1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill

Sometimes as a coach, you just want your players to play and the 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill is great for that very purpose. The drill helps with both the individual offensive and defensive skills of players. Pushing players to rely on their own ability to create and make shots close to the basket while under heavy pressure. From the defensive perspective the 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill forces defenders to work harder to challenge an easier shot from any already short-range position.

The strength of this drill is across a couple of areas. The first is the ability to apply pressure to both the offensive and defensive players. As mentioned earlier with the ball starting within the keyway the assumption for most people would be that the offense would have a sizeable advantage. This however creates pressure on the offensive player to actually fulfil that belief. Anything less than a score results in not being able to make the easy play.

This is the opposite for defenders who are focused on making the easy position’s advantage reduced by challenging every shot to force the mistake. If the offensive player scores, in the defenders mind it is that they did not take away the advantage. With this simplistic view, the drill becomes a good source of focus for defenders. There is no help defence, just a one on one situation.

Another key benefit from the 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill is that it provides a high number of repetitions in a very short amount of time. Because the start of the drill is in or around the keyway, the time which is wasted between repetitions can be kept to a minimum. What compounds this benefit of a high repetition count is the game like scenario created.

The 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill starts with two players under the basket. One player on offense (One) and the other on defence (Two).

One (1) will start with the ball. One (1) throws the ball out in front of them so it lands somewhere near the edge of the keyway. One (1) needs to put an amount of backspin on the ball so it remains within the three-point line.

As soon as the ball is released One (1) moves to secure the ball and pivot to face up to the basketball hoop.

Two (2) follows in the footsteps of One (1) ready to meet the pivot by the offensive player with considerable pressure.

From this point, once One (1) has caught the ball and pivoted towards the basket the 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill becomes “live”.

Points of Emphasis

• The defensive player must look to apply pressure to One (1). With the drill starting so close to the basket there is really no option to contain only by backing off.
• The offensive players should look to develop a sequence of moves in helping to score no matter the situation. Shooting, a strong onside dribble move and then finally a counter move are all aspects that should be developed to help One (1) become a better all-round player.
• Play until either the offensive player scores or the defender secures possession.
• Boxing-out is important and should be emphasised at every opportunity

The 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill is a useful drill for building upon technical skills often needing to be developed by players. These technical skills can sometimes be practiced without leading to a competitive drill situation. The 1 v 1 Turn and Play Offensive Drill provides this opportunity for players to gain a high number of repetitions coupled with a quality competitive situation. The drill can be implemented following a technical breakdown activity to provide excellent scaffolding and drill progression.

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