WHGBL: Coaches Resources

We Practice Basketball Fundamentals

Fundamentals are an important part of the game of basketball.

Skills will improve through executing properly, repetition, hard work and having fun. The girls must be taught that they will play as they practice, and it is important for them to try new things each and every day. Challenge the girls. Mistakes will happen – they will learn from their mistakes. Be positive, encouraging – catch them doing something right and praise, praise, praise. 
 
The fundamentals below can be taught at every level of our league. This is a guide to help those coaches that have requested some help in the past. Use it as you like. If you need additional help, please contact us. Have a great time with the girls and enjoy the season!   

Triple Threat

The basic triple threat position allows a player to become an offensive threat to: 

  • Shoot

  • Pass

  • Dribble

An offensive player should immediately assume the triple threat position when receiving a pass. Most players have a tendency to put the ball on the floor to dribble when they receive the ball. By dribbling first, the player has taken away 2/3 of her offensive options. The triple threat requires you to:

Catch the ball

  1. Pivot and square up to the basket

  2. Knees and waist slightly bent

  3. Eyes up

  4. Ball protected from defender on your shooting side (“in your hip pocket”)

  5. Hands are positioned on the ball in the shooting position

  6. Weight on your pivot foot – often the left foot for a right-handed player and vice versa for the left handed player.

  7. The player is now an offensive threat to shoot, pass or dribble.

Dribbling

When young players receive a pass, they automatically want to dribble the ball. Teach them to get in a triple threat position! Be an offensive threat! Three reasons to dribble:

  1. Attack the basket.

  2. Improve a passing lane/angle

  3. Escape pressure.

  4. Once you put the ball on the floor, it should be to help you get where you want to go.

  5. If the dribble can’t help, pass to a teammate.

Dribbling requires:

Finger control. Finger pads and upper palm, particularly, the thumb and the 3 middle fingers.

  1. Receive, Cradle and Pump. Receive ball before top of dribble, cradle for split second and pump back to the floor. 

  2. Move with Rhythm and Control. Entire arm and shoulder move in pumping action, rising at the shoulder and bending at the elbow. Arm pumps in rhythm with the bouncing ball which gets the entire body moving in the same rhythm Elbow close to body.

  3. Head up, eyes focused on what’s happening on the court. Know where the ball is by feel instead of sight. 

  4. Keep everything low. Balanced, relaxed, knees bent, slightly bent at the waist, weight forward on the balls of the feet.

  5. Shield the ball. Protect by keeping body between ball and the defender.

  6. Develop both hands.

  7. Important rule – Do not pick up your dribble until you know what you are going to do with the ball! 

Dribbling Drills

Around Gym – All players get a ball and dribble around perimeter of gym. Begin at a walk, to trot and then ¾ speed. Change up from right hand to left and back again. Head up, feel the ball.

Speed Dribble – Begin on baseline with 2 groups of players each with one ball. First player in each group dribbles length of court to baseline and back        as fast as possible. Pass to next teammate in line and go to end of line. And so on. Stress ball-control, push ball out front, head up and feel ball. Change up – RH up, LH back. Backwards up, frontwards back. Compete! Race! Speed is nothing without control.

Dribble, Jump stop, Pivot, Pass - Begin on baseline with 2 groups of players each with one ball.  First player in each group will speed dribble to RH or LH foul line elbow, jump stop, left foot pivot, turn and pass to next player in line. After pass go to back of line. Teammates follow turn. Control, head up, feel ball, jump stop, pivot and good hard pass.

Sideline Protect – Begin on sideline with 2 or more groups each with one ball. First player in line dribbles to opposite sideline and back with   imaginary player in front of them. Protect ball with arm bar and slide dribble. Incorporate defender at half speed and then full speed. Protect ball in a ball-you-defender position.

Knock Away - Everyone is in a confined area of the gym with a ball ready to dribble. When the coach says, “ Go”, everyone must dribble while at the same time trying to knock the ball  out of the other players hand. Players who go outside the zone or have their ball knocked away are out of the game. Protect ball, head up, see the floor.

Layups

Layups are one of the most important skills to learn in basketball. It is the easiest way for a player to score points. Too many times do we see players with a clear lane to the basket, perform a jump stop and shoot the ball ten or more feet from the hoop, and miss the shot, when they could’ve easily performed a layup to score.

To perform a layup with the proper technique, a player must be running to the basket at full speed, leap forward with the same leg as their shooting hand, then jump up with their leg opposite their shooting hand, bending their knee with the leg of their shooting hand. The shooting hand must look to shoot the ball in the upper corner of the square on the backboard closest to the player.

To assist players that are struggling to perform a proper layup, a coach should use cones or spots to designate the proper place where a player should place their feet prior to shooting the layup and perform the following sequence of drills:

  1. Without the basketball, just have the player walk to the basket making sure they place their feet appropriately on the spot or near the cones placed on the floor. After they walk correctly, have them move faster until they can master their footwork at a full speed run.

  2. Once the player has mastered their feet placement, again without the basketball, have them pretend to dribble and shoot the basketball into the hoop. Again, have them walk and then let them go faster until they can master their footwork at a full speed run pretending to dribble and shoot.

  3. Then, give the player the ball, but just to carry the ball as they move through the layup motion and at the end, let the player shoot the ball off the backboard and into the hoop.

  4. Next, let the player dribble the ball and execute the proper layup. Start by walking and dribbling into the layup, then as the player gets more confident, they can increase their speed until they can master this technique at full speed.

  5. Finally, remove the spots and continue to practice the layup.

Passing The Ball

  • Begin in triple threat position.

  • Simple, crisp and short passes.

  • Eye contact.

  • Snap/flick wrist, follow through.

  • Pass to target between waist and chest area.

Dynamics

1) Passes must be quick and snappy

2) Pass to an open space – pass to the space where the receiver is moving to

3)Don’t broadcast the pass. Develop “floor vision” so as not to telegraph pass

4) Lead the receiver

5) Hit receivers in the chest

6) Pass away from the defender

Chest pass

1) Use two hands

2) Use proper hand position – Form an oval with the thumbs and index fingers. Rotate the ball up and into the chest area.

3) Step toward the target - Extend the ball straight out and snap/flick wrists and fingers outward. 

4) Drive forward and follow through (palms out, thumbs down) for power and accuracy. 

Bounce pass

1) Same as chest pass except extend ball to hit floor about 2/3 of the way to receiver of pass.

       •     Side bounce pass

2) Same as previous pass except pivot, step across body & pivot foot, extend arms and deliver bounce pass about 2/3 of the way to receiver.

Overhead pass

1) Same as previous passes except ball extended overhead, elbows straight and flick ball to receiver above the defensive player. Palms down, thumbs in. No lobs or “floaters”.

Passing Drills

Line Drill – Players pair up with one ball approx. 10-12 feet apart. Passing drill for chest pass, bounce pass, side bounce  pass and overhead pass – 1 minute per pass. Stress technique and dynamics with passer and receiver. Receiver provides target, see ball, step or “jump” to ball, catch, pivot, triple threat and return pass. No dropped passes! See the video for example:

Bull In the Ring – Form circle at center court. Step back to form bigger circle with players 4-5 feet apart. Place one defensive player in middle. Object of this drill is to pass ball to each other within 3 count without the defensive player touching ball. If the ball is touched, passer replaces defender in middle. ***Players are not allowed to pass to player next to them. Players should use all passes except overhead. Defender slides, extends arms and hustles. Everyone gets a chance! See the video for example:

Rapid Fire (Pepper passing) – Form circle as above. One player in middle. One ball! Outside player passes to middle. Middle player passes to next player in circle going clockwise and so on going around circle. Quick! Go 2 or 3 times and/or incorporate counter-clockwise. Stress provide target, see ball, catch ball, snap pass and pivot. Incorporate 2 balls when players are comfortable. After receipt of 1st ball, return pass to 3rd player in circle while 2nd ball is passed from 2nd player and so on. See the video for example:

Full Court Slide - Begin on baseline with 2 groups of players each with one ball. Partner up! The 2 players pass ball back and forth going the length of the floor and back. Players slide and lead teammate with pass. Change type of pass used. Go sideline to sideline to get more players involved. See the video for example:

Rapid Pass & Slide – Place 4-5 players on foul line between elbows. Coach is slightly above key with ball. Coach will pass ball to right elbow (pick a pass). Player catching ball @ right elbow will return pass to coach, drop step and slide behind teammates to left elbow. Next player will slide to right elbow, accept pass, return pass, and follow previous player and so on. Players move in circular motion. Target, see ball, catch, return good pass and slide. See the video for example:

Monkey In the Middle – Groups of 3 players. 2 passers approx. 10 feet apart & 1 defender. Passers pass back and forth while defender attempts to deflect passes. If the ball is touched, passer replaces defender. This is not keep-away! Defender closes out (sprint, sprint, squeak, squeak) on passers – belly up! Passers work on fakes, pivots and different passes. See the video for example:

Hot Potato – Scrimmage full court! No dribbling! If player dribbles or ball hits floor, turnover – team loses possession. Other team immediately takes ball out and goes other way. All players will be forced to concentrate on their passing game and looking for the open player without dribbling. A twist – player receiving any pass in game counts out loud 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and then must pass ball. Fun, exciting! Stresses passing, getting open and teamwork. See the video below for example:

The 5-Out Offense

The WHGBL suggests that all coaches teach the “5-Out Offense.” This offense is known under several other names such as the “Read and React Offense,” the “Pass and Cut Offense,” and the “Motion Offense.”

The basic foundation of the offense is that there are NO SET PLAYS. The offense is designed to help empower players to read the defense and choose an action based on what they see.

In its simplest form, the offense is spread out evenly along the 3-point arc. As the guard brings the ball up the court, they must choose one of the options in the triple threat - either shoot the ball, dribble the ball and drive to the basket, or pass the ball. If the player chooses to pass the ball, they MUST cut toward the basket looking for the “give and go” pass back from their teammate.

If the pass is not available, when the player reaches the basket, they cut to the opposite side of the floor from which they passed (i.e., if they passed to their right, after they cut to the basket, they head toward the left side of the court. Once they head toward the side of the court, the other players rotate to fill in the gaps that are left.

Players continue to run this motion until either a player is open on the cut and gets a pass to drive to the hoop, a lane is available to drive to the hoop, or the player takes an open shot.

Defense

Z - Drills

Coaches place cones on the floor at the top of the three-point arc and the sideline at midcourt. Players work in pairs beginning on the baseline. Begin with the defense player with their hands behind their back. Offense player dribbles in a zig-zag pattern forcing the defensive player to use their footwork, shuffling their feet to stay in front of the offense. Later, defensive player adds their arms to disrupt the offensive player’s dribbling.

Please see the diagram below and the video for example:

4 v 4 Defense Shell Drill

One Pass and Two Passes Away Defense Drill

Playing Defense Against Offensive Players Cutting to the Basket

Defending Against Ball Screens

Pre-Game Warm Up Drills

We would like to create consistency with pre-game warm up drills for all teams in all divisions. The following are a couple of drills that we expect all teams in all divisions to be able to execute:

NC State Drill

In this drill, two equal lines of players are formed at the intersection of the baseline and the right and left foul lines. The first player at the left foul line has a basketball and the second player at the right foul line has a basketball.

The first player at the right foul line runs from the baseline, down the foul line to the right free throw line elbow and circles around to the left free throw line elbow. The player at the left foul line with the basketball then passes a leading chest pass to the player circling to the foul line.

The player circling, then catches the past and heads to the basket for a layup. It should be noted, as soon as the player at the baseline makes their chest pass, they should also head down the foul line and circle from the left free throw line elbow to the right free thrown line elbow and get a chest pass from the player at the baseline where the right foul line is. Continue the weave making layups.

VARIATION: After a few minutes of layups, you can have players shoot a jump shot from free throw elbow.

Half Court 3-Man Weave with 2 on 1 Return

In this drill, players form three equal lines at the baseline, one under the basket, and the other two at the corners. The player under the basket starts with the ball. The player with the ball passes to one of the players on the wing and runs behind the player he passed to.

The new player with the ball passes to the opposite wing and runs behind the player he passed to. The last player makes one more pass to the wing and that player drops the ball at mid court. The player that drops the ball at mid-court, then becomes a defensive player, one of the other two players grabs the ball and the two players go on offense and attempt to score on the way back to the basket.

Please see the video as an example: