Learn To Shoot, Dribble, And Cross With Both Hands
Unless an aspiring young basketball player is lucky enough to be born ambidextrous, a tough learning experience lies ahead. As every coach knows, to be truly successful, a player must be able to cut, pass and dribble equally well to both the right and left. They also must be able to defend right or left against an opponent.
When starting away from the basket, have players take one dribble with their shooting hand, but don’t allow a dribble when shots are closer. We don’t use defense in this drill. One of our points of emphasis is, after receiving the pass, shooters looking at the basket and not the ball. And, don’t overlook the role of wrist action on under-hook layups or of dropping the wrist on overhead layups.
We use this drill as both an offensive and defensive drill. Defenders try to stop the offense 1-on-1. The offensive player attacks and tries to beat his/her man 1-on-1. In this drill, each player has a partner (opponent) that he/she goes 1-on-1 against. Each pair has a ball. Use both ends of the court.
The player with the ball starts at the top of the key and tries to make a move, or shoot the outside shot and score on the defender. The defender must stop the offense, box-out and get the rebound. The offense gets a point for each basket made, for each offensive rebound and if the defender fouls. No second shots are allowed. Each pair keeps track of their score. Have post players paired up with post players, and guards paired up with guards. Play to 5 (each player gets five offensive attempts).
At the end, the losers do 5-10 push-ups. Rotation After a pair has finished their duel, they get in line on the other end of the floor, but switch offense and defense for the next possession. With this drill we want our offensive players working on their 1-on-1 moves... jab step, shot fake, dribble moves (in-and-out, crossover), etc. The offensive player must quickly attack the defender to simulate what really happens in a game... He/she can't just slowly back him down in the paint (which hardly ever happens in a game situation). In addition to running this drill from the top of the key, you can also run it with the players starting from either wing.
One aspect of going both ways that’s often overlooked is scouting. Always know the handedness of upcoming opponents. The coaches staff usually can collect this information by making notes during film sessions. If this isn’t possible, have someone on staff observe their pregame warm-ups and note it by jersey number. This should be easy to do, since nearly all players will make a pass with the arm of their handedness. All of your players should go into a game knowing which hand the opponent they’re guarding is more likely to shoot and dribble with, and the direction that they’re most likely to drive and cut. Even if a game plan emphasizes zone defense, this knowledge helps make steals and block shots.
A good rule of thumb for all players with the exception of mid-range and outside shots is that both the right and left hands must be equal. That’s only possible if your practice plan and preparation lays the groundwork.
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