Aspiring basketball players need to refuse to accept the perception of limitations. We have all seen and heard stories, like the Vince Papale inspired movie Invincible, that depict real life instances of athletes defying the odds and achieving things that they were told were not possible. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school team as a sophomore, and he used that as motivation to practice on his own for hour upon hour. He said that when he got tired he would conjure a mental image of that list on the locker room door that didn’t have his name on it, and that would help him dig down a little deeper and keep practicing.

It is important to instill this kind of desire in your players and give them every opportunity to reach their true potential as an athlete and youth basketball player. Improved jumping ability can help athletes in nearly every facet of the game.

Below are some tips for proper basketball jumping techniques as well as some fun drills for your youth basketball team’s practice. You can also find more free basketball skills & drills videos and tutorials online at websites like Weplay.com.

Benefits Of Improved Jumping Ability

* You become a better rebounder.
* The release point of your jump shot is higher.
* Your shot blocking ability is increased.
* You can shoot closer to the basket when you are near it.

Youth Basketball Drills

* Jumping Rope
Jumping rope is one of the best things that a player can do to improve his or her ability to jump quickly and to jump higher. Youth basketball is a game that requires a great deal of overall coordination, and jumping form relies on it as well. Jumping rope will significantly improve a player’s coordination, give them some aerobic exercise, and add inches to their vertical leap as they condition themselves to leave the ground quicker.

* Running The Stairs
The stronger your legs are, the better they are going to be able to propel you. When you have players run up and down stairs in the gym or up and down the steps of the bleachers at the football field, they are strengthening their legs and conditioning themselves to feel as though merely jumping on a flat surface is very easy. Plus, strenuous aerobic exercise is going to keep their weight down, and the less weight you are trying to lift off the ground the higher you are going to be able to jump on the basketball court.

The first thing that is absolutely necessary to do before agility training is to do a warm-up (which helps your agility skills as well). A 10 minute warm-up should do the trick, do some sit-ups, pushups, jumping jacks, just rotate between these few warm-up routines for about 7 minutes then do stretches for 3 minutes. Now you can get started on your basketball agility workout.

Start using the jump rope, run up and down the court or driveway while dribbling, pull ups, hexagon drills, line drills (jumping quickly back and forth over a line), if you have tires lying around, move your feet up and down in them as if you are running, dot drills, run 40-60 yard dashes, run around the court taking jump shots, run and get the ball, the keep doing it, a great thing to do is to sprint for 30 seconds then walk for 20 seconds, then jog for 25 seconds, the repeat, this is a great agility workout, especially if you are playing a sport like basketball, basketball players have to be in the best shape as they possibly can, now keep on repeating these entire workout routines, eventually you will be alot faster and your agility will increase a little bit each time.

If an individual follows these basketball agility training routines, over time their agility skills will increase, but it will take hard work and dedication. Good Luck!

Some of the basic fundamentals that must be taught are dribbling, passing, shooting, lay ups, setting screens, defense, rebounding and moving without the ball. At least half of every practice should be used for working on these fundamentals.

A basketball coach also needs to know how to handle many types of personalities. The way you teach one player something may not work with another player. Be flexible and listen to your players.

Discipline is also a very important aspect of being a basketball coach. Be consistent when handing out punishment to your team and you will earn their respect. If your team respects you, they will work hard for you. If you let things slide once in awhile, they will notice and try to take advantage of you.

As a basketball coach, you must lead by example. You must respect your opponent and the officials. If your team sees you doing this, they will follow your lead.

And something that a lot of coaches forget is that basketball is a game. Teach the game, get your players in shape, give them discipline when needed, but don’t forget to have some fun.

Quickness is a key to playing basketball. Drills that make a player change direction quickly at the sound of the whistle can improve their quickness. Shuffle from side to side and running forward and back without crossing your legs will improve your defense. The changing direction in a hurry will also help your offense.

Dribbling drills using both hands are important. A player that can dribble with either hand and go in either direction is twice the player as a one dimensional or direction player. Practice going the other direction and dribbling with your off hand. Put a defender on the court to keep the dribbler honest.

Practice moving without the ball. Make quick breaks to the basket and continue through. Fake out and break always opening yourself up for the ball. You have to be quick to lose your defender.

Practice shooting off of a pass. Catch and shoot. Spring up with a good jump shot after catching the ball. Practice squaring up and shooting while somebody passes you the ball. Basketball is a game of split seconds. You have to be able to shoot before the defender gets there.

A plan will help you use your time wisely in practice. If you start with strenuous activities followed by easier activities you can end with a workout. Allow for water or rest breaks where you can communicate with participants and give pointers. When you have your practice planned make sure all members are participating in something. When participants are left out they tend to mess around and disrupt the whole practice.

Use your whole gym space or practice facility. If you have assistants have them over see some drills. If you do not have assistants choose captains wisely and let them be part of your practice. The captains you choose should have leadership capabilities. These are ways you can run many drills or activities at the same time keeping everybody involved.

Make sure every participant knows you are in charge. It is nice to be a friendly figure but you have to earn their respect. If all players or participants know what you expect out of them they will try harder. Be fair, show no favortism to anybody, everybody does the same drills. Make them hard enough to challenge your best players and all will step up.

Keep practices in a professional manner unless you have planned free days. If you let practice get out of hand your players will try this all the time.