With such a great emphasis being placed on getting to the rim it is more important than ever to have a wide variety of finishing shots at your disposal. The following drill can be done as a team or in your individual workouts. Youth and middle school players could easily work on this drill every day.

1. Start by standing on the baseline and flipping the ball out in front of you to the opposite elbow.
2. Catch the ball, square up and then drive down the lane line and shoot an underhand layup.
3. Rebound the ball out of the net and the flip it out in front of you to the other elbow.
4. Again, square up, drive down the lane line and shoot an underhand layup with your other hand.
5. Repeat the sequence until you have shot 6 different layups with each hand for a total of 12 layups.

Suggested layups:

1. Underhand
2. Overhand
3. Reverse
4. Jump stop and cross over
5. Baseline crab step and power dribble
6. Floater down the middle.

If you do this drill with your team, start in your regular two- line layup formation and play “follow the leader.” Every time the first player in line changes shots then everyone else changes as well.

Here’s a unique ball handling drill that can be adapted and used by beginning, intermediate, and advanced players.

1. Grab a basketball and face an unobstructed wall.
2. Start dribbling the ball with the fingertips of your right hand. Look straight ahead at the wall and keep dribbling the ball at eye level for 1 minute. After 1 minute move the ball up higher until your arm is fully extended and dribble off the wall for another minute.
3. Repeat the drill using your left hand.

If you consider yourself to already be an above average ball handler try dribbling off the wall using both hands at the same time.

If you are an intermediate level player, work on your ball handling by dribbling off the wall while running or sliding along the length of the wall.

Advanced level players can challenge themselves by running or sliding the length of the wall while dribbling off the wall with both hands at the same time.

Here’s a competitive shooting game that you can play by yourself and with a little imagination “beat” Miami’s Ray Allen, who is one of the best outside shooters in the history of the NBA.

1. Pick a spot on the floor, spin the ball out to yourself  and shoot it.

2. Each shot you make gives you 1 point. Each shot you miss gives Ray Allen 1 point. First one to 5 points wins the first game.

3. Shoot a 1 and 1 free throw. If you make both you win the second game. If you miss one of the free throws then Ray Allen wins.

4. Repeat the sequences until either you or Ray Allen wins 10 games. (Pick a different spot on the floor for each set of jump shots.)

When skills sets are similar, foot speed, quickness, and agility are often the deciding factors when determining which player is “better.”

One of the very best, and simplest, ways to improve these important areas is by working out with a jump rope.

If the jump rope you are using is a heavy rope then you also get the added benefit of an arm and shoulder work out as well.

Here is a very simple jump rope workout that will pay big dividends if used twice a day:

1. 2 feet – 1 minute
2. Right foot – 30 seconds
3. Left foot – 30 seconds
4. Alternate feet – 1 minute
5. 2 feet – 1 minute
6. Combine all – 1 minute

If you don’t already have a Heavy Rope click here to get one.

Coaches have been using team and individual shot charts for years for various reasons but players should use them as well, especially with spring and summer workouts just right around the corner.

Players, try charting each one of your misses as you work your way through your shooting workouts and specifically note if you are missing left, right, short, or long.

If the vast majority of your misses are either left or right, then you know there is probably a flaw in your shooting alignment that needs to be fixed.

If you are missing short or long, then the problem undoubtedly lies within your release and follow through.

Once you can narrow in on the causes behind your missed shots, it will be much easier to correct any potential problems and increase your shooting efficiency.

There’s been a lot of talk recently about NCAA coaches using advanced analytics to improve the performances of their teams.

In the latest edition of ESPN The Magazine, the University of Florida’s Bill Donovan talks at length about the importance of measuring and emphasizing his team’s DER (defensive efficiency rating) which reflects points per possession.

Donovan firmly believes (and has the stats to back it up) that his team cannot count on advancing in the NCAA Tournament unless the Gators have a DER below 0.9.

To emphasize this number in practice, Coach Donovan puts a group on defense for six straight possessions with the stipulation that they can’t allow a total of six points, which would translate to a DER of under 1.0.

If they allow only five points or fewer the defense gers to move to offense and a new defense steps onto the court.

If they allow six points or more, the defense has to run and then get back on defense for another six possessions.

“It’s about trying to get our guys to understand the mentality of moving from one play to the next,’”says Donovan.

“Let’s say you’ve given up three points in five possessions – that’s okay.

But now you can’t allow a three on that last one. All of a sudden you’re simulating a real endgame situation.”

While most of us may not have the rsources to use all the advanced analytics that the major NCAA programs have, we can certainly measure our DER and use it to strengthen our defensive presence.

If you have turned on ESPN even once in the last week or so you know that today is Michael Jordan’s 50th birthday.

It also happens to be the anniversary of possibly the greatest NBA All Star Weekend performance in history.

In 1988 All Star Weekend was held in Chicago and Jordan definitely took advantage of performing on his home court.

On Saturday he won his second straight Slam Dunk Contest and then proceeded to dominate the actual game on Sunday.

During that game, in which the East won 138-133, MJ  scored 16 points in the final 5:51 to seal the win and to bring his scoring total to 40. (In 1962 Wilt Chamberlain scored 42 points and hold the All Star Game scoring record.)

However, Jordan also had eight rebounds, three assists, and four blocked shots and proved to everyone that he was much more than a scorer.

Later that season, Jordan was awarded the first of his five NBA MVP awards in and was also named the 1987-88 Defensive Player of the Year.

Besides leading the league in scoring with a 35.0 scoring average, MJ also lead the NBA with 40.4 minutes played per game and 3.2 steals per game.

Every year the NBA All Star Weekend gets more and more hype and media coverage but so far no one has been able to match Michael Jordan’s performance 25 years ago.

Happy 50th birthday Michael. We all hope you have 50 more!

As any good coach or individual skills trainer will tell you, there is a huge difference between “shooting around” and actually working on your shot. To be most effective skill work needs to focus on game shots at game speed and if those shots can be taken in a competitive environment then even better.

This past week I came across a shooting drill that fits each of those criteria.

Pick a specific spot on the floor; let’s use the top of the key in this example. Catch the ball at the designated spot and square up to the basket.

Give a ball fake and then take one or two dribbles to the right and shoot a pull up jump shot.

You start the drill with 5 points and  you subtract a point every time you make a shot. Every shot you miss you add a point.

The drill is over when you get down to zero points and then you change spots.

Variations: Compete against a friend or teammate and the first one who gets down to zero wins and the loser has to do pushups. If you are by yourself you can compete “going right” versus “going left.” Don’t limit this drill to just shots off the dribble. It can be used for three pointers, post moves, driving floaters, etc.

If you’re like me, it seems like nearly everybody on your schedule is now running some sort of dribble drive motion offense where ball handlers are relentless in trying to get to the rim. If that’s the case here’s a competitive drill you can use to help stop dribble penetration:

1. This drill can be run 5 on 5 or 4 on 4
2. The defense must not let any offensive player with the ball get both feet in the lane
3. If the offense gets two feet in the lane, the defense loses that possession
4. If the offense scores by any means the defenses loses that possession
5. The defense must pressure the ball handler and cannot just sag back into the lane
6. Each possession only lasts 15-20 seconds depending on the age group of your players
7. The defensive goal is to get three consecutive stops

Variation: this drill can also be adapted to defend those offenses that try to jam the ball inside to a dominant post player

While Christmas shopping the other day I saw a Christmas card that I thought was really funny.

The card said, “The Four Stages of Santa.

Stage 1: You believe in Santa

Stage 2: You don’t believe in Santa

Stage 3: You are Santa

Then on the inside it said -

Stage 4: You look like Santa

Even though it’s not exactly alike, the card reminded me of the four stages of coaching:

Stage 1: You are excited about your team and really believe that you are going to have a great season.

Stage 2: You no longer believe that you or your team has what it takes to be competitive.

Stage 3: You are working your team hard every day but aren’t making any progress and you feel like you are stuck in a rut. You want to achieve so much more for your players and for yourself, but you just don’t know how to do it.

Stage 4: You discover a secret, a formula, a philosophy and/or a mentor that points you in the right direction and improves not only this season but ultimately changes your career.

The challenge is to get to stage four as quickly as possible where you not only believe in your team, but have all the tools necessary to run a highly successful program.

For many coaches Stage 4 is so close that they can see it, smell it, and almost touch it – but it’s just out of their reach – and they are frustrated.

Give yourself (or someone on your staff) an awesome Christmas present and enroll in Basketball Classroom and get to Stage 4 quicker than you ever thought possible!