182 basketball drills, free to read
Shooting, ball handling, finishing, defense, passing, IQ, and conditioning — filterable by skill, with age group, duration, and equipment for every drill. Build these into a full practice plan free in the app.
free
Every drill here lists the skill it develops, how long to run it, the age bands it suits, an intensity rating, and the equipment you need — enough to slot it into a session and know what it's for. 20 of them also have a full breakdown: setup, numbered steps, the coaching points that matter while it's running, the mistakes players actually make, and how to scale it up or down. We're working through the rest.
If you're building a session from scratch, work backwards from the skill you want to move rather than picking drills you like. Pick one primary skill per practice, give it the longest block while players are fresh, then layer in the secondary work. Competitive and conditioning drills belong at the end — they raise intensity but they also degrade technique, so anything you're trying to teach should come first.
The counts below are live. Filter by skill area, or start from a ready-made practice plan if you'd rather not sequence it yourself. For the reasoning behind how a session is put together, see how to build a basketball practice plan.
Drills by skill area
Shooting drills build a repeatable release through high-rep, low-distraction reps before adding movement, defense, and game speed. Track makes, not just attempts, and keep form the priority until it's automatic.
Ball-handling work develops control at increasing speed and pressure — stationary control first, then movement, then live reads against a defender. Both hands, every time.
Finishing drills train footwork, touch, and body control through contact near the basket. Reps with both hands and both feet build the habit of finishing strong regardless of angle.
Individual defense is built on stance, footwork, and effort before scheme. Drill the fundamentals — stance, slides, closeouts — until they hold up at full speed and under fatigue.
Basketball conditioning should mirror the stop-start demands of the game — short, intense bursts with real recovery, not steady-state cardio. Tie conditioning to competitive targets whenever you can.
IQ and decision-making drills put players in live, small-sided situations where they have to read a defender and choose correctly — the muscle memory of good decisions, not just good mechanics.
Passing drills build accuracy, timing, and footwork on the catch. The best passing work is done on the move, since that's how the ball actually gets delivered in a game.
Footwork is the foundation under every other skill — pivots, jump stops, and change-of-direction work should be drilled on their own before they're asked to hold up inside a live move.
Rebounding is won with positioning and effort before jumping ability — teach the box-out first, then the pursuit of the ball, then the outlet. All three, every rep.
Team offense drills build spacing, timing, and decision-making between multiple players — the goal is a correct read repeated until it's automatic, not just running a set.
Ball-handling work develops control at increasing speed and pressure — stationary control first, then movement, then live reads against a defender. Both hands, every time.
Pound Dribble Series
Stationary pound, crossover, between-legs and behind-back at max effort. 30s each hand.
Two-Ball Rhythm
Simultaneous and alternating two-ball dribbles — same/height, then piston. Builds control.
Cone Attack Series
Attack a cone with a live counter — cross, between, hesi, snatch-back — into a finish.
Dribble Tag
Everyone dribbles inside the arc; taggers try to knock balls out. Heads up, protect the ball.
Red Light / Green Light
Dribble on green, jump-stop and pivot on red. Teaches control and stopping.
Two-Ball Crossover Series
Dribble two balls simultaneously through low crossovers, then between-the-legs, then behind-the-back, keeping both balls below the knee. Forces independent hand control under constant pressure.
Live-Dribble Attack Combo
Chain three moves in one live sequence — hesitation, crossover, then a hard drive to the rim — against a token defender who mirrors but doesn't fully contest. Trains stringing moves together instead of stopping after one.
Tight-Space Cone Dribble
Dribble figure-eights and crossovers inside a small square marked by four cones, staying low and never letting the ball drift outside the box. Builds control when space is taken away by ball pressure.
Stationary Combo Countdown
Perform a set combo of dribble moves for a descending count from ten reps down to one without looking at the ball. Simple progression builds hand speed and eyes-up habits for younger players.
Figure-8 Dribble Series
Weave the ball in a figure-8 pattern between and around the legs without looking down. Start slow and add speed once control stays consistent.
Around-the-World Ball Control
Circle the ball around the head, waist, and both knees in one continuous loop. Builds hand strength and ball feel for absolute beginners.
Stutter-Step Dribble Attack
Dribble at a cone, stutter-step to freeze the imaginary defender, then explode past on a hard crossover. Repeat attacking both directions.
Fingertip Pound and Pat
Stationary fingertip pounds and pats on the ball's seams at chest height, building the fingertip control that keeps a live dribble off the palm.
Seated Ball Slaps
Seated on the floor, players slap the ball side to side and front to back without losing it, isolating hand strength and control before standing dribbling.
Figure-8 Weave Through the Legs
Stationary figure-eight dribble around and through both legs at a steady rhythm, speeding up only once the pattern stays clean.
Wall Dribble Reaction Taps
Dribble low facing a wall while reacting to a partner's random hand signals behind you, forcing the eyes up while the ball stays live.
Crossover Speed Ladder
Stationary crossovers building from a slow controlled pace to max speed in timed intervals, resetting to slow anytime the ball rises above the waist.
Behind-the-Back Combo Chain
Chain behind-the-back into crossover into between-the-legs in one continuous stationary sequence, keeping the ball below the knee throughout.
Hesitation and Snatch-Back Series
Attack a cone, sell a hesitation with a shoulder dip, then snatch the ball back low to reset an imaginary defender's momentum before re-attacking.
Spin Move Counter Series
Drive hard at a cone, plant, and spin off the front pivot foot to shield the ball with the body before continuing the attack toward the rim.
In-and-Out Attack Series
Sell a crossover with an in-and-out fake at full speed, then keep driving the same direction to punish a defender who bites on the fake.
Zig-Zag Full-Court Push
Push the ball coast to coast in a zig-zag pattern, changing hands and direction at each cone while staying under control at speed.
Change-of-Pace Live Attack
Live 1-on-1 focused purely on changing speeds — walk the defender up slow, then explode past on the first hard dribble.
Half-Court Live 1-on-1 Attack
Full-speed live 1-on-1 from the top of the key — the ball-handler scores by beating the defender off the bounce, the defender scores by forcing a travel or turnover.
Two-Ball Reactive Pass-Back
Dribble one ball while a partner repeatedly tosses a second ball to catch-and-return, forcing the dribbling hand to stay automatic under a passing distraction.
Eyes-Up Blind Dribble Series
Dribble through a moving combo pattern while reading number-of-fingers or color flashcards held up by the coach, forcing the head to stay up off the ball.
Slalom Cone Counter Attack
Weave through a tight slalom of cones spaced one step apart, executing a live counter move at each cone while staying low and close to the ball.
Live Angle Attack (Middle vs Baseline)
Live 1-on-1 where the ball-handler reads the defender's hip angle and attacks whichever lane is open — middle or baseline — instead of a predetermined move.
Counter-to-Finish Reaction Series
Against a token live defender, throw one live move and let the defender's reaction dictate the counter that leads into the finish, rewarding reads over rehearsed sequences.
Retreat and Counter Dribble
Under close ball pressure, retreat-dribble back a step to create space, then counter forward immediately before the defender can recover.
All 182 drills
Every drill in the library, A–Z.