July/August 2019 - 28

PRACTICE DRILLS
WEAK-HAND DRILL
By Robert Anderson, Williamsfield High School, Illinois
This is one of our team's favorite drills. We used to end
our practices with it.
Everyone on the team has a ball. Divide the team with
half of the players at each end. The drill calls for two
players to go at one time, one from each end starting on
the block. DIAGRAM 1 shows how we start the drill for
right-handed players. On the coach's whistle, each player
begins to dribble to the other end with their left hand.
When they reach the opposite end, each player scores a
left-handed layup. They must score with their left hand
before they're able to continue the drill.
The drill consists of three complete trips up and down
the floor, making a total of six layups with the left hand. All
dribbling and shooting must be done with the individual
player's weak hand. We allow each player 35 seconds to
go up and down three full times and make six layups. For
every second over 35, players must do one push-up. So, if a
player takes 46 seconds, they're asked to do 11 push-ups.
DIAGRAM 1
When the first two players are finished, the coach yells
" go! " and the next two players in line begin the drill. We
usually end practices with this drill, but we'll sometimes
follow it up with a free-throw drill.
A right- and left-handed player can do the drill at the
same time. If that's the case, coaches need to have one
player on the outside and one on the inside, as shown in
DIAGRAM 2. The coach stands at midcourt to time the
drill and make sure that players are using their weak hands.
The coach should emphasize:
* Looking down the floor while dribbling.
* Pushing the ball out in front while dribbling; not
dribbling to the side.
* Catching the shot out of the net, encouraging players
to high jump and not broad jump their layups.
If you commit to this drill, players will see noticeable
improvement in their weak hands. This has become a
staple in our practices.
DIAGRAM 2
Coach
Coach
26 JULY/AUGUST 2019
July/August 2019

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