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How to coach little kids basketball

Coaching Youth Basketball -- Tips, Drills, Plays, Philosophy, Tactics

You'll be teaching habits that will stick with these kids for the rest of their lives. And whether you like it or not, you'll be setting an example and teaching kid's lessons about life (good and bad). Kids are impressionable. They pick up on things.

You have an obligation and responsibility to teach them the right things - in both basketball and life.

When you think about it, teachers would do anything to get the enthusiasm that you get from your players. Kids actually like and want to play basketball.

Your players look up to you. They listen to you. And you have an amazing opportunity to make a POSITIVE impact on their lives!

You have a very important and rewarding job!

In this section of our website, we'll provide you with links to a variety of youth coaching tactics, plays, drills, and tips that will help you become a better youth basketball coach.

The articles discuss very important concepts to help you succeed. So read through each article, starting with the first one at the top.

If you don't have our free eBook yet, the first thing you should check out is our FREE Basketball Drills ebook. It includes 72 of some of our favorite basketball drills and it includes youth section so you can easily find the drills that apply to you.

We also offer videos with 60+ Youth Basketball Drills and Tips For Coaching Youth Basketball.

When working with young kids and running basketball drills, there are three very important concepts you need to consider:

Picture by Shane Pope

1 - Kids need to be highly active!

Just by using fast paced drills and keeping things moving, your players will have more fun and get in better condition. Your kids should be breathing hard and their hearts should be pumping. It's good for them!

Avoid standing in lines as much as possible and keep the ball in their hands as much as possible.

2 - Kids want to feel successful!

With very youngs kids, competition doesn't always serve as a motivator. You should always provide activities that help them build their skills and confidence. Strive to focus on the learning process instead of measuring up to those around you.

You'll want to avoid adding pressure and competition until the players have developed their skills, confidence, and become proficient with the basics.

Put them in situations where they can succeed.

3 - Kids want to have lots of fun!

This is an important stage for young players and your actions could determine whether they enjoy sports or not.

It's important to make things fun so they can improve and become confident.

Youth basketball drills don't have to be boring. Almost any drill can be modified to provide high activity, high success, and high enjoyment.

Youth Basketball Offenses

I believe that using a very simple motion offense is the way to go for youth teams because it teaches them how to move and the players will begin to learn how to get open and play the game.

Motion offense also allows you to spend more time teaching fundamentals and skills (which is very important for young players).

The challenging part about motion offenses is that there are SO many options that it's hard for players to know what to do. But you can easily solve that problem by making simple rules and starting with the basics.

For example, you might want to just with just a couple simple options for your motion offense. You could start by teaching the players proper spacing, away screens, and v-cuts. Once they master those skills and get VERY proficient at cutting properly and setting good away screens, then you can start adding more options and building on your foundation.

You can add ball screens, rolling, and so on. Just don't go too fast! Make sure they have good fundamentals before you start adding stuff.

You can learn about developing motion offenses by looking at these resources: Offensive Theory & Introduction to Basketball Offense

Teaching Basketball Motion Offense

5 Out Cutters Offense - Easy to teach and it is a great building block for the motion offense.

You can also try this very simple patterned offense that you can use as a play or your entire offense:
Youth Offense - Michigan

Press Breaker Offense - Breaking the Press in Youth Basketball

3 Critical Player Development Tips For Your Offense

Youth Basketball Plays

When it comes to teaching plays to youth basketball players, it is typically better to teach them concepts on how to play the game of basketball.

Triple Threat - How to get in triple threat position every time a player catches the ball.
Footwork - Quick stops & pivoting
Cutting - Basket cuts & back cuts
Screens - Off the ball & On-ball
Eventually, reading screens.

To read more on this topic, please read:

Youth Coaches: Destroy Your Playbook and Do This Instead

Should Youth Coaches AVOID Plays and Patterned Offenses?

Here are some very basic plays:

1-3-1 Cutters

Rolling

Swing Variation

Zone Shallow

Zone Overload

Quick Hitter Vs. 1-3-1 Zone

Best Overall Advice for Youth Basketball Coaches

1) Keep things fun!
Did you know that the #1 reason kids quit sports is because it's not fun anymore?!? It's very important to play plenty of games and keep a positive attitude.

Be positive and make things fun. Even if the kids get cut from the team or decide not play basketball at an older age, they'll still have a positive image of basketball and may continue to play it recreationally when they get older.

If you act like a drill sergeant when coaching a bunch of 10 year olds, the kid will get a negative image of basketball and have negative emotional feelings when thinking of basketball. Kids will also get sick of basketball if they play TOO many games each year. As a result, they will not likely play basketball when they get older. It can even affect their feelings towards fitness in general. If a person dislikes fitness and becomes inactive, they are more likely to be unhealthy!

60+ Youth Basketball Drills and Games

2) Be Positive & Do NOT Correct Every Mistake!
Don't be too critical and stop them to make a correction on every mistake. Let them play and learn themselves. If you stop or correct them on every mistake, you'll get a basketball player with low confidence that is always unsure of what to do, instead of a confident player that reacts to the defense.

Now, if they continue to make the same mistake over and over and over, show the player a better way to do a certain thing. For example, if you see one of your players stand straight up every time they touch the ball and a defender crowds them and causes the offensive player to travel. Say to the player, "Way to hustle, Johnny! Let me show you something that will help you when the defender crowds you. When catching the ball in this position, keep your hips back with your knees bent, and pivot. Be ready to attack. Then if the defender comes to crowd you, it will be easy for you to dribble right by him!" Notice, I did NOT focus on the negative and say "Stop bringing the ball up!"

Don't focus on the negative. Focus on the way to help them. Let's be positive as coaches!

3) Allow your players to be successful!
Sometimes competition is not a motivator for young kids. However ALL kids need to taste success (and hopefully lots of it). Now this doesn't mean winning. It means getting better and succeeding in practice. Allow your players to run drills that they can succeed at and feel good about. Celebrate small accomplishments and successes with your players.

4) Teach life lessons in your practices!
Read this article about teaching life lessons and improving team bonding.

5) Don't worry about winning!
You don't have time to worry about winning. There's only time to do the right thing... If you do things "right", winning will eventually be a by-product of your actions. Be patient. True success takes time to do things right. It doesn't happen overnight.

You must first build a SOLID foundation for these kids to build on. Taking the time to build that foundation will cause you to sacrifice winning some games. Trust us. This is better for your players in the long run.

6) Avoid year-round basketball and play other sports!
There is a reason that NBA GM's don't like their ELITE, PROFESSIONAL basketball players competing in the summer World Championships and Olympics. It's been scientifically proven that playing a sport year-round leads to tired muscles and a tired muscle has a much HIGHER chance of injury. Now, if these PROFESSIONAL athletes with proper nutrition and training are supposed to avoid year-round basketball, don't you think that a DEVELOPING, young athlete (most likely without proper nutrition and training) should be avoiding it as well?!?

If you force your child to play, it can also lead to burnout, injury, and resentment of the sport or fitness altogether. People are much more driven when they choose to do something they enjoy, rather than being forced to do it. If you want your child to enjoy basketball, play GAMES with him when they want to, and watch basketball-related activities with them. 9 times out of 10, kids enjoy sports that their parents enjoy if approached the right way.

At this age, it is best to improve overall athletic ability which is done by playing multiple sports, such as gymnastics, baseball, soccer, martial arts, football, track, volleyball, softball, swimming, and so on. Keep in mind, that you want to have seasons for these sports. Avoid playing 2 or 3 sports at once and multiple practices on the same day. If you want to focus on one sport at age 16 or 17, GREAT. Not at age 10 or 11. And who knows what your child will take an interest in or show talent in at age 10? Most of the time, things change a lot in the next 6 or 7 years!

7) Don't press or play zone defense!
You can read why and get advice here.

8) Use small basketballs and lower rims!
Using rims that are too high and basketballs that are too big will RUIN your players shooting form. They are NOT strong enough yet.

Do we send 6 year olds to Yankee stadium and start throwing from the big mound? No, we start with tee-ball, then parent pitch, then little league (close bases), and move up.

It's ridiculous to throw 5-10 year olds on a full size court with 10 foot rims and youth basketballs that are way too big! It's no wonder so many kids have horrible shooting form when they get to high school!

9) Teach the right things!
Just keep in mind that if you can teach your young players the following skills, then you should feel good that about what you accomplished and know that you're teaching your player the right things (that they need to be successful)!

Your young players should be able to:

Dribble with their left and right hands equally well.
Make lay ups with their left and right hands equally well -- and jump off the proper foot (left foot when shooting with right hand, and vice-versa)
Perform a jump stop without traveling.
Pivot on their left and right foot without traveling.
Perform accurate chest, bounce, and overhead passes.
Perform a defensive slide (feet wide, good balance, staying between the offensive player and the basket).
Shoot a basketball with proper form.

These simple skills should be your number priority and your goal should be to help your players master these skills. Once they have truly mastered these skills, you can start building from there.

Breakthrough Bonus: Download this "Youth Basketball" article as a FREE PDF! (Download Now!)

Questions & Answers

If you have any questions about coaching youth basketball, post your questions on our forum.

A group of very experienced and knowledgeable coaches monitor the forum and answer questions.

Recommended Youth Coaching eBooks, Books, and DVDs

Here are the books and DVDs that we recommend to youth coaches:

The Youth Coaching System (By Jim Huber)

60 Fun Youth Basketball Drills

Motion Offense

Basketball Shooting Tips & Drills

M2M Basketball Defense Tips & Drills

Simplified Post Player Development

Coaching Youth Basketball - What Should You Teach?

By Joe Haefner

Home > Coaching > Coaching Youth Basketball > Coaching Youth Basketball - What Should You Teach?

Many youth basketball coaches don't know where to start or what to teach. Well, we hope to help you out in this area. Below, we provide some advice on what to teach youth basketball players. We break it down between 3 levels. As you perfect each level, you can advance to the next level to teach more skills & concepts.

All beginner players should start with Level 1 no matter the age. We put ages next to the level as a general guideline. Depending on the age and skill level, you'll progress through the levels at different rates. You may notice that you'll spend 4 years working on Level 1 with 7 to 10 year olds. At the same time, you may be able to progress to Level 2 after two weeks working with a group of 13 year olds who are playing basketball for the first time.

I would advise to go back and start at Level 1 every year. A lot of high school and college coaches start at Level 1 every year. They just progress through the levels more quickly than a youth team. It's a great way to ingrain the fundamentals into your players year in and year out.

We advise to take a couple of hours and write up a master practice schedule for the season, so you can progressively teach them the skills mentioned below. It may take a few years to teach all of these skills at one level and THAT'S OKAY! For youth players, we want to focus on the long-term development, not how many games they win when they're 11 years old. If you try to progress them too quickly, it will hurt them in the long-run. You want to have a solid foundation first. You shouldn't try to teach them every dribble move in one year or every option in the motion offense. The same way in which you couldn't teach a person calculus if they did not know how to do simple addition and subtraction.

Important Note: Throughout this article, you'll find many links to other articles on the website to explain concepts that we advise to teach. My recommendation would be to read the entire article first, then go back and click on the links to read the other articles.

You may also want to add this article to your "Favorites" or "Bookmark" it, because there may not be enough time to read all of the links in one sitting.

Level 1 (7 to 10 Year Olds)

Here's what to teach, ordered by priority:

Lay ups - You should practice lots of lay ups with both hands. Your goal should be to get all players to make lay ups with their left and right hands equally well!! Teach them to jump off the proper foot. They should jump off the left leg when shooting a right hand lay up. They should shoot off their right leg when shooting a left hand lay up. It will be difficult but work on it. You'll probably need to start really close to the basket, with no dribble, and take just one step to practice the footwork. Once you add the dribble, they should dribble with their left hand when shooting left hand lay ups. And vice versa.
Footwork - Teach them triple threat positioning, pivoting on their left and right foot without traveling, jump stops, and to square to the basket as soon as they catch the ball in a triple threat position. You should spend a lot of time on footwork!
Shooting form - For this age group, we highly recommend using smaller balls and lower baskets. If that is not possible, allow the players to dip their elbows which will give them more strength. To learn more on shooting, we also have the Breakthrough Basketball Shooting Guide.
Ball handling - You should teach your players to dribble with left and right hands equally. Basic dribble moves such as the speed dribble, crossover, protect-the-ball dribble, and back-up dribble.
Resource: Progressive Youth Ball Handling & Footwork Workouts App - Players can do the workouts from anywhere. The coaching dashboard also allows you to monitor multiple players or your whole team.
Athletic & movement skills - Teach them how to run, jump and land, skip, stop, move laterally, squat, lunge and any other basic movements. If you don't know how to teach these movements, ask a professional or PE teacher to show you how. 99% of the time they would be more than willing to help, and they may even come and show the kids themselves.
Should We Teach Basketball Skills To Players Under the Age of 10? - Useful information for all levels of coaches, not just coaches who work with players under the age of 10.
Basic passes - Teach and practice the basic chest, bounce, and overhead passes.
Play plenty of 2 on 2 and 3 on 3 games to teach concepts (no dribble keep away). It gets the players more experience and allows them enough space to operate and use the new skills they have learned. Make sure to use plenty of age-appropriate drills & games.
For more on this, read Could 3 on 3 Basketball Be the Best for Youth Players?
Offense - Do NOT use any structured or patterned offenses. First, get them comfortable on the court. They will start to figure things out on their own. Your main concern should be to have them move & not stand still.
If you use a few basic cuts and maybe screens in your shooting drills at the beginning of practice, then your players will already know how to move in a motion offense. Then you don't have to waste time teaching offense. Just let them play.
Once players feel comfortable on the court, show them proper spacing.
As they progress, you can start to introduce them to motion offense situations.
Basic cuts & how to get open - If time permits, you can introduce the basket cut and straight cut. I would suggest that you just work these cuts into your shooting drills at the beginning of practice. This will save loads of time.
Defense - Teach the basic stance, defensive slide, and basic off-ball principles. Don't worry about spending as much time on defense. As they get older, you'll gradually spend more time on defense. Focusing on it 5 to 10 minutes per practice would be more than sufficient.
Basic Off Ball Principles:
- Stay between man and the ball
- Always stop the ball if it is in front of you!
For this age group, we are against zone defenses for development purposes.

For anyone coaching this age group, we HIGHLY recommend the DVD The Youth Coaching System (By Jim Huber). You'll gets lots of drills and learn exactly how to teach the most important fundamentals the to kids "right way". We truly believe this DVD should be required viewing for ALL youth coaches.

Level 2 (10 to 12 Year Olds)

You should expand onto more advanced skills for everything mentioned above. But remember, if your 10 to 12 year olds are inexperienced, you should start in Level 1. And at the beginning of each season, you should start at level 1 until those skills are perfected. Then you can progress into the more advanced stuff below.

Lay ups - jumping off one foot and jump-stop lay ups.
Teach more cuts: back cut, curl cut, etc.
Continue to focus on shooting form and introduce some movement for shooting drills (shooting off the dribble and off the catch). To learn more on shooting, we also have the Breakthrough Basketball Shooting Guide.
Ball handling & dribbling - teach more dribble moves such as the inside-out dribble (fake crossover), hesitation move, and between-the-legs.
Resource: Progressive Youth Ball Handling & Footwork Workouts App - Players can do the workouts from anywhere. The coaching dashboard also allows you to monitor multiple players or your whole team.
Passing - continue to teach basic passes and introduce some advanced passes (baseball pass and wrap around pass). Use other drill such as machine gun passing and pass and switch.
Passing under pressure - you can use pair passing with a defensive player in the middle running back and forth to pressure the passer. You can use this drill to practice breaking pressure: full court press breaker drill.
Teach basic screens.
Footwork - introduce jab steps and ball fakes (pass fakes and shot fakes).
Rebounding - introduce rebounding technique.
Basic post moves. drop step and jump hook.
Spacing - introduce more basic spacing concepts.
Offense - keep playing 2 on 2 and 3 on 3 to teach concepts. You can also start to introduce more motion offense situations and play some 5 on 5.
Defense - keep emphasizing and spend a little more time on the defensive stance, defensive slide, and off-ball principles mentioned in Level 1. If you feel that your players are ready, work on more off-ball defense principles.
In our Man to Man Defense System, we provide step-by-step how to build and teach your defense.
For this age group, we are against zone defenses for development purposes.

Level 3 (12 to 14 Year Olds)

You should expand onto more advanced skills for everything mentioned above.

Lay ups - practice contested lay ups. Also, you could start to teach players, same-leg same-shooting hand lay ups. I know that is against conventional wisdom, but think about it for a second.Your player just blew by a defender or is on a fast break. Do you want them stutter-stepping to give the defense time to recover and contest the shot? So if that means jumping on your right-leg and shooting right-handed on the same side, so be it.
Continue to teach basic cuts and add more cuts.
Continue to emphasize shooting form (move to big baskets and bigger balls). Practice shooting on the move off of the pass and the dribble. To learn more on shooting, we also have the Breakthrough Basketball Shooting Guide.
Ball Handling & Dribbling - teach more dribble moves such as the spin move, behind-the-back. Incorporate some double-moves (crossover followed with a behind-the-back).
Resource: Progressive Youth Ball Handling & Footwork Workouts App - Players can do the workouts from anywhere. The coaching dashboard also allows you to monitor multiple players or your whole team.
Passing - introduce some other advanced passes (dribble pass, behind-the-back pass, pick and roll pass).
Passing Under Pressure - You use Pair Passing with a defensive player in the middle running back and forth to pressure the passer. You can use this drill to practice breaking pressure: Full Court Press Breaker Drill.
Teach Basic Screens.
Footwork - continue to work on jab steps, pivots, and ball fakes (pass fakes and shot fakes).
Rebounding - put more emphasis on rebounding technique and spend more time on rebounding drills.
Post moves - keep practicing post moves mentioned above while introducing a few more when the players are ready drop step counter and up-and-under move.
Spacing - advance to higher levels of spacing drills.
Offense - introduce more motion offense situations. You should start to notice that your players are becoming much better at reading the defense.
Defense - Emphasize basics from previous levels and move on to rotations and situations.
In our Man to Man Defense System, we go into great detail about rotations and situations.
For this age group, we are against zone defenses for development purposes.

Sample Practice Plan for 7 to 10 year olds.

Sample Practice Plan for 11 to 14 year olds.

Do you have any questions or suggestions? Let us know by leaving your comments...

Basketball for children - training, competitions, benefits

Basketball for children promotes not only physical development, but also mental. This article will consider the pros and cons of children's basketball, introduce the rules of the game and the mode of sports activities.

What kind of sport

America is considered the birthplace of basketball. In 1891, a young teacher, James Naismith, in a gymnastics class, suggested that students throw balls into fruit baskets attached to the balcony railing. The team that scored the most hits was considered the winner.

A year later, 13 points of the rules of the game were written. The competition turned out to be so exciting, dynamic and exciting that three years later official rules were issued and teams began to form.

The game began to rapidly gain popularity in the world. In 1901, at the Olympics in St. Louis, a demonstration tour was held among the teams of several cities. And half a century later, the first Basketball Association of America was created.

And a few years later - the National Basketball Association and the International Basketball Federation. It included: Argentina, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Romania. Sweden, Czechoslovakia. And from 19In 36, he entered the program of the Summer Olympic Games.

At what age can you play

Children's basketball requires endurance, good coordination, and analytical thinking from a child. All these qualities are manifested not earlier than in 8-9 years. It is at this age that athletes are allowed to participate in competitions.

However, a child can be enrolled in the basketball section at the age of five or six.

Basketball for preschoolers will be a preparatory step into adult sports life.

In training, kids will:

learn the rules of the game;
engage in general physical training;
learn to work with the projectile;
learn dynamic techniques and combinations.

Both boys and girls are admitted to the section. For the first two or three years, everyone trains together. And when athletes reach 10 years old, men's and women's youth teams are formed.

How workouts work

Every workout starts with a warm-up. It includes exercises that allow you to warm up the joints, ligaments and muscles.

This includes:

light running with vigorous wrist rotation;
hand jerks in front of the chest;
swing arms to the sides;
spring forward and sideways;
sit-ups;
push-ups;
Plank exercise;
lunges;
jumps

After that, start working with the ball.

It is necessary to work with it:

rotation on the index or thumb;
throwing it from the right hand to the left hand;
turns around body and head;
passing from hand to hand, describing the eight between the legs;

It is very important to learn how to catch the ball by hitting the floor, walls, just tossing and rolling it.

When performing all training complexes, you should increase the speed of work, learn not to look at the ball, but to feel it.

The warm-up takes 15-20 minutes and ends with moving fights with the ball. It can be “Fifteen”, “Third Extra”, “Circular Bast Shoes”. Such competition contributes to the development of speed, reaction, ingenuity and initiative.

After the warm-up comes the main part.

Dribbling, passing, throwing and combinations of these techniques are practiced.
Pupils learn steps and movements around the playground.
Game schemes are sorted out.
The work of athletes in defense and attack is learned.
Interaction in pairs and triples is being worked out.

This is followed by a training session using the learned techniques.

The duration of the main part is 60 minutes.

The final part of the training is recovery.

It takes 5-10 minutes and consists of:

walk;
moderate running;
ring shots without load;
breath regulation.

It is recommended to take a warm shower after class.

Water procedures will help relieve muscle tension, wash off sweat, and open air to the skin pores.

Competitions

The rules have been changed and supplemented many times. Now two teams are taking part in the match. There are 12 players in each - five field players, the rest are substitutes.

How long is the basketball tournament?

Children's - consists of four halves of eight minutes with breaks between them. Teams may take additional time-outs. Thus, the total duration of the fight is 60-80 minutes.

The goal of the game is to score as many balls as possible into the opponent's basket. Throws can be worth one, two or three points, depending on where they were taken from.

Athletes move around the field, hitting the floor with a sports equipment. It is forbidden to hold it in your hands, touch it with your fist, legs or other parts of the body.

If both teams have the same number of points in regular time, then a 5-minute overtime is assigned. If it also ends in a draw, then the next one is appointed, and so on until the winner is revealed.

Competitions can be team, personal-team and personal.

Tournaments are divided into:

championships;
championships;
cup competitions;
qualifying, match and friendly matches.

Before the calendar of matches is drawn up, the participants are drawn. Then they meet each other twice.

Each tournament begins with a grand opening, followed by a parade of participants and judges.

The secretary takes minutes of the meeting.

At the closing ceremony, the results of the championship are announced, the winners and prize-winning teams are awarded.

The winner gets the right to pass the circle of honor with the won prize.

Benefits and disadvantages

Basketball is useful. The popularity of this sport is explained by the versatile development of the athlete.

Main benefits.

Physical perfection. Walking, running, stopping, turning, jumping - all this contributes to the proper development of all muscle groups.
Strengthening the cardiovascular, nervous and respiratory systems of the body.
Socialization. Collective sports help to feel self-confidence, give skills to work in a group, give a sense of mutual assistance, responsibility for a friend, and promote discipline.
Mental development. Only here the kid tries to be an analyst, forecaster, strategist and tactician. In the offset is the speed of reaction, anticipation of the opponent's behavior, the solution of complex combinations.

All this will be useful in adulthood.

Availability. Almost all adjoining sites are equipped with shields with rings. You can play alone and with friends in the yard, in the gym, in the park.
Emotional discharge. Group sports allow you to throw out negative energy and recharge with positive.

The main disadvantage is the risk of injury.

The most vulnerable areas of athletes are shoulders, hands and knees.

However, proper stretching, clear and strict implementation of the coach's recommendations, and compliance with safety rules will help minimize the risk.

Difficulties that may arise

Teamwork can be a problem for a shy and uncommunicative child. He will suit individual types of physical culture.

Contraindications

There are a number of contraindications for training:

flat feet;
errors in the work of the musculoskeletal system;
instability of the vertebrae of the neck;
asthma and other breathing problems;
cardiovascular diseases;
diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Before starting classes, you should consult a pediatrician and narrow specialists.

How to choose a section

When choosing a section, the following points should be taken into account:

the child's desire to study here;
technical equipment of the hall, flooring;
reviews of parents and senior pupils of the club;
availability of awards and cups of championships and championships;
financing of field events;
availability of a summer training ground or sports camp;
location relative to the place of residence.

What you need

For training you need:

shorts and T-shirt or tracksuit in cold weather;
sneakers or sneakers with non-slip soles.

Knee pads and wrist straps are available to secure the hand.

Most clubs offer their sports equipment. But it is better if the child has his own ball. This will allow you to practice movements on the sports ground in the yard.

Basketball lessons for children will be a bright pastime. After all, you can work out in the gym and on the street. Girls and boys will improve their physical form, gain teamwork experience, and the ability to think creatively.

Photo: shutterstock.com

Play and practice | Basketball for children

Not every sport can be practiced from the same age. If, for example, figure skating or swimming are available even to preschoolers, then basketball - a fast-paced, diverse game that requires great physical training - can be practiced from about 11 years old. It is from this age that children's sports schools are accepted into the preparatory basketball groups. And from the age of 12, the guys are enrolled in the main groups.

Real competitions for children take place even later. All-Union basketball rules provide for several age groups. This is a group of adolescents (13-14 years old), junior youth (15-16), senior youth (17-18) and, finally, adults (19 years and older). In some cases, with the permission of a doctor, a young basketball player can play in a group one step higher.

Simplified basketball rules have also been developed in our country. According to these rules, deviations from the norm in the size of the site are allowed when it is not possible to make it 26 meters long and 14 wide. These deviations are very significant. It is allowed to play on a court even 12X6 meters in size, but no less.

Reduced platform

If the court does not exceed the size of 18X9 meters, then the restricted area of the free throw area is drawn not as a trapezoid, but as a rectangle with a width of 3. 6 meters, that is, the same as before the last rule change. The distance from the free-throw line to the projection of the backboard on the court is 4.6 meters, as with normal field sizes.

Shields can be made from any suitable material. Their dimensions should not be less than 1 meter in width and 80 centimeters in height. It is allowed to attach shields directly to poles (in an open area) or to a wall (in a sports hall). But at the same time, therefore, they will not go deep into the court, but at best they will be at the level of the front line.

The ring is attached at a height of not less than 2.5 meters and not more than 3.05 meters from the floor. It can also be attached directly to the wall of the hall. Then the contours of the shield are applied on the wall with paint.

It is also allowed to play with a soccer ball.

Basketball suit

Basketball players must wear a T-shirt, shorts and shoes without heels, preferably rubber. Numbers are sewn or painted on the T-shirt: 20 centimeters high on the back and 10 centimeters high on the chest (the width of the lines is at least 2 centimeters). In competitions above the city scale, team players have numbers from 4 to 15. For grassroots teams, any number between 4th and 9th is allowed.9th. This is due to the signaling of judges, which is more difficult in major competitions.

According to the simplified rules, only one referee on the court can conduct the game. In this case, representatives of both playing teams are supposed to keep score and control time.

If the duration of the match for adult players and older youths is 40 minutes (2 halves of 20 minutes), then in the younger youth group it is 30 minutes (15 minutes each), and for teenagers it is only 24 minutes (12 minutes each) . Athletes of all groups have a 10-minute rest between halves. Extra time is given only to adults and older boys. For basketball players under 17, in the event of a draw, the match is replayed the next day, and the score starts again.

All rules apply equally to men's and women's teams regardless of age. In other words, girls play exactly the same way as boys.

Substitution of athletes in the game according to simplified rules is made at those moments when the ball is out of play. A dropped ball is played in those cases when it went out of bounds, having bounced off two opponents at once, or was simultaneously detained by them, and they cannot snatch it from each other. The referee throws a dropped ball in one of the three circles closest to the place of the infringement (in the center or in one of the two included in the free throw area).

The rules also stipulate that a ball thrown into the basket directly on a throw-in from out of bounds does not count.

We have already said that it is necessary to work on techniques with great diligence in order to confidently apply them in competitions. Technique can and should be improved not only in team training, but also independently in any free time. I will briefly tell you about some of the devices invented by experts for independent work of beginner athletes on techniques.

A backboard with a basketball basket is mounted on a vertical portable stand. It is mounted so that it can be moved along the rack and fixed at the desired height. In order for a beginner to properly practice the throw with his hands, the shield is set relatively low. Gradually, the height of the shield can be increased. Then it will approach the game conditions, and the basketball player will be able to calculate the necessary trajectory of the throw. Since this device is portable, the athlete can use it and exercise in any conditions on some small and uneven area. On the reverse side of the same shield, you can attach a second basket. Then at the same time two people will have the opportunity to do it at once.

Another device is also vertical and extendable, in the shape of the letter "G". A ball is tied to its crossbar. An athlete in a jump should try to hit the ball one or more times in a row. When the height of the ball becomes familiar, it is fixed higher. This device develops jumping ability well and does not bother basketball players.

Some training aids

Here is another one. A ring is fixed on a vertical stand, but it is not located horizontally, as on a playground, but, on the contrary, strictly vertically. From two opposite sides of this device, at some distance from it, two players stand and begin to pass the ball to each other so that it flies through the ring. The one who fails to do this gives way to the next basketball player in turn.

This device can be improved in such a way that the ring rotates around the axis of the rack, and, in addition, moves in height, and the entire structure moves on wheels. Then it will be possible to work out the transfers on the go. The mobility of the ring can be used for two purposes: firstly, to change the height of the pass, and secondly, by turning the ring at one angle or another, to reduce its visible hole, respectively, that is, to make it difficult to throw. This moving ring is a great tool for practicing passing accuracy.

There are many more games and special exercises to develop technical skills. I will introduce you to some of the simplest of them.

Basketball players form a circle, the same as in volleyball when they play without a net somewhere on the lawn or on the beach. With the help of the usual “counter”, the “leader” is determined, which takes place inside the circle. After that, the players begin to throw the ball to each other in any direction, and the “leader” tries to intercept the ball or at least touch it. As soon as he succeeds, he will be replaced by the one who last threw the ball.

Players line up in two chains - one against the other at a distance of 6-8 meters between the first two basketball players. One of them throws the ball to the other, who begins to move towards him, and in the meantime he runs into the tail of the chain. The one who catches the ball, in turn, throws it to the next player in the first chain and also quickly gets behind his own.

The following exercise can be used to practice basket shots. Players alternately throw the ball three times into the ring - first from the free throw line, then twice in a row from under the shield. This must be done at a brisk pace, without delay. You can arrange a kind of competition, evaluating, for example, a hit from the first throw at 3 points, from the second - at 2 and from the third at 1. The one who scores the most points from the same number of throws will win.

The most common exercise for basketball players (of any skill level) in their warm-up before a match is the so-called "live flow". The players during this exercise become two chains along the side lines of the court facing the backboard at a distance of several meters from it. The first player of one of the chains stands under the ring, from there he throws the ball to the first player of the other chain and runs into her tail. And he catches the ball on the go and, having made a throw into the basket, runs into the tail of the first chain.