Check Out These 3 Fun Kids Basketball Drills!

In today’s blog post, I am bringing you a couple more fun kids basketball drills – “Monkey-in-the-Middle”, “Loose Ball Scramble” and “Crazy H-O-R-S-E”.  Implement these fast-paced, kids basketball drills into your practice plan, and your kids are going to be working hard and loving every minute of it!

Monkey-in-the-Middle

This wacky basketball game helps kids develop their ball handling and defensive skills. Start by dividing the team into groups of five or six. The players will form a circle and one player will stand in the middle.

To play the game, the players in the circle will practice their ball handling skills by dribbling, pivoting, and passing the ball to each other. They should only hold the ball for three seconds before passing it.

The player in the middle will work on defense by trying to steal or intercept the ball. Once he gets the ball, he becomes part of the circle and the person who had it last becomes the monkey in the middle.

Coaches and assistants will need to watch to make sure players are using good techniques to dribble and pass the ball. While players are allowed to pivot, they cannot move out of their positions in the circle.

 

Loose Ball Scramble

This exercise is a fun way to teach players to go for loose balls. Start by dividing the team into as three groups.

The groups will line up with the adult in the middle with the ball. The coach or helper will toss the ball, and the kids race to get it. The adult should use different tosses each time – up in the air, straight ahead, to one side or the other, even rolling on the ground – to prepare players for real game-like situations.

Once a player is able to secure the ball, he dribbles to the closest basket and attempts to score (1 vs 2) against the other players. The other players try to steal the ball or secure a rebound so they can score on their own. The drill is finished when one of the players scores.

Coaches and helpers should remind players that the goal is to go for the ball, not each other. Players should be aggressive, but they need to be careful not to hurt each other.

 

Crazy H-O-R-S-E

For this game, kids will play just like regular H-O-R-S-E, only they should practice using crazy or fancy shots to make a basket.

Divide the players into as many groups as there are baskets available. The kids will take turns taking fancy shots, like shooting backwards or using air time to twist, double pump, and change angles. The players have to attempt the same shot the first player tried. The game won’t be the same as usual H-O-R-S-E because the players will probably make fewer shots, but they should be encouraged to have fun and try new things.

 

For more fun kids basketball drills, be sure to check out “Basketball Basics for Kids”.  And be sure to Become a Fan on Facebook, where I will share more fun kids basketball drills and ideas!