Top Pro Basketball Drills

Basketball is a game of constant motion, and players must be in peak physical condition to keep up. From slam dunks to layups to rebounding net basketball, every basketball player needs to be in peak physical condition. An important part of any basketball player’s training routine is including drills that help improve these important qualities. This article will look at several drills that basketball players can use to improve their physical fitness.

1. Muscle Memory Shooting

Take the reverse layup and make it look instinctive. This drill gives players a goal to work toward and increases shooting confidence. Set up two parallel lines on each side of an open area with 9 feet between them. The player works against one line at a time, beginning from the baseline. As they pull back after their shot, they immediately jump up and do an explosive drive to find another open spot on that line before launching again as soon as possible.

1. Mikan/Reverse Mikan

This is a fun and challenging drill. Players are placed on opposite sides of the court, about 3 feet apart, facing each other for an equal balance between physical strain and competition. The person who makes their shot first has to do full reverse push-ups while their opponent does half push-ups.

1. Defensive Lane Slides

This setup consists of ropes strung through duct tape. The rope is attached to a shot blocker and slides down the court as soon as something goes into that space that cannot be stopped by hand or foot. In this drill, full-speed shots are made in sets; one jump stop is followed by a right or left full-speed pull-up jump shot intended to put real-life ball pressure on the shooter.

This drill allows players with starting skills and different skill levels to work at their maximum efficiency because of its slow-motion nature, allowing them all to learn how teammates’ positioning is essential in facilitating a shot and how you can adapt to the situations around you.

1. Full-Speed Dribbling

In this setup, players shoot out to the three-point line with full-speed dribbling and hop back in before driving into a set of three to five feet of space. This drill best done with a basketball machine and it is intended for playmaking on offense while better simulating the pressure when one gets beat off the bounce or gets trapped.

1. Two-Ball Passing

A one-on-one setting is created on the baseline by placing two balls on opposite sides. The area between them should be wide enough to allow players full movement. This drill can be done with a single ball, which simulates half-court play in preparation for more conventional pass drills, but the full range is not practiced.

Finally, players need to learn that passing is more art than science because of this drill’s slow-motion nature.

1. Cutthroat (1-on-1 Closeout)

Two balls are placed on the baseline, and two players take turns trying to hook shot blockers to force a penalty. This drill develops body position and timing so that one player with only a minimal amount of field-book knowledge (such as passing angles in relation to each other) can improve when their down-screen is potentially broken. However, a coach has to feel comfortable with the exchange of such little information for this drill to be successful.

1. Curl, Fade, Cut

Three balls are set up on the baseline, and two or three players take turns throwing passes to one another. The pass must not be touched by any opponent until after it has been caught for this drill to work correctly; whoever receives a free pass will have time to fake a curl-in or pull-up if a layup is available.

This drill helps players learn to pick arches for faraway jumpers, pull-ups from other creative shots. And find passing options when cutting off screens occurs quickly.

1. Two-Ball Dribbling

This warm-up drill was created to get players stretched and ready for more demanding 1-on-1 passing drills. However, it is also used to increase dribbling intensity after players have gone through all of the above routines.

Two balls are placed on either end of the court, about ten feet apart. And two or three players take turns dribbling up the court between them. After each player has finished with the drill, a coach cues a quick pass to another area of the floor to make sure that no one simply stops movement to “recover.”

1. Full-Speed Shooting

This drill is intended to simulate the full-speed, lane-locating action. That a player will encounter once recruited into Division I basketball. With this in mind, it should be run along with all of the 1-on-1 passing drills described earlier unless they appear to include too much running.

1. Post “Crab” Dribble Moves

This drill is built in the same manner as the previous dribble moves but includes a shift into an off-the-dribble move when players reach before or after the free-throw line.

Although this particular segment does not take place along any particular lane of play, it adds complexity. It adds a new element to assist in players’ development of post moves. When their primary “crab” move has led them into the lane.

Conclusion

Basketball can be fun, but it’s not without its challenges. In this blog post, we have shared some of the top pro basketball drills. That can help you improve your game. Give them a try and see how they can help you take your game to the next level. Also, remember to make a ball machine basketball part of training essentials.