
    • Ball Screen Sets
    • Horns Sets
    • Man to Man Post Up
    • Man to Man Isolations
    • Backdoor Plays
    • Man to Man 3 Point Shot Plays
    • 2-3 Zone Attack
    • Baseline Inbound Plays
    • Sideline Inbound Plays
    • Combination Defense Attack
  • Drills
    • Defensive Drills
    • Offensive Drills
    • Competitive Drills
    • Passing Drills
    • Rebounding Drills
    • Shooting and Scoring Drills
    • Toughness Drills
    • Transition & Conversion Drills
    • One on One Drills
  • Blueprint
  • Practice
  • Mental Toughness
  • Skill Development
  • Offense
  • Defense
  • Store

Basketball Drills

Bob Hurley Command Drill

By Brian Williams on December 24, 2013

This is a short video of Bob Hurley going over a defensive drill that works on 4 different on ball defensive scenarios

1) Contest the shot
2) Take a charge
3) 5 second Count
4) Give a foul

Make sure your sound is on as you watch.

You can also click this link to see more information about or to purchase the entire DVD “Bob Hurley: Practice Planning & Program Development

Click the play arrow to see the video.

1) Contest the shot 2) Take a charge 3) 5 second Count 4) Give a foul

You can also click this link to see more information about or to purchase the entire DVD “Bob Hurley: Practice Planning & Program Development

Basketball Drills 3 on 3 Defense and Rebounding

By Brian Williams on December 18, 2013

Anytime your drill involves less than 5 on 5, it takes away help and congestion and forces the defenders to be more accountable.

3 on 3 drills are a good way to do that.

Today’s post involves 3 3 on 3 defensive drills from a collection put together by Nate Hill, Assistant Boys Coach at Colonel Crawford High School in North Robinson Ohio.

He has coached for 18 years from 7th grade through Varsity Head Coach.

Coach Hill has provided several drills and has been generous enough to allow me to post them on the site.

He has also started a basketball coaching newsletter.

You can see the newsletters as well as subscribe to the Newsletter at this link:

Next Level 419 Coaching Newsletters

In case you have any questions or comments for Coach Hill, here is his email address: [email protected]it

3 Player Closeouts

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense1

Drill starts with 3 defenders in a line under basket, and coach has a ball.

Coach can pass to any player.

Top man in line must find ball and close out under control with 2 high hands.

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense2

x2 and x3 must communicate and find other players.

Off ball defenders must be in help, denial, or gap positions.

After the 1st stop, top man goes to back of line, and the team must get 3 stops to get out of the drill.

Drilling the habit for players not taking the basketball to close out to their gap or denial positions (depending on your style of defense) when rotating out of a trap or a help and recover is an essential defensive fundamental skill. It is not a skill that players pick up on their own without developing the habit through repetition in the defensive fundamentals portion of practice.

3 Player Team Rebounding

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense3

3 teams of 3.

Rules: every defensive rebound = 1 point, offensive rebound go to defense.

Defense must start with 1 foot in the paint, and each defensive player must touch offense.

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense4

 

Team must secure rebound the ball inbounds.

1st team to get 3 defensive rebounds wins.

 

 

Defending Specific Actions

The following 4 frames are an example of a specific offensive actions to defend. The key is to select the movements that your opponents use in their offensive schemes. Defending the specific cuts and screens that your toughest opponents run throughout your entire season of practices is more effective than only working on those movements the night before you play.

Having the offense run specific sequences helps to make your 3 on 3 drills more gamelike and less like a summer 3 on 3 tournament.

Come up with your own list of what you need to defend for the teams on your schedule and work on defending them with your defensive rules. The following four frames are a place to start.

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense5

Flex action: back screen, down screen.             Down screen, cross screen. 1 down screens first, then screens for 3.

basketball-drills-3-on-3-defense6

Princeton Action: Backscreen / flare screen       Princeton Action: Flare screen

Basketball Drills Friar Finish

By Brian Williams on December 17, 2013

This video is a transition drill used by Bob Hurley. The Coach in the video running the drill is Andy Toole of Robert Morris.

Make sure your sound is on as you watch.

I have tested this video delivery method in this new website platform that I have converted to for several browsers and Operating Systems.

 

Friar Finish Drill

Click the play arrow to see the video.

You can also click the link to see more information about or to purchase the entire DVD “High Energy Drills for Building Competitive Practices” with Coach Toole Friar Finish Drill

Basketball Drills Defensive Position Check

By Brian Williams on December 13, 2013

This basketball drill was posted by FastModel’s plays and drills library. You can modify it to fit the movements that your players defend frequently and use it either in spring and summer workouts or during in season practices.

The FastModel library has hundreds of plays and drills from coaches all over the world and from various levels of coaching. You can check it out here:

FastModel Sports Basketball Plays and Drills Library The site has thousands of drills and plays that have been submitted by basketball coaches from around the world.

You can also find out more about FastModel Play Diagramming software by clicking this link: FastDraw

This drill was posted by Tom Kelsey. Coach Kelsey is the Director of Basketball Operations for the LSU men’s basketball program. He has been a small college head coach, winning multiple coach of the year honors.

He has also spent time on the coaching staffs of Don Meyer and Mark Gottfried.

Good drill to get your players into a defensive stance and in a proper position from different spots on the floor. Can use in individual workouts, pre-practice and pre-game warmups. Can make the drill competitive by using players in the position of the coach. Also, have teams compete against each other while still working on the fundamentals.

basketball-drills-position-check1

Coach or player starts with the ball at the top of the key.

First step is to deny the wing pass. As you begin working this drill emphasis placed on positioning and stance.

When players become more advanced, pick up the pace and make everything game speed.

basketball-drills-position-check2

 

2nd step is to deny the post as the ball is being dribbled toward the wing.

 

 
 

basketball-drills-position-check3

 

3rd step is to deny the Zipper cut up the FT lane.

 

 

 

basketball-drills-position-check4

 

4th step is to drop into helpside as offense goes to the opposite wing.

 

 
 

basketball-drills-position-check5

 

5th step is to come over and take a charge on offense driving to the basket.

 

 
 

basketball-drills-position-check6

 

Coach or player with the ball can push the ball into the chest of the defender to imitate an offensive player out of control.

 

 

basketball-drills-position-check7

 

Offensive will make a skip pass to opposite wing. Defender quickly gets up and closes out on the wing.

 

 

Basketball Drills Stay Positive Shooting

By Brian Williams on December 11, 2013

This basketball shooting drill came from the University of Washington Women’s Basketball Coaching Newsletter.

If you would like to subscribe, email me and I will forward your interest on to Coach Mike Neighbors.

Use this drill with individual shooters. Break down your offense in this drill. Each spot the shooter must make a game speed move for lay-up/midrange jumper and also make a 3 point shot. If they make both shots they are a +1. If they miss one shot, they are 0. If they miss both shots, they are –1. Keep a running total. The shooter stays on until they get to +5 or end the drill when they get to –5. So the goal is to STAY POSITIVE. (good visual image drill)

As a coach, you must be the judge of the individuals GAME SHOTS, GAME SPOTS, and GAME SPEED. If it
doesn’t meet that players standard, count that particular shot as a “MISS”…

Once the player gets to +5 for that section, they make 5 FT’s. Change the cuts, screens, shots and go again.
Goal is always to STAY POSITIVE.

Will give you a few examples here… keep in mind these are from OUR actions. You MUST adapt them to
YOUR actions. This is just an idea of how to score and keep a drill competitive more than trying to copy the
drill action for action. We have about 25 different ones for variety.

Diagrams created with FastDraw

Stay Positive Shooting Drill

basketball-drills-stay-positive-shooting1

Coach passes to the shooter. Shooter attacks the basket off the rip to score. This can be a lay-up, a floater, or mid-range jumper. After completing that shot, the shooter simulates cutting to corner off a baseline block screen for a 3-pointer.

+5 or –5, then make 5 FTS.

 

basketball-drills-stay-positive-shooting2

Player starts with ball on wing. Simulates using a ball screen and drives it to score. After the shot, shooter cuts to the wing for a 3 point shot.

+5 or –5, then make 5 FTS.

 

 

basketball-drills-stay-positive-shooting3

Shooter starts at the nail. Cuts to the arc simulating a flare screen for a 3 point shot. From the spot where shot is taken, shooter receives another pass from coach. Shooter rips it through a drives it to finish. ** Be careful when you do the shorter shot 2nd in the sequence that you don’t allow them to take a NON-game type shot in effort to not be –1 if they have missed the 3 pointer.

 

Basketball Drills Steve Alford Rebounding

By Brian Williams on December 10, 2013

This video is a competitive 2 on 2 rebounding drill used by Steve Alford when he was Head Basketball Coach at New Mexico. He is currently the Head Coach for the men’s team at Nevada.

This is a drill that he likes to use almost daily.

Click the play arrow to see the video and make sure your sound is on as you watch.

The video is a You Tube video.

If you are interested in more information about the DVD that this sample came from. click here: All Access Basketball Practice with Steve Alford

 

 

Steve Alford Rebounding Drill

There are links to more basketball drills below this post.

If you are interested in more information about the DVD that this sample came from. click here: All Access Basketball Practice with Steve Alford

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 79
  • Page 80
  • Page 81
  • Page 82
  • Page 83
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 96
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
coachestoolbox
personaldevelopmenttoolbox
basketballplayerstoolbox
basketballtrainer
athleticperformancetoolbox
coachingbasketball

© Copyright 2026 Coaching Toolbox

Privacy Policy