Basketball Skills & Drills

Jerry Krause has been a part of Gonzaga University’s men’s basketball program for over 25 years. In 2001, he returned to the university as the director of men’s basketball operations after serving a five-year civilian term at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. There he was a professor of sports philosophy and director of instruction for the department of physical education. Krause’s legendary career includes many highlights. He served as head coach at Eastern Washington University (EWU) for 17 years, where his Eagle teams posted a 262-196 record and a .572 winning percentage and attained a graduation record of 84 percent. He has coached at all levels—youth sport through Olympics—and for both men and women. He took a sabbatical from EWU to assist the late Ralph Miller at Oregon State University in writing his first book (Better Basketball Basics) and then returned to EWU to lead the Eagles from the NAIA into the NCAA Division I ranks. He is one of the most prolific authors of basketball books, having written 34 titles, and has also produced 33 instructional videos. For 50 years he has been research chairman for the National Association of Basketball Coaches and was a long-standing member of the NCAA Basketball Rules Committee. He was involved in rule changes that brought about the 45-second (and later 30-second) shot clock, the three-point shot, and the breakaway rim as well as inventing the NCAA/NBA approved basketball rim tester to standardize ball-rim rebounds and make the game the same around the world. He is a member of the NAIA Basketball Coaches, SHAPE America (formerly National Association for Sport and Physical Education), New York State AHPERD, SHAPE Washington (formerly Washington AHPERD and the Inland Northwest Sports Halls of Fame. Craig R. Nelson is the boys’ basketball head coach at Washington High School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. In his six seasons at Washington, he has guided the team to four state AA tournament appearances. Nelson graduated from Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota (2008), where he played for legendary coach Don Meyer. During his college career, Nelson started in all 121 games and helped lead the team to 98 wins. In his senior season, he ranked fourth among all Division II players and ranked first in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) in three-point shooting. At the end of his senior season, he was one of the top five free throw shooters in the country (93%). In high school, Nelson played in back-to-back state tournament titles and was named the North Dakota Class B Basketball Player of the Year in 2003. Coaching is part of Nelson’s heritage—his father, Dave Nelson, led teams to multiple high school state tournaments (including the years he was coach to Craig), and Craig’s grandfather, Ed Beyer, is the all-time winningest coach in North Dakota high school history.

Chapter 1. Body Control and Fundamental Footwork

Quick Stance

Quick Starts, Steps, Turns, and Stops

Quick Jumps

Basic Body-Control Drills

Chapter 2. Advanced Body Control

Concepts of Moving Without the Ball on Offense

Basic Moves or Steps Without the Ball

Screen Moves

Drills for Moving Without the Ball

Chapter 3. Ballhandling

Passing and Catching

Principles of Passing and Catching

Types of Passes

Catching Principles

Communication of Passing and Catching

Dribbling

Basic Ballhandling Drills

Chapter 4. Shooting

Field-Goal Shooting

Shooting Mechanics

Other Types of Shots

Free-Throw Shooting

Shooting Drills

Chapter 5. Outside Offensive Moves: Playing the Perimeter

Fundamentals of Live-Ball Moves

Fundamentals of Dead-Ball Moves

Perimeter-Play Drills

Chapter 6. Inside Offensive Moves: Playing the Post

Post-Play Fundamentals

Post Skills

Post or Inside Moves

Post Drills

Chapter 7. Individual Defense

Fundamentals of Defense

Essentials of Defense

On-the-Ball Defense

Off-the-Ball Defense

Post Defense

On-the-Ball to Off-the-Ball Defense

Off-the-Ball to On-the-Ball Defense

Special Defensive Situations

Pressuring the Shot

Defensive Drills

Chapter 8. Rebounding

Rebounding Tools

Motivating Players to Rebound

Rebounding Rules

Defensive Rebounding

Offensive Rebounding

Rebounding Assessment

Rebounding Drills

Chapter 9. Team Offense

General Offensive Principles

Player Positions and Responsibilities

Offensive Team Tactics

Drills for Team Offense

Chapter 10. Team Defense

Defensive Court Levels

Defensive Categories

Drills for Team Defense