As a youth basketball coach, I’ve seen players of all levels and abilities. While there are many skills that can be valuable for players to learn, there are five essential skills that every youth player should focus on. In this post, we’ll discuss these five skills, along with specific tactics and reasoning for each one, and explain how they can be helpful for youth basketball players.
Essential Youth Basketball Skills to Develop
These five essential skills are critical for youth basketball players to learn. Ball handling, shooting, defense, passing, and rebounding are fundamental skills that players will use in every game.
Ball Handling
One of the most fundamental skills in basketball is ball handling. Without good ball handling skills, players will struggle to move around the court, protect the ball, and make passes.
To improve ball handling skills, coaches can encourage players to practice dribbling with both hands, practice changing direction while dribbling, and incorporate cone drills to work on agility and control.
Shooting
Shooting is another essential skill that all youth basketball players should learn. Accuracy is critical for players to contribute to their team and score points.
Coaches can help players improve their shooting skills by encouraging proper form, incorporating shooting drills, and helping players develop a consistent shooting routine.
Defense
A good defense can make a big difference in a basketball game. Youth basketball players should learn how to play good defense, which includes staying low, moving their feet, and keeping their eyes on the ball.
Coaches can help players improve their defensive skills by incorporating defensive drills, practicing closeouts, and encouraging communication on the court.
Passing
Passing is another essential skill that all youth basketball players should learn. Good passing skills can help players move the ball around the court, find open teammates, and create scoring opportunities.
Coaches can help players improve their passing skills by practicing different types of passes, emphasizing the importance of accuracy and timing, and incorporating passing drills.
Rebounding
Rebounding is an important part of basketball and can help a team gain an advantage on both ends of the court.
Coaches can help players improve their rebounding skills by teaching proper technique, encouraging box-outs, and incorporating rebounding drills into practice.
As coaches, we can help players develop these skills by incorporating specific drills and exercises into practice, emphasizing the importance of good technique and consistency, and providing positive feedback to encourage improvement. With these skills, youth basketball players can improve their performance and make valuable contributions to their teams.
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Let’s say at this stage in your career your skills are at point A and your goal is to get those same skills to point B. What is the quickest way to get your basketball skill set there? There is really only one answer and it is daily, repetitious, and purposeful practice!
Purposeful means that you are following a proven and workable plan. Repetitious means you are practicing the desired skill over and over and over again. Those two are the easy parts of the formula. It’s the daily requirement that’s the stumbling block!
The 10 Million Dollar Basketball Skill Set
At first thought it seems like shooting 2100 jump shots on a Saturday would be the same as shooting 300 shots a day for 7 straight days but it’s not. It’s the daily consistency that is going to strengthen your muscle memory and ultimately improve that skill. The same is true with passing, ball handling, post moves, defensive techniques, etc.
Think about this for a second:
If you take a penny and double it every day for 31 days, you’ll soon have more than 10 million dollars. However, if you only double it every other day for 31 days, you’ll wind up with $163.00. And if you choose to only add seven cents every Saturday instead of worrying about it every day you will finish the month with 29 cents. Ten million dollars versus $163.00 versus 29 cents.
Pete Maravich, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kevin Durrant, and Chris Paul are just a few of the many professional basketball players whose daily work ethics are legendary. Sometimes we see players like these and think to ourselves, “Well, if I made tons of money to play in the NBA, I’d work out hard every day too!” They don’t work out every day because they’re successful. . . .they’re successful because they work out every day!
Daily Work Takes Sacrifice
It’s not easy working on your game every day. On some days you’re going to be more tired than usual and on other days your friends are going to insist that you hang out with them instead of spending time in the gym. You have to have an extraordinary amount of self discipline to ignore all of the distractions that constantly tempt you from doing what’s important. (It might help you memorize the quote, “The things that matter the most should never be at the mercy of things that matter the least.”)
What is easy is telling yourself that missing a day every now and then is okay and that you’ll make it up some other time. The first time you miss you feel a little guilty about it, but you soon get over it. Then before you know it you’re missing more and more days without even thinking twice about it. Soon you decide just to do all your extra skill work just on Saturdays and you know what that gets you.
So I guess the question you have to ask yourself is, “Do I want a $10 million skill set or a 29 cent skill set?
Only you can answer that question and only you can do something about it!
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Summer remains a pivotal part of the basketball season for more than just the coaches looking to make the most of the offseason. It’s during spring and summer where developing players can sharpen their basketball skills ahead of tryouts in the fall and the winter’s regular season.
Players can use the five P’s to help them maximize their basketball offseason training. Prep, Practice, Push, Partner, and Pace provide plenty of purposes for players to pursue. It’s never too early to start training for your next basketball season. Here’s a look at those five P’s to get you off your gaming chair on the court.
Prep For Your Offseason Training
Just like coaches, players need to prepare for their offseason training. You’ll want to ensure a plan of attack when entering the gym for any workout session. To do this, each player should prep and plan their approach. What skills do you want to develop? What drills can you incorporate?
Offseason prep provides valuable time to consider your goals. Knowing what you’d like to achieve ahead of time will help you maximize your time in the gym. Customize your prep to fit your specific goals, beyond what offseason training goals your coaches may have set for the team. If you want to get stronger, build your workouts around the weight room. If you want to increase your shooting range, set your sights on shooting drills.
Practice Your Position During Offseason Training
While having a versatile skill set is always valuable, practicing your specific position during your offseason training provides the quickest route to playing time. If you spend your individual workout time on shots you won’t or will rarely see during a game, you’re sabotaging your offseason training. The different positions on a basketball team trend to create different scoring opportunities on the floor.
Ball-handlers should practice scoring off ball screens, penetration, and catch-and-shoot opportunities. Wing players could build their workouts around coming off ball screens, catch-and-shoot/drives, and scoring from a triple-threat position. Post players can work on scoring down low, their face-up/mid-range game, and offensive rebound finishes.
Of course, there’s more to each position than just these drills, but focusing on specific skill development will help maximize your offseason training. Working solely on isolation touches or three-point shooting limits the effectiveness of your time in the gym.
Push Yourself During Offseason Training
One key to maximizing your offseason training time is keeping a close eye on your pace. While it’s okay to start slowly, your workouts should eventually build to practice your moves at game speed. Not only does this help develop your game-specific skills, it also adds a layer of conditioning to your training program.
In addition, playing with pace adds value to your training by building muscle memory. There’s a reason why it’s called “game speed.” Practices tend to run slower, especially during specific drill work. Pushing yourself to practice at game speed only helps your confidence grow as a player.
Partner Up
Practicing alone limits what you can do. So, finding a partner opens the door wider to maximizing your offseason training. You and your partner can work on a variety of skills and drills that solo workouts can’t incorporate. This is particularly true when trying to complete shooting drills. Having a rebounder and a passer can help improve the flow and efficiency of your workouts.
Adding a partner to your workout also provides a layer of accountability to what you’re trying to accomplish. You’ll probably face days where you lack the motivation to go to the gym. Having a partner in tow means you’re more likely to stick to the schedule you developed at the start of the offseason.
Pace Yourself in Offseason Training
Trying to do too much in too little a time will also sabotage your offseason training efforts. It’s important to pace yourself throughout the spring and summer so as to not suffer burnout. Staying consistent with your approach helps maximize the effectiveness of your workouts. Stick to the schedule you set at the start, and remember to consider whatever team practices and camps your coach may have in mind.
It’s important to work on multiple skills for your position, but also make time for strength training. Participating in offseason programs for other sports will also help with conditioning and avoiding basketball burnout. If you’re only working on basketball skills this offseason, set yourself up with a reasonable schedule to maximize your training efforts.
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