Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

THE WARM-UP
The warm-up needs to be dynamic - they need to simulate to a less strenuous degree
the movements the muscles will be doing during the workout.
Laps: 1 lap jog, half lap slow running, 1 lap jog, half lap slow running
Dynamic Stretching : 2 lengths carioca, Arm Swings, Side Bends, Trunk Rotations,
Hamstring Stretch, Alternate Toe Touches, Leg Swings
Wraparound : pass the ball around the waist, going 10 times in each direction.
Figure 8: pass the ball in a figure 8 motion between the legs, working up to the highest
speed possible. 10 repetitions forward and backward.
Combo Wraparound : combine figure 8 with waist and neck wraparounds, trying to
move the ball quickly while maintaining control.
Figure 8 Dribble : stand in one place and dribble in a figure 8 movement between the
legs. Keep the ball low, head up and concentrate on ball control with the fingertips.
Machine Gun Dribble : pound the ball low in a "patter" dribble motion, alternating left
and right hands, trying to dribble as low to the ground as possible and keeping the ball
on the fingertips.

Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

SESSION I: DRIBBLING
Players love to mimic their favorite NBA players or And 1 routine, and when the
constraints of formal practice sessions are lifted, they can go a little crazy. That's why
this basketball workout focuses solely on the basics.

A. The Basic Four

1. Speed
2. Hesitation

3. Crossover
4. Spin
Beginning at half court on the right side of the court, the player uses the right hand to
execute a speed dribble down to a lay-up. Then he dribbles to the opposite side of half
court, turns and executes a speed dribble with the left hand to the hoop for another layup.
Then he returns to the starting position and executes a hesitation dribble, first with the
right hand and then with the left; then he returns to the start and continues with each of
the basic four dribbles, until all basic dribbles have been executed.
Do this 3-5 times.

B. Combination Dribble
Similar to the basic four, except all dribbles are used one after the next.
In a five minute period, the player executes all the basic four moves but in combinations
of 3-4 at a time, i.e., speed dribble followed by crossover then spin, etc.
The player should include all the basic four dribbles, as well as:

Behind the back

Onside

Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

SESSION II: SHOOTING

I know of no coach who doesn't want to improve the team's shooting percentage in the
next season. Sometimes this is a particularly bad problem, sometimes not - but
everyone would like to see better numbers on the scoreboard every season. To do that,
there are two vital areas that need to be improved - first, the shot itself, and secondly, a
quick release - i.e., the ability to shoot as quickly as possible upon receiving a pass.

In the drills in this session of the summer basketball workout, be sure to have your
players focus first on proper form - have them start shooting closer to the hoop, focusing
on form and consistency, before moving farther out.
Also remind them that practice needs to emulate game situations - have them work on
releasing the shot immediately after catching the pass.
It would be best for most shooting drills to be done with a partner who can rebound and
outlet the ball to the shooter. However, the drills can be done alone - this simply means
the player has to rebound his own shot which will disrupt his flow and slow down the drill.

A. Standstill Shooting

The player takes 5 shots at a time, from 5 different spots on the floor, at about
10'-15' from the hoop.

The player cannot move to the next spot until he makes 3 of the 5.

Each time the player runs this drill, he should change the shooting spots.

B. 5 Spots, 25 Shots
Similar to the Standstill Shooting drill above, the player will shoot from 5 different spots
on the floor, about 10' to 15' from the hoop. This time the shots are jump shots taken
when receiving a pass.

The player takes a shot from the first spot near the baseline, his partner rebounds
and outlets to him at the same spot, and he shoots again immediately upon
receiving the pass. He does this 5 times in total before moving to the next spot.
Eventually he will take 5 shots from each spot, 25 shots in total.

The player needs to concentrate on the mechanics of the shot - receiving the
pass, squaring to the hoop, jumping straight up, executing the shot and following
through, landing on balance and shooting again.

This should also be a speed drill - all shots need to be completed as quickly as
possible, to help develop a quick release.

NOTE:If the player doesn't have a partner rebounding for him, then he simply
spins the ball out, steps in to catch it, squares to the basket, and shoots. He gets
his own rebound, returns to the spot and does it all again, taking 5 shots from
each spot before moving to the next spot.

Players should aim to make at least 13 of 25 shots.

C. Fake and Shoot

Repeat the previous drill - 5 Spots, 25 Shots - this time faking the shot and taking one
dribble before pulling up for a jump shot.
For this drill:

Dribble to both sides - try not to favor one side

Execute individual offensive moves - Fake right, go right; fake left, go left; fake
right, go left, etc.

Again, aim for 13 of 25 or better.

D. Lay-ups

Drive from both sides of the floor.

Take 10 left- and 10 right-handed lay-ups.

Use reverse lay-ups driving the baseline, as well as hard drives from wing and
elbow areas.

Always simulate game situations by:

Driving hard

Protecting the ball

Finishing strong

E. Beat the Pro

The player chooses his favorite player - NBA, college, whatever - to compete against.
The object of the game is for the player to score 12 points before the pro scores 12.
How it's played:

The game begins with the player taking a foul shot. If he makes the foul shot he
gets one point, but if he misses it, the pro receives 3 points.

The player then takes jump shots from different spots on the floor. For each
basket he makes, he gets 1 point. BUT, for each basket he misses - the pro gets
2 points.

Whoever gets to 12 first wins.

NOTE:The player must shoot about 70% in order to beat the pro.

Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

SESSION III: DEFENSE AND FOOTWORK

Defense cannot be forgotten. Remind players that everyone needs to know how to play
defense - if you score 25 points but the man you are guarding scores 26 points, you've
lost.
The drills for defense in the summer basketball workout are simple, but when done
properly they condition the legs very well and set the player up to be well ahead of the
others on the floor when the season arrives.
On-Ball Defense

Starting on the baseline, slide three or four strides, change direction and slide
again - zig zag - until reaching half-court

Using the same stride, zig zag back to the baseline

The player must remember to use short, choppy slides and stay low to simulate
on-ball defense

Lane Slide

The player starts in low denial stance with his left foot on the left block, right hand
high, left hand low, head up and eyes forward.

In this stance, the player slides across the key until his right foot is on the right
bloc.

He then changes direction and changes hand position - left hand comes high,
right hand goes low - and he slides back across the key to the left block.

The player continues for 30-seconds before resting for 30 seconds, and then
doing it again

Players should try to increase the number of slides they can make during each
30-second interval.

As the player's time improves, he should increase the intervals to 1 minute.

Closeouts

Player starts in the key in a "swordsman" stance - feet in a 'T' position with the
lead foot pointing to the wing - and closes out to the wing (as if the man he is
guarding is just receiving a pass at the wing)

NOTE: Players should spring the first two-thirds of the way, then break down into
short, choppy steps with hands up and weight back to complete closeout.

Finish

Player runs two suicides, trying to complete each of them in 30 seconds or less.

Player shoots 50 free throws to finalize workout.

Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

SESSION IV: FOUL SHOOTING

Aside from the 50 foul shots that players shoot at the end, they should also take 5 foul
shots in between each of the sessions.

Summer Basketball Workout for Guards

THE COOL DOWN

Players jog a few laps to cool down muscles, then perform Static Stretches (hold for 10
seconds then switch). Be sure to stretch all muscles, moving the muscle into the stretch
slowly, holding the stretch for 10 seconds, before releasing it slowly. Also remember not
to bounce - hold the stretch. This will help remove lactic acid from the muscles so they
won't be sore next day.