Improving at basketball requires hours of practice. While getting in shape and scrimmaging will help you get better and more comfortable on the court, doing specific drills for dribbling, shooting and playing defense will help intensify your practice experience. Coaches who want to help their players get the most out of their practice sessions will use 10-to-15-minute drills to help their players improve.
Ballhandling Coordination
Take two basketballs and put one in each hand. Start at the near baseline and begin walking and dribbling. Dribble the ball in your right hand and as soon as that ball hits the floor, dribble the ball in your left hand. Try to keep your head up as you walk down the floor and dribble two balls at the same time. Once you get to the far baseline, turn around and dribble in the same manner back to the original starting point. As you get more comfortable in this drill, start to pick up the pace and move to a trot, then attempt running as you do it.
One-on-Me
This is a drill to use in practice with your team or when you are alone. Start with the ball at the top of the key and take a shot. If you make the shot, you get a point. If you miss the shot, you lose two points. The goal is to get to 10 points above before you get to minus-16 points. Play this at game speed. Don't walk after the ball. Run after the ball and take your shot quickly.
One-on-Two Defensive Drill
In this drill, one defensive player attempts to stop two offensive players. You are on defense as the ballhandler crosses halfcourt. Your goal is to stop the two offensive players from working a successful play by hustling. You can guard the man with the ball, then switch when he passes to the other teammate. The idea is to contest every pass, contest every shot and work as hard as you can to stop the offensive play from succeeding. If you can stop your teammates on one-of-three attempts, you are doing well.
