AUSSIE HOOPS MINI BASKETBALL ADDITIONAL GUIDE PREPS AND YEAR 1’S

The more actions and movements that are introduced the more a child´s motor skills will improve. Games must be
presented in a general form, asking the players questions like “let’s see who can tag the most players?” Games do not have
to replicate basketball and many fun games (that will help to develop skills such as changing direction) may not involve
either basketballs or rings.
The practice must be held in a tranquil and relaxed fashion, with safety being of the utmost concern. Children must make
their own “guided” discoveries rather than being “drilled” in a repetitive or monotonous manner. Music helps a lot and can
facilitate learning.
Whilst there may be “winners” in activities, the overall focus should not be on winning, but on having fun and developing
new skills. “Success” should be defined as being able to do something that you couldn’t do before!
The analytical teaching of basketball fundamentals should be avoided at all costs at this age, instead the focus should be on
games that involve skills such as:
• Running
• Jumping
• Changing Direction
• Throwing and catching etc.

No activity should go for too long though, as players that are having difficulty may become disenchanted and players that
are able to do them will quickly become “bored”.

General Movement and Ball Control

1. All types of walking (on heels, tip-toes, on the inside and outside of foot).
2. Walking forward or running forward, walking backwards and sideways, holding the ball high, low, behind the back.
3. Run, lifting heels so that they hit their bottom, or so that they hit the ball when holding it behind their back.
4. Run lifting knees high holding ball in front. Players may hit the ball with their knees (and if they keep their elbows bent
they will need to lift their knees higher!)
5. While walking or running, pass the ball around the head, the trunk, lower limbs, or roll it along the floor or toss it from
one hand to another. Encourage the players to keep “looking up” so that they can see the coach. This often means bending
their knees to get low rather than bending at the waist.
12. Sitting down, raise legs and pass ball under knees from one hand to another.
13. Lying on ground, pass ball under knees from one hand to another.
15. Lying on tummy, bounce with right and left hand.
17. Standing up, legs apart, hold ball high: bend waist and touch right foot and left foot with ball.
21. Raise ball high, let it drop and bounce on ground, touch it with head, shoulders, knee, and foot.
22. Hold ball between hands: rapidly change hand position.
23. Roll ball around feet moving around the court.
25. Place one hand on ground and use other to dribble and move.
26. Bounce ball on ground with fist, side of hand, back of hand, palm and palm and fingers (standing still and on the move).
Then use two fists, two sides, two backs of hand. Coaches may ask the players after this activity which technique gave
them greater control - most will identify using the palm and fingers of their hand, which is good dribbling technique!
Body Orientation in Space and Laterality
The following activities can be done as a group, with each player having a ball or players working in pairs.
1. Game-drill exploring basketball court (side-lines, end-lines, circles), walking, running, jumping, dribbling along the lines.
This can progress to a game of “Pac Man”, where some players are designated as taggers and try to tag other players – all
players can only run along lines on the court.
2. Stand inside the court and throw ball towards side-lines and try to catch it before it goes out of court; same towards
end-lines.
3. Walk in the court with one eye closed and one open, (and then progress to both eyes closed), dribbling and then
progress to jumping and dribbling.
4. Dribble following court lines, circles, and lanes.
5. Walk in court passing ball under legs.
6. Dribble standing still with preferred hand, walking, running.
7. Dribble standing still and jump with feet together, jump on one foot, with open legs, crossed legs.
8. Standing still dribble, with one hand and jump on corresponding foot.
10. Dribble high, very high, low, very low.
11. Dribble sitting down with one finger, two, three, four, five fingers.
12. Throw ball very high and catch with same hand, with opposite hand, with two hands (standing, kneeling, sitting, lying
with back on ground).
Spatial-Temporal Perception
1. Players move around the court avoiding objects (such as cones) that are scattered on the court. Initially players roll ball
with one hand (making sure they use both left and right). Can also have them use two hands, their feet and (finally)
dribbling the ball.
2. Walk, throw ball forwards and grab it immediately after it has touched the ground.
4. Throw ball very high and catch it after having clapped hands several times in front of their body. Then clap behind the
back and then in front and behind or even under their legs. Then, instead of clapping, have the players touch the ground
with one or both hands or turn around in a circle.
5. Throw ball against wall and catch it.
6. Throw ball against wall, clap hands in front and catch without dropping: repeat clapping hands behind back, touching
ground, turning around.
11. Throw ball as high as possible and as far as possible.
13. Back against wall, throw ball against wall, turn and catch ball.
14. Walk holding ball behind head, let it drop and catch it before it touches floor.
16. Walk passing ball from one hand to the other.
17. Legs apart, bounce ball on floor between legs, turn and grab ball.

Balance
3. Dribble with eyes closed.
5. Run around court and stop immediately at a signal. Progress to dribbling
6. Run around court, stop at a signal, jump high and turn around, then start to run again.

Coordination
5. Dribble with two balls alternatively. Start stationary and progress to running. Partner watching then swap.
7. In pairs dribble with two balls and at the coach’s signal exchange balls. Initially exchange balls by handing them to the
other player. Progress to the other player simply taking over the dribbling.
17. In pairs players throw two-handed chest pass, bounce pass, side pass, side bounce pass and two-handed overhead pass
back and forth.

Endurance
1. Race dribbling 15-20 meters.
2. Race running in a slalom (moving in and out of cones) while dribbling.
3. Relay races and dribbling races.
5. Timed shooting competition: see how many shots can be made in a certain period of time. Lower rings, a “goal” may
include hitting the ring or hitting the net

Speed
1. Dribble running on court and change speed at the coach’s signal (whistle, voice or visual) or have them follow lines of
court.
2. Dribble starting from different positions (standing, sitting, kneeling, lying on back, lying on tummy, etc.).
3. In pairs (one ball each), dribble and try to touch partner´s ball, knee, back; untie their shoe-laces, etc., all while dribbling
FUN ACTIVITIES TO TEACH BASKETBALL SKILLS

DRIBBLING
1. Dribble in the middle of the court responding to different directions from the coach (e.g. change speed, direction,
reverse walking, change hands, etc.).
2. “Dribble Tag” – 3 or 4 players are designated as taggers (taggers wear a colour sash). They must dribble around the
court, chasing other players and try to “tag” them. Proceed for a set amount of time to determine how many tags they get
Proceed to all players dribbling!
3. “Dribble Tag – Lines” – same as dribble tag, however players can only run on marked lines on the court.
4. “Dribble Gang” – similar to Dribble Tag, however when a player is tagged they join in trying to tag others.
6. “Statue Game”: Each player has a ball and they dribble in the middle of the court and on the coach’s signal must stop
(those who do not stop lose a point). The coach can designate whether players use a jump stop (one count) or stride stop
(two count). Players that use the wrong stop also lose a point.
7. “Dribble lines”. Players dribble following the lines of the court, and when they meet another child they must change
hand, reverse, change direction.
12. “Dog and Hare Game”. Player are in two teams and each has a ball. One team are the “dogs” and they start in the
centre circle. The other team (“hares”) may start anywhere on court. When the coach says go, the dogs dribble and must
try to touch the hares. Those who are tagged must stop and sit. The player that manages to touch the most hares” in a
fixed time period wins.
13. “The Four Corners Game”. 4 Players stand in a corner of the half court holding a ball. One player is in the middle. When
the coach says “go”, the players in the corners must sprint dribble to the next corner (the coach determines whether they
move clockwise or counter-clockwise”). The Player in the middle tries to get to one corner, before the other player does. If
they are successful, they now occupy the corner and the other player moves into the middle. This game can also be done
running instead of dribbling.
14. “The Fisherman Game”. (All without ball, then all with ball) One player stands at half court (“the fisherman”) and other
players (“the fish”) stand on the baseline. When the coach says “go”, the “fish” must dribble and try to reach the other end
of the court (beyond the end-line), without being tagged by the fishermen. Anyone tagged becomes a fisherman.
16. “The Wolf and Sheep Game”. Every player has a ball. One player “the wolf” starts in the centre circle. The other players
“the sheep” start in a keyway. When the coach says “The wolf isn´t here”, the “sheep” can move freely dribbling anywhere
on court (they cannot stay in the keyway) The “wolf” can move too, but cannot touch the sheep. When the coach says
“Here comes the wolf”, the wolf can touch any “sheep” that are outside of a keyway. Sheep who are touched outside of
the circle become wolves and the game continues.
17. “1-2-3 Stop”. Each player has a ball. One player stands at half court and the others stand behind the base line. The
player at half-court faces away from the other players and calls out “1-2-3 Stop”. As they call “1”, players start to dribble
toward the half way. When they call “Stop”, the player at half way turns around and anyone they saw still moving must
return to the baseline. The first to reach half-court without being seen by the child who is at half-court is the winner. The
player in the middle as fast as they want, as long as they say each number out loud.
19. “Relay Dribbling Races”. There are many types of relays (forwards, forwards and backwards) without the ball (running,
jumping), or dribbling, with one ball each or one ball per team. At a signal given by the coach, the first in line starts and
follows the designated path (e.g. running around markers, on certain lines etc.).
When the player returns to the line they touch the ball of the second in line and the game continues. The team which
arrives first after having completed the path wins.

DRIBBLING & SHOOTING

2. “Dribbling and Shooting Relay Race”. Players are divided into two groups and have a ball each. At the signal, the first
player of each team begins to dribble, towards the basket stops and shoots. If the player scores a basket (1 point for hitting
ring, 2 points for going in) they quickly return to the line. If they miss their initial shot, they may have another two tries to
make a basket. After the three tries have been used up, the child returns to the starting point. The team that manages to
score the highest number of baskets in a set period of time wins.
3. The same relay race may be played allowing each player to have only one shot. The next player starts toward the basket
once the player in front of them has shot.
4. “Dribble Slalom Relay Races”. Players are divided into two teams and start at half way. They dribble around a variety of
cones and then take a shot. Once they have shot, they return to the line. The next player dribbles after first player gets
half way. The team to make the most baskets in a designated time wins (or it can be up to a designated score).
6. “Parallel Relay Race”. Players are divided into three or four teams, with each team starting on the base line. When the
coach says “go”, the first player in each line dribbles towards half way line then back to their basket, stops and shoots
(three shots available), then returns after getting the rebound, and gives a “high five” to the second of the line who then
starts. The team which manages to score the most baskets in a set period of time wins. The shots may be either a jump
stop, lay-up or a moving lay-up. The coach should not have too many players standing and waiting at the one time, so
should make the groups small (2-3 players).

PASSING
Coaches should use a variety of fun activities to give players plenty of practice at passing and, in particular, address the
barriers to passing. For example:
- reduce the size of an area so that team mates are closer
- have more offensive players than defenders, so that it easier to see an open player
- do not allow dribbling (either at all, or until a certain number of passes have been made)
- do not let defenders take the ball away from a player, however they can intercept passes
Below are a range of activities that can be used.
1. In pairs with one ball each, players exchange ball (standing, kneeling, sitting, lying on tummy). Progress to wrapping the
ball in a “figure 8” around legs before exchanging balls.
2. “Pairs Passing”. Players are in pairs, with one ball for each pair. The person without the ball takes one or two steps away
from their partner and then cuts back toward them to receive a pass. As they catch they must stop (coach can designate
whether jump stop or stride stop) and pivot to face the basket. They then pivot to face their team mate to make a pass.
3. Similar to Pairs Passing, players are in groups of up to 5. Count how many passes can be made in a set period of time,
with a player not being able to pass back to the person that passed to them.
4. In pairs, players run around a circle, passing the ball. On the coach’s signal they run in opposite direction.
5. Tunnel Ball Divide players into two teams (one ball for each team) and line them up. The first in line rolls the ball
between the legs of team members, and the last retrieves the ball and dribbles it to the front of in the line.
Continue until the player that was initially at the front has returned to the front. The first team to have the player who
began the game return to the front of the line first wins. The game can also be played with the players handing the ball
to the player behind them turning their body sideways.

6. “Pepper Passing”. Players stand in a circle with a passer in the middle. The ball is passed from outside to the centre who
then passes the ball to the next person on the outside. Teams can compete against each other to see who can pass around
the circle quickest.
13. Pass & move Players are in two lines (or in pairs) and pass the ball back and forth whilst running to the other end of
the court. They may pass the ball the full length of the court, or when they get to the other end the player on the outside
can take a shot. That player rebounds their own shot and the players then move to the other side of the court. The players
swap lines on the way back.

DRIBBLING, PASSING, SHOOTING

Using activities that involve a range of movement and skills is preferred (and usually more fun) to doing just “single skill”
activities. “Single skill” activities may be done first (to remind players of technique) and then progress relatively quickly to a
combination activity.
Below are activities that combine various basketball skills.
1. Players stay in a designated area of the court. Some players have a ball and dribble freely in the court. No player may
stand still. On the coach’s whistle each player with a ball pass to another player who then dribbles.
2. In pairs, one player stands with their legs apart and stretches their arms. Their partner has a ball and is standing 3-4
meters away. On the coach’s signal, the players with the ball starts to dribble, moving under the arms of the standing
player and then circles around them to dribble back to their starting point. Here they stop, pivot (front and reverse) and
pass the ball to the other stationary player who repeats the activity.
3. In pairs, one player has the ball and the other is approximately 3-4 meters away. The player with the ball starts to dribble
and stops (in a jump stop) in front of the other and gives a hand-off pass. They should have their hands above and below
the ball, so that it is easy for their team mate to grab it. The other Player starts to dribble while the first player walks
backward to the starting point and the exercise is repeated.

MODIFIED GAMES
HOOP BALL
This is a game for two small teams. Could play with 3-7 players per team. The size of the area should be adjusted
depending on numbers. Place two hoops (or cones) at opposite ends of the court. A player from each team stands in the
hoop. Players may dribble or pass the ball and the game provides an excellent opportunity to practice stopping and
pivoting. Teams score by shooting the ball to their team mate who is standing in the hoop.
When a team scores, their opponent starts with the ball at half way and the two players that are standing in the hoop can
swap with a team mate. If an opponent steals the ball, they can immediately try to score.
The game can be played for a specific time or up to a set score. Most importantly, don’t leave the same player in the hoop
all the time – the coach should change who is standing in the hoop regularly.

Munnsy Hoops
This game is ideal for teams of 3-5. Place 3 hoops in the playing area (shown as shaded circles).
Similar to Hoop Ball, teams score by passing to a team mate who is standing in a hoop. However, a player can only stand in
a hoop for a maximum of 2 seconds before they must step out. Any player can stand in a hoop.
When a team scores, they keep the ball! The defence can only get the ball by intercepting a pass or stealing if from
someone that is dribbling (initially do not let them take the ball out of an opponent’s hands). Play the game for a set time
or up to a set score.

4x3 Pass Tag

In this game, 3 players are the “taggers” and the other 4 players move around a defined area (e.g. inside the 3pt line) and
try to avoid being “tagged”.
The taggers pass the ball between themselves (and the coach may allow dribbling) and attempt to touch an opponent with
the ball. The tagger must hold the ball in their hands – they do not throw it at their opponent.
Continue the game for a set time and see how many “tags” the taggers can get. Then play again with different taggers

5 Point Passing
Two teams with the same number of players. One player from each team stands in a defined “5 point” The player can
move anywhere in the zone. The team with the ball passes between themselves, earning one point for every successful
pass. If a pass is made to the teammate in the “5 point” zone, the team get 5 points!
The opponents try to intercept passes. The coach should regularly chance who is standing in the 5 point zone. The activity
can be done with no person designated to be in the 5 point zone, but allowing players to move into the zone whenever
they want (as long as there is only one player in the zone at any one time).