PRACTICE PLANS SKILLS CHECKLIST

All-Star Practice Plans

At the All-Star Level, players will begin to gain strength, quickness and the ability to better react to game situations. Practices will shift towards team concepts and competition, while still heavily emphasizing skill development.

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All-Star Practice Plan 1

Cultivating Values & Developing Wellness

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Setting Goals

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  • Positive Coaching Alliance focuses heavily on goal-setting and the pursuit of goal-achievement. Developing those processes in youth players is one of the greatest gifts a coach can give. Steady progress toward goals keeps players enthused, engaged and willing to work hard. That way, they develop as individuals and the team as a whole has a better chance to succeed. More importantly, the players can take that goal orientation to other aspects of their lives, such as school work. And even more important than that, the longer players work toward goals, the more ingrained that practice becomes so that when it comes time to pursue critical goals in their adult lives – perhaps with children depending on them – they can call upon what they learned from their youth basketball coaches.

Warm Up

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Fundamentals of Warming-Up

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  • Warming up is an extremely important part of basketball. Players should make sure their bodies are prepared to play by getting their muscles loose and their body temperature up. Warming up can keep players healthy, lengthen playing careers, and help players do their best.

Dynamic Warm-Up Part 4

(1 x each from baseline to half court or vice versa)
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  • Leg Swings
  • Knee Hugs
  • Imaginary Dunks
  • Backwards Run
  • Trunk Twists
  • Explosion Leap

Building Skills

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Ball Handling

Gauntlet Dribbling

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  • Create three “lanes” in a half-court setting using cones or other
    objects. In each lane, space out 2-3 defenders.
  • One offensive player starts at half-court in each of the three lanes.
    The defenders in those lanes can only move laterally.
  • The offensive player must navigate the gauntlet, dribbling the ball through a series of defenders to reach the end of the gauntlet and get a shot.
  • Defenders attempt to steal or knock the offensive player’s ball out
    of bounds.
  • Once the offensive player finishes the gauntlet with a layup or
    jump shot, the defender closest to half-court joins the offensive
    line and each defender shifts one spot up. The player who finished
    the gauntlet takes the lowest defense spot, closest to the hoop.
  • After all the players in the group have dribbled through the cones,
    the first player will repeat the process by going back through the
    cones in the opposite direction.

TECHNICAL LOADS

• Restrict the offensive player to a certain number of dribbles.
• Defenders must also dribble their own basketballs, adding an extra challenge.

Key Points

Make sure the players are staying low and controlling the dribble. The players should also be pushing off their outside foot to change directions.

Partner Decision Dribbling Game

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All players get a partner and find space on the court. One player starts with a basketball facing the hoop, while their partner faces them a few feet away with their back to the hoop.

The player with the ball dribbles while the other player uses hand signals to force the dribbler to think and keep their head up.

Hand Signals:

Hands Up: The non-dribbler raises their hands to cue the dribbler to pass.

Hip Flip: The non-dribbler flips their hips to cue the dribbler to drive to the basket.

Step Backward: The non-dribbler steps backward to signal for space to shoot.

TECHNICAL LOADS
• Limit the dribbler to specific moves (crossovers, behind-the back, etc.)

• Allow the partner making the hand signals to move side-to side to create different passing angles.

• Require the player with the ball to take a certain type of shot
(jump shot, layup, floater, etc.)

Passing

Skip Pass 2 on 1

(2-3 minutes each way)
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Have the players start with 2 lines on each wing. One line on each wing will have a ball. One defender starts under the basket.

The lines with the balls will make skip passes to the line on the opposite wing that does not have the ball.

On the catch, the players will attack the basket. The defender will run to touch either the block on the ball-side or the block on the weak-side. After touching the block, it becomes a live 2 on 1.

The offensive player with the ball will read the defender and make a decision to either drive and kick to the other wing, or drive to score.

Play live 2 on 1, with the offense getting a maximum of 2 passes only.

TECHNICAL LOADS

Add a defender on the ball for the initial skip pass to make the pass more difficult. The defender steps off after defending the pass.

Key Points

Make sure the players clearly define the lines.

Shooting

Triangle Decision Shooting

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  •  Using cones, setup three triangles: one at the free throw line, and two at each wing. The tip of the triangle should be closer to the hoop.
  • Players line up in groups of 2, 3, or 4 at the top each triangle. One player starts at the tip of each triangle as a defender. An offensive player starts with the ball facing the hoop at the other side of the triangle.
  • The defensive player can close out to either side of the triangle, going either left or right. The offensive player must read which direction the defense goes, and take one or two dribbles towards the hoop in the opposite direction for a jump shot.
  • The shooter then rotates to defense and the defender joins the end of the line on a different triangle.
  • Players should count how many shots they make after a designated time. The player who makes the most shots wins.

Chaos Layups

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• Give as many players as possible a basketball and divide them as evenly as possible at each basket.

• Designate a specific area for layup attempts, such as:
• Within the lane lines OR
• Inside the restricted area

• Players start outside the three-point line, dribbling continuously and can drive to the basket and are only allowed to attempt a layup once they enter the designated layup area.

• After each layup attempt, the players must dribble back outside of the three-point line before attempting another layup.

• Incorporate various constraints to create a chaotic environment:

Weak Hand Finishes: Require players to finish with their nondominant hand.

Defender Pressure: Assign a few defenders at each basket to apply pressure on shooters.

Time and Score: Add a time constraint to see who can make the most layups during a specified time period.

• Encourage players to dribble around the arc to find open space for a layup.

TECHNICAL LOADS

• After a couple rounds, change the designated layup area to just one side of the basket to add further difficulty.

COMPETITIVE LOADS

• Create teams of three or four players each and add up their scores to make this a team competition.

Team Concepts

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3-Person Pass, Cut and Replace

(1 x 1-3 minutes)
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  • Create teams of three players.
  • Start with offensive players on each wing and one player at the top of the key with a ball. Three defenders match up with the three offensive players. The defenders will not try to steal the ball until the coach blows the whistle and the game is live.
  • The player at the top will pass to either wing and cut to the basket looking for the ball. The player on the wing without the ball will “replace” the cutter and fill to the top of the key.
  • The cutter fills into the wing spot that is now vacant.
  • The offense repeats this pattern with the defenders moving with the players they are guarding.
  • When the coach blows the whistle, the game is live and the offense can try to score and the defense can steal the ball.
  • If the offense scores, they get one point and get to stay on offense while a new defensive team rotates on. If the defense gets a steal or a defensive rebound, they become the offensive team and a new defensive team comes in.
  • Play for 3-5 minutes or until one team scores 3 points.

Key Points

Make sure the players show their hands to catch the ball and stand in the triple threat position before making strong passes. Also emphasize that the cutter cuts hard to the basket looking for the ball with a hand up.

Competing

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3 on 3 No Dribble Game

(4 games to 2)
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  • Create teams of 3 and use as many hoops as possible. One team starts on offense at various points around the arc and another team starts on defense.
  • Play 3 on 3 live with the offense not allowed to dribble.
  • Rules:
    • After a made basket or a turnover, teams must throw the ball in-bounds.
    • There is a 30-second shot clock.
    • Defensive players cannot switch off-ball screens. If they do, the offense gets 1 point.
  • Scoring System:
    • If a team scores twice, they win that round and new teams rotate in.

TACTICAL LOAD

  • Give 1 point for a defensive stop.

3 on 3 Continuous

(games to 3 makes)
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  • Divide the players into teams of 3 and have 1 team start at half court with the ball.
  • Have two other teams start on defense on each side of the court.
  • If there are extra teams, have them line up on the baseline on both sides of the court.
  • The team at half court on offense offensive team will try to go score on one of the baskets.
  • If they score, they get a point, and get the ball back to go the other way.
  • If there is a team waiting on the baseline, they will take the place of the defensive team that got scored on, if there is not team on the baseline, the defensive team will remain there.
  • The offensive team will now try to score on the other end of the court. If they score, they continue on offense.
  • Anytime a defensive team gets a stop, they get the ball and go in the other direction

5 on 5 Controlled

(4 minute games)
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  • Divide the players into teams and play 5 on 5 full court.
  • Play games of 4-minutes to ensure the players play hard the entire game.
  • In this version of 5 on 5, if there is a coaching point, stop the game and make the point before continuing.

Compliment Session

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Gather the players together. Players group with 1-2 players next to them and share answers to the prompted questions.

  • Ask players to share something they did well, what enjoyed about today’s practice or something positive about another player’s actions.
  • Have players switch groups and ask some players to share their groups answers. Coach can build onto the player responses.

Key Points

All compliments should be natural. Not every player has to give or receive a compliment.

Skills Checklist

PDF Skills Checklist: Preview/Download
PDF Full Skills Checklist

At the conclusion of the All-Star Level, Jr. NBA players should be proficient at each of the following skills. Judging proficiency at this level is the responsibility of the coach.

Ball Handling

    Passing

      Shooting

        Footwork & Conditioning

          Rebounding

            Offense

              Defense

                Other