Basketball Drills to Boost Athlete Performance

Basketball drills form the foundation of every practice. Beyond developing skills, they enhance teamwork, improve muscle memory, and prepare players for real-game situations.  

Whether you’re coaching a group of aspiring beginners or improving the skills of seasoned players, our round-up of fundamental basketball drills aims to address your coaching needs. This blog will explore a diverse range of drills designed to enhance dribbling, shooting, passing, defense, and more.

We have outlined 15 basketball drills that are easy to coach, yet will have a profound effect on your team’s performance.

Basketball Dribbling Drills

1. Drop it Low Dribbling

• Players will spread across the court, each with a ball in hand.
• Players will start by dribbling the ball waist high. On your whistle, players will “kill” the ball, dribbling it as low as they can.
• After a few seconds, blow the whistle to signal that players can lift the ball back to waist height and resume dribbling.

2. Simon Says Dribbling

• Players will spread across the court, each with a ball in hand.
• The coach will take turns calling out different variations of dribbles, prefacing each with “Simon Says.” Some dribbling variations include:
  • Left or right-hand- Players will dribble with only one hand, keeping the ball steady and under control.
  • Crossover- Players will start by dribbling the ball with their left hand. After a few dribbles, they will bounce the ball (low and centered) to the right hand, using only one bounce to transfer the ball.
  • Between the legs- Players will stand in a wide-leg stance, with one foot ahead of the other. Each players bounces the ball from one hand to the other by passing it through their legs. *Players should only be taking a few dribbles between each pass.

3. Tag Dribble Drill

• One player will be the designated tagger, while the other players will try to avoid being tagged.
• The tagger will start with a ball in hand.
• The goal of the drill is for the tagger to lightly tap another player while continuously dribbling.
• When a player becomes tagged, they join the tagger to tag the remaining players.

Basketball Passing Drills

4. Zigzag Passing Drill

Set up:

• Pair up your players and form two lines on the baseline of your court.
• Mark cones on the court to outline where players should go. Each cone should be about 2 feet apart.
• Only one line of players should have a ball in hand to start.

Execution:

• The first two players in each line will begin the drill.
• Player 1 (with the ball in hand) will stand beside the 1st cone, and Player 2 will stand beside the 2nd cone.
• Player 1 will make a diagonal pass (overhead, chest, or bounce pass) to Player 2 and run ahead to the 3rd cone.
• Player 2 will make a diagonal pass (overhead, chest, or bounce pass) to Player 1 and run ahead to the 4th cone.
• Player 1 and 2 will pass diagonally back and forth until they reach the end of the pylons.
• *Skipping a cone ensures diagonal passes are made throughout the entire drill.

5. Star Passing Drill

5 players will stand in a circle, each 4-5 feet apart. Player #1 will start with a basketball in hand.

Players will make chest, overhead, or bounce passes to each other. Right after making a pass, the player will run to take over the recipient’s position. The sequence of passes will be as follows:

• Player 1 passes to Player 4. *Player 1 will run to Player 4’s spot.
• Player 4 passes to Player 2. *Player 4 will run to Player 2’s spot.
• Player 2 passes to player 5. *Player 2 will run to Player 5’s spot.
• Player 5 passes to Player 3. *Player 5 will run to Player 3’s spot.
• Player 3 passes to Player 1. *Player 3 will run to Player 5’s spot.

6. Pivot Passing Drill

Pair up your players anywhere on the court. Each station will have two pylons, about 5-6 feet apart. Both players will start standing beside the same cone. One player will start with the ball.

The sequence will be as follows:

• Player 1 will dribble the ball to cone 2.
• Once they have reached the cone, they will pivot to their right, pass the back to Player 2, and run back to the starting point.
• After Player 1 returns to the starting point, Player 2 will repeat the same movements.
• *Have players alternate between pivoting on their right and left feet before passing to their teammate.

Basketball Shooting Drills

7. Pass and Go Shooting

Have a coach stand on the left wing. Mark three spots on the three-point line with pylons.

The sequence will be as follows:

• Player begins in the starting position (behind cone #1) with the ball in hand.
• Player passes the ball to the coach.
• Runs to spot #2 to receive a return pass.
• Player passes the ball to the coach.
• Runs to spot #3 to receive the return pass.
• Upon receipt, the player immediately makes a shot from spot #3 (without moving).

8. Left-Right Footwork Shooting

Set up two chairs on either side of the three-point line. Coach will stand at the top of the key.

To start, one player will stand behind the chair on the left side. *Have an assistant coach by the net to receive balls and pass them back to the coach.

The sequence will be as follows:

• The coach throws the ball to the player.
• Player performs a right-left step pattern to the right side of the chair, catches the ball, and shoots from that spot.
• Player will shuffle back behind the chair.
• Player performs a left-right step pattern to the left side of the chair, catches the ball, and shoots from that spot.
• Player will shuffle back behind the chair.
• This sequence is repeated 5 times on either side of the chair.
• After, the same player will move to the chair on the right side of the three-point line and repeat the same sequence.

9. Range Shooting

The coach will stand directly under the net with the ball in hand to start. The player will start behind the three-point line, directly across from the coach.

The sequences will be as follows:

Mid-range shooting:

• Player sprints to the free-throw line.
• Coach passes the ball to the player.
• Player attempts to shoot from the free-throw line.
• Player will shuffle back to the three-point line (starting position).

Close-range shooting:

• Player sprints to inside the key.
• Coach passes the ball to the player.
• Player attempts to shoot from the inside of the key.
• Player will shuffle back to the three-point line (starting position).

Players will altnerate between making shots at the free-theow line (mid-range) and inside key (close-range) for 1 minute. After, the next player will take their turn.

Basketball Defense Drills

10. Shell Defense Drill

• Set up 4 offensive players around the perimeter of the court (outside of the free-throw line but inside the three-point line).
• Set up 4 defense players, each standing in proximity to a defense player.
• On your whistle, the offense players will pass the ball to each other around the perimeter.
• Defense players will work together to stop offensive players from scoring.
• *The on-ball defender will pressure the ball. The off-ball defenders will adjust their position to stop passes.
  

*For an on-ball defender to effectively pressure the ball, they must:

• Have one hand low (to stop dribbles) and one hand high (to stop shots or passes)
• Stay square to the offender with their hips low, back straight, and knees bent.
• Execute lateral slides to quickly react to any pivots, dribbles, or shots.
• Angle their body to guide offense towards the sideline, or defenders, rather than the basket.

11. No-Shot Showdown Drill

• Divide your players into two teams of 5.
• One team will play offense, while the other team will play defense.
• On your whistle, offense players will assume play as normal and attempt to drive the ball to the basket.
• Defense players will work together to prevent shot attempts. For any successful prevention, they will earn one point.
• For every basket scored or mistake made by defense, the offense team will gain a point.
• Run the drill for 7-8 minutes and see how many points each team racks up.

12. Matchup Defense Drill

• Pair up your players. One will assume the role of offense, while the other assumes the role of defense.
• One at a time, pairs will match up on the wing, with the defensive player slightly ahead.
• On your whistle, the offensive player will dribble the ball and attempt to make a shot.
• The defensive player will try to prevent any shots from being taken.
• *Using the fundamentals, defense players will:
  • Stay low with their knees bent and feet shoulder-width apart.
  • Keep their hands up to challenge shots.
  • Mirror the offensive player’s movements.

Basketball Conditioning Drills

13. Dribble Relay Race

• Line up players in two single-file lines on one end of the court.
• Each player will have a ball in hand.
• On your whistle, the first two players in each line will sprint towards the basket while dribbling the ball.
• The first player to reach the basket and successfully shoot will be awarded one point.
• Run the drill for 7-8 minutes while keeping track of the score. The player with the most points will be the winner.

14. Cone Weaving Drill

• Place 6-8 cones in a zigzag pattern anywhere on your court. Each cone should be 1 foot apart. *This will mark one station.
• Set up as many stations on the court as you can, and divide players equally among these stations.
• Each station will have one ball and one stopwatch.
• Players at each station will take turns dribbling the ball in and out of the cones, focusing on speed and accuracy.
• *One player must be in charge of starting and stopping the timer to track time. The player in each group with the fastest time will be crowned the winner.

15. Half-Court Conditioning Drill

• Split players into teams of 4-6 players.
• Half the players will assume offense and the other half will assume defense.
• The offensive team will work together to score as quickly as possible. *Layups, mid- range shots, or 3s). The defense team will work to pressure the ball and prevent passes.
• After a shot is made (or a defensive rebound is executed), teams will immediately switch roles.
• *The drill will run for approximately 5 minutes, focusing on fast transitions and consistent movement.

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