6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill

The 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill is a fantastic drill for helping players defensively deal with problem solving on defence. The 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill places the defensive players in a situation where they are constantly outnumbered and have to rotate and match-up in a scrambling situation. This type of scenario will help not only with player rotations and positioning, but also develops other elements such as vision and defensive awareness.

The 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill is a great end of progression activity to be used as a way of now pushing players who seem capable of defending in man-to-man situation that little bit further by adding the scrambling element. This aspect alone makes the 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill useful for junior, senior and elite players in working on defence, or alternatively providing opportunity for offensive players to learn how to score from a numbers advantage.

Another beneficial part of the 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill which is often overlooked is the fact that the drill requires only ten players to function effectively and efficiently. The rotations within the drill mean that while all ten players of a normal full team roster are involved there is adequate time for rest and recovery between execution of the drills repetitions.

Because of the speed at which the activity on the floor will unfold it is important to remember a few key points which will have to be constantly reinforced to ensure the best possible outcome from performing the activity. The points to keep in mind are:

• Vision must be a constant element of playing defence anywhere on the floor
• When rotating into a help position players must run into position
• The keyway must be defended at all costs; no dribble penetration is allowed to enter into the keyway
• 2^nd and 3^rd player rotation when help defence is called upon to assist to limit threat of dribble penetration
• Close-out following dribble penetration if offensive player passes to the perimeter

Offensive players Five (5) and Six (6) must remain in the corner of the court.

The ball may be passed to them, whereby they can shoot or drive in a direct line to the basket. The purpose of this movement is to force the defensive players to scramble to cover positions.

The four defenders must cover all six offensive players. As mentioned previously there are a number of different points which needs to be covered during the progression of the 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill.

After a score or a stop, players play 4 v 4 transition situations to the other end of the court and back.

On the return trip, players Five (5) and Six (6) remain in the half court, however may be used to make game of 6 on 4.

By keeping three players on the floor in this way the 6 on 4 Half Court/Full Court Drill can be repeated over again and again without stopping the drill. This provides the defence with multiple opportunities within the defensive scenario.

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