I’m coaching middle school aged boys basketball this winter and was hoping for advice on some good drills and any tips on implementing a simple offense. If anyone knows of any good YouTube channels as well, that’d be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advanced!
Coaching advice
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@Hey Adrien! did this last year for the first time so I'm sure he'll have better advice than anything I can come up with. Also this thread
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OT: - Coaching Help
Here's the Summary: My first week of coaching basketball games start the week of 1/24. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem but we started having practices on 11/29. Due to a two week athletics pause after winter break and our school play prior to winter break, I haven't had a full team...
I coach middle school age boys here in CT and have for a few years. Please feel free to DM me.
I thought I remembered seeing a thread about this last year… I couldn’t find it. Thank you!@Hey Adrien! did this last year for the first time so I'm sure he'll have better advice than anything I can come up with. Also this thread
OT: - Coaching Help
Here's the Summary: My first week of coaching basketball games start the week of 1/24. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem but we started having practices on 11/29. Due to a two week athletics pause after winter break and our school play prior to winter break, I haven't had a full team...
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dtxbasketball.com - Coach Taylor has links to basketball 101 on this site with whiteboard runs of plays and sets. I found it helpful for youth coaching.
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1. The high hedge is responsible for all of the world's evils
2. Put as many tall guys on the court at the same time and cram them into the post
I think that about covers the majority of the coaching advice from this board recently.
2. Put as many tall guys on the court at the same time and cram them into the post
I think that about covers the majority of the coaching advice from this board recently.
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At the middle level, I'm keeping it as simple as possible. Maybe run a couple set plays just so the kids can have practice with it for high school, but really they should just be playing and getting a feel for the game.
Play 4 or 5 out, and teach the kids to "pass and cut" or "pass and screen away"... I doubt you need much more than that.
Small-sided games are the best drills in the game. I recommend check out Brian McCormick's work.
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@Jre2000 good luck this season! I'm back with my 7th/8th grade boys and we should have a pretty decent team this year!
As @husky429 mentioned, keep the offense simple. I coach at my small school (~20 kids per game) where kids have to play a sport, so most of the kids I coach don't play basketball outside of school, but most of the kids know soccer pretty well.
I play a man D with a lot of focus on what to do in denial and help situations to help clog up the middle, generate turnovers and encourage teams to shoot from deep. Here's a drill I use for that:
A defense that generates turnovers is huge as half-court offense can get pretty ugly. I also will try to promote trapping in the corners and near the baseline.
On offense, try your best not to assign positions, as it makes the kids feel like they have to play like the position you assign them at.
Instead of positions, I assign them numbers and praise over and over again that the only options when you don't have the ball is either set a screen or find open space.
Here are a few simple plays I drew up:
"Thirty-x" and "Twenty-x"
Basically, it's a simple set that promotes movement from three of the offensive players. Any number I call that starts with thirty is this play. Any number I call that starts with twenty is the same play just with the 2 running and the 4 running the baseline an opposite way.
"COLOR" play
Another set just to get players moving. Any color I call is this play.
As @husky429 mentioned, keep the offense simple. I coach at my small school (~20 kids per game) where kids have to play a sport, so most of the kids I coach don't play basketball outside of school, but most of the kids know soccer pretty well.
I play a man D with a lot of focus on what to do in denial and help situations to help clog up the middle, generate turnovers and encourage teams to shoot from deep. Here's a drill I use for that:
A defense that generates turnovers is huge as half-court offense can get pretty ugly. I also will try to promote trapping in the corners and near the baseline.
On offense, try your best not to assign positions, as it makes the kids feel like they have to play like the position you assign them at.
Instead of positions, I assign them numbers and praise over and over again that the only options when you don't have the ball is either set a screen or find open space.
Here are a few simple plays I drew up:
"Thirty-x" and "Twenty-x"
Basically, it's a simple set that promotes movement from three of the offensive players. Any number I call that starts with thirty is this play. Any number I call that starts with twenty is the same play just with the 2 running and the 4 running the baseline an opposite way.
"COLOR" play
Another set just to get players moving. Any color I call is this play.
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Thanks so much for all of this!! Much appreciated. Good luck this season!@Jre2000 good luck this season! I'm back with my 7th/8th grade boys and we should have a pretty decent team this year!
As @husky429 mentioned, keep the offense simple. I coach at my school where kids have to play a sport, so most of the kids I coach don't play basketball outside of school, but most of the kids know soccer pretty well.
I play a man D with a lot of focus on what to do in denial and help situations to help clog up the middle, generate turnovers and encourage teams to shoot from deep. Here's a drill I use for that:
A defense that generates turnovers is huge as half-court offense can get pretty ugly. I also will try to promote trapping in the corners and near the baseline.
On offense, try your best not to assign positions, as it makes the kids feel like they have to play like the position you assign them at.
Instead of positions, I assign them numbers and praise over and over again that the only options when you don't have the ball is either set a screen or find open space.
Here are a few simple plays I drew up:
"Thirty-x" and "Twenty-x"
Basically, it's a simple set that promotes movement from three of the offensive players. Any number I call that starts with thirty is this play. Any number I call that starts with twenty is the same play just with the 2 running and the 4 running the baseline an opposite way.
View attachment 82109
"COLOR" play
Another set just to get players moving. Any color I call is this play.
View attachment 82110
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Here are a few plays I drew up last week:
STACK DROP XX (inspired by an Australian pro team). If I call this play with an odd number, this is the play. If I call it with an even number, it's the same play, just mirrored to the left with the 2 running the play.
FLASH (this might be two complicated for my team):
I'm fully embracing this season possibly being another s-storm. Our practices officially started last week, but I was out with covid. Now, it's winter break and then we have one practice before our first game.
Once we hit our first game, we have only four more practices sandwiched between our nine other games. Thankfully, my team is mostly 8th graders who I coached last year since we had a super young team last year led by one kid who could definitely become a pretty good HS player if he keeps at it.
@Jre2000, feel free to PM if you ever want to share tips, stories, etc. Good luck!
STACK DROP XX (inspired by an Australian pro team). If I call this play with an odd number, this is the play. If I call it with an even number, it's the same play, just mirrored to the left with the 2 running the play.
FLASH (this might be two complicated for my team):
I'm fully embracing this season possibly being another s-storm. Our practices officially started last week, but I was out with covid. Now, it's winter break and then we have one practice before our first game.
Once we hit our first game, we have only four more practices sandwiched between our nine other games. Thankfully, my team is mostly 8th graders who I coached last year since we had a super young team last year led by one kid who could definitely become a pretty good HS player if he keeps at it.
@Jre2000, feel free to PM if you ever want to share tips, stories, etc. Good luck!
A lot of good suggestions above. What type of players are these? I know you said Middle School aged, but is it a Rec league where the players are a wide range, with many just trying to have some fun with some friends, or is it a more competitive team with cuts that were made where you know most of the kids are fairly serious about basketball? If it's a more casual league, then there would be more practice time spent with fun things, competitions, etc.
1) Depending on the level, make sure you are mixing in humor and fun.
2) Have drills be competitions when you can.
3) Emphasize working on their skills over spending a ton of time on learning a lot of plays.
4) It's a game, it should be fun for all
5) In practices, try to maximize the time of them doing things, and minimize the time of you talking to them explaining things (I was guilty of this)
6) Realize that some kids have lots of things going on in their lives that make it hard for them to remember how to run your "Carolina" play
7) Whether you have plays or just teach offensive concepts, emphasize that running a play CORRECTLY is the important thing. It's fine if they know step 2 is set a screen, but setting that screen correctly is the important thing, and understanding why each step is important.
8) Enjoy it! I coached multiple different levels, and those experiences were some of my greatest memories!
1) Depending on the level, make sure you are mixing in humor and fun.
2) Have drills be competitions when you can.
3) Emphasize working on their skills over spending a ton of time on learning a lot of plays.
4) It's a game, it should be fun for all
5) In practices, try to maximize the time of them doing things, and minimize the time of you talking to them explaining things (I was guilty of this)
6) Realize that some kids have lots of things going on in their lives that make it hard for them to remember how to run your "Carolina" play
7) Whether you have plays or just teach offensive concepts, emphasize that running a play CORRECTLY is the important thing. It's fine if they know step 2 is set a screen, but setting that screen correctly is the important thing, and understanding why each step is important.
8) Enjoy it! I coached multiple different levels, and those experiences were some of my greatest memories!
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How’s everyone’s season going?
Our school has a short winter season (nine games in seven weeks) and my 7th/8th boys’ team had our first game today after just one practice with me (had covid the week before vacation).
Somehow, we won 43-42 finishing the game outscoring the opponent in the 4th (amazing press in the last two minutes). Beat a CT private school that isn’t a powerhouse, but it’s our first season in about a decade in the top division and the school has a few alum currently in local D1s.
We have a talented group of athletes (soccer players with only one kid playing basketball outside of school) so a lot of focus on energy, defense, gang rebounding and moving without the ball. We run a super simple pack line D with extra attention on help D and positionless offense (much to the chagrin of my AD).
Weird realization: we never had time to practice out of bounds plays, so I basically just had them run blob plays and it confuses the heck out of the opponents. Any coaches with long-term success with that?
Our school has a short winter season (nine games in seven weeks) and my 7th/8th boys’ team had our first game today after just one practice with me (had covid the week before vacation).
Somehow, we won 43-42 finishing the game outscoring the opponent in the 4th (amazing press in the last two minutes). Beat a CT private school that isn’t a powerhouse, but it’s our first season in about a decade in the top division and the school has a few alum currently in local D1s.
We have a talented group of athletes (soccer players with only one kid playing basketball outside of school) so a lot of focus on energy, defense, gang rebounding and moving without the ball. We run a super simple pack line D with extra attention on help D and positionless offense (much to the chagrin of my AD).
Weird realization: we never had time to practice out of bounds plays, so I basically just had them run blob plays and it confuses the heck out of the opponents. Any coaches with long-term success with that?
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Just won our first game 38-37 on Saturday on a broken play last-second shot. No credit taken here lol, but the kids had a great time celebrating before I tried quickly getting them into the handshake line I’m volunteering at the Rec. level because they needed coaches, so it’s only one practice per week which has proven to be tough. But definitely having fun!
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Congrats!
Any chance you are near Fairfield County? We could try to schedule a game!
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Plus you'll need a hedge trimmer for the high hedge.
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First thing I learned playing at that age was to protect your jewels when setting screens. Every time we would run up for a screen coach would yell something about guarding our jewels or just yell out "jewels"
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The 5th/6th girls’ coach had to leave early so I stepped in to help, coached at this gem of a gym this afternoon:
(I truly coaching in unique gymnasiums, so much more fun than fancy gyms in schools with massive endowments).
(I truly coaching in unique gymnasiums, so much more fun than fancy gyms in schools with massive endowments).
ClifSpliffy
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this looks like the la forum.
where's the wall of the building rising up from a few feet beyond the endline/sideline?
and where is (my favorite) the ceiling that starts a few feet above the backboard? (usually a basement gym afterthought. cf., 'cyo')
can't be a real gym unless some guy is running around pregame and removing the buckets catching the leaks in a rainstorm. nope, can't be.
i think that they call these 'dual purpose auditoriums,' lunchroom optional.
and as far as that 'blob' play, it is the middle school inbound play when in the frontcourt as the backcourt one must work. it really stunk when we inbounded the ball to the other team, and they make a layup.
the kid with 2 working hands connected to his/her brain is the thrower.
4 players broadly familiar with the others moves (that guy? he's small and fast and will definitely whip out like his pants are on fire. that guy? he's a pier at the port, and might take 2 or 4 steps somewhere. that guy?
he's a gunner and will crawl over glass to make sure the ball goes to him. that guy? he chases butterflies, and oddly, is always somewhere the d isn't.)
middle school ball 101. coach it if you dare! fun times, except for the parents part.
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Believe it or not, this looks a lot like the Putnam Science Academy gym, lol.
Side note: I am in training for our staff student game. 50 made 3s, and 10 minutes of dribbling drills after school. I'm going to drop 30 on these nerds.
ClifSpliffy
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once played a game in an 'open air' hut, in a land far, far, away.
we get there a bit early, after a 'bus' ride (more like a chicken wagon), and i head to the courts to get a feel. wind is whipping mebbe 30,40 mph - no feel to be had, cuz, umm, not familiar with playing in a northeaster. manager sez 'it will change when the people show up, and can block it good enough. let's hope for a big crowd...'
mebbe 4 or 5 hundred in a place with capacity at 800 or 1000, im guessing.
kind of special that time i was dribbling in front of an 'exit corridor' with zero obstacle for the wind. ball blew like 10 feet away from me, and then there were those irregular spots where it whipped up and over the crowd, and then came down hard on your head. whiplash.
'trade winds' they called it. dang right, cuz soon thereafter, i traded my butt back to normal land, far, far, away from there.
we get there a bit early, after a 'bus' ride (more like a chicken wagon), and i head to the courts to get a feel. wind is whipping mebbe 30,40 mph - no feel to be had, cuz, umm, not familiar with playing in a northeaster. manager sez 'it will change when the people show up, and can block it good enough. let's hope for a big crowd...'
mebbe 4 or 5 hundred in a place with capacity at 800 or 1000, im guessing.
kind of special that time i was dribbling in front of an 'exit corridor' with zero obstacle for the wind. ball blew like 10 feet away from me, and then there were those irregular spots where it whipped up and over the crowd, and then came down hard on your head. whiplash.
'trade winds' they called it. dang right, cuz soon thereafter, i traded my butt back to normal land, far, far, away from there.
CL82
James Breeding sucks
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3. Avoid using the phrase “ephing clown” to the referee crew.
(In all honesty, it’s probably best just to avoid using the phrase on the court at all.)
dennismenace
ONE MORE CAST
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Aleutian Islands?
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My team is all over the "IR" today, with three of my four best players either injured or sick.
That leaves one player who is easily our best athlete and leading scorer, but a complete black hole ball hog, especially when not sharing the floor with two of the three mentioned above.
I'm already accepting the fact we'll lose, but I want some semblance of an offensive system despite the fact that my team will be lacking in skill.
What do you think of a really simple 4-out offense that keeps the ball hog at point guard and focuses on give-and-gos and overloading sides of the floor?
Give and go situation. "MOVE 2"
A "3_" play where the 3 moves and the baseline guy moves opposite side?
That leaves one player who is easily our best athlete and leading scorer, but a complete black hole ball hog, especially when not sharing the floor with two of the three mentioned above.
I'm already accepting the fact we'll lose, but I want some semblance of an offensive system despite the fact that my team will be lacking in skill.
What do you think of a really simple 4-out offense that keeps the ball hog at point guard and focuses on give-and-gos and overloading sides of the floor?
Give and go situation. "MOVE 2"
A "3_" play where the 3 moves and the baseline guy moves opposite side?
ClifSpliffy
surf's up
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pilipinas.
and don't think that i forgot ur pithy 'that is the question' comment.
high quality stuff right thar, i just don't recall which thread it was in to give it a major league 'like.'
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them: to die, to sleep
No more; and by a sleep, to say we end
The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That Flesh is heir to? 'Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep,
To sleep, perchance to Dream; aye, there's the rub,
sounds like a fancy middle school coach's halftime speech to me.
or mebbe from the coach at choate or andover. gunnery school?
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This is a middle school team, right? They aren't going to be able to pick up plays like this in a day unless they're super advanced. I really couldn't install plays or sets last-minute except with kids until they were 16+... I think it's a cognitive barrier at the younger ages. This was true even with AAU kids who were almost all college-bound.
If I'm you, I'm telling the kids 3 passes before a shot, accepting the L and using it as an opportunity to teach Mr. Ballhog a lesson. You don't want to pass the ball? Sit on the bench.
If my memory of MS basketball is right, about 90% of teams play a 2-3 zone (and stifle their players' development completely). I'd just throw them in a 1-3-1 and have them make plays.
Instead of that, another option I would run gets the short corner and FT line players moving. We start in a 1-3-1 to have an odd front vs The FT line and Short Corner players alternate. when the ball is at the top of the key, we play from the FT line and short corner. When the ball goes to the wing, the short corner flashes to the corner (3 point land), and the FT line player can use the space anywhere in the short corner to the FT line to make plays.
When the ball goes back to the top, we're back into a 1-3-1. Reversal? Same thing... corner and drop to shor tcorner.
Not sure if that's making sense... I can draw it up and send it during my break in an hour if you want to try it.
ClifSpliffy
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'That leaves one player who is easily our best athlete and leading scorer, but a complete black hole ball hog,'
see?
'that guy?
he's a gunner and will crawl over glass to make sure the ball goes to him.'
middle school coaching 101. lol.
u post a lot of nice stuff. im nominating u for a nobel, or a razzie. either way, u'll win in a landslide.
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@Hey Adrien!
This is what I'm referring to. Super basic. You can put all kinds of screens in their too. I always used this as my base zone offense since I love shooting it. Allows you to have a kind of 4 out vs a zone
This is what I'm referring to. Super basic. You can put all kinds of screens in their too. I always used this as my base zone offense since I love shooting it. Allows you to have a kind of 4 out vs a zone
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Thanks.
Opposing defenses have been amazing this year...NO zone D in four games so far!!
That said, a 1-3-1 lineup with weaker players (literally three players on my roster today have scored this season) makes a ton of sense.
I think a simple rule like if you make a pass on the perimeter, you MUST cut in between the low and high post would work.
To be honest, games where rosters are decimated are sometimes my favorite. There's a dog mentality and a bit of a "let's see what happens" situation.
Conversely, last game the other team didn't have enough 7th/8th grade players, so they brought 6th graders. Seeing that lack of size (I have size) left the team so complacent. I think we started like 11-0 and we ended up winning like 48-42 (granted I got to play my better players a lot less)...people stopped playing D and rebound and it irked me so much.
Random aside, I coached against Tyson Vann (younger brother of Isaac Vann) a few weeks ago and he was super nice and a great young coach. He's coaching at a small Catholic middle school with a great basketball tradition and a roster with a ton of CYO kids.
Met him at the end of the game, chatted a bit and he even let me in on a play that his team kept dominating us on (the Steph Curry elevator play). Most importantly, the kids seemed to have loved him as a coach and I wish him best of luck in his future!
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