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Session Plan · U12 · Small group (up to 6) · 45 min

2v1: Pass or Go

Why it works

One defender can't guard two attackers. They have to pick: stop the ball, or stay with the other attacker. Whatever they pick leaves the other one open, so the attacker with the ball doesn't need a move. They need to make the defender pick early, then see which one they picked. Attack the rim hard enough that the defender has to come. If they come, pass. If they stay, go. The pass goes around them, bounce or over the top, never through the middle of their body, because that's where their hands already are.

The thread through every block

  1. Attack the rim
  2. make the defender pick
  3. they come: pass around them / they stay: go and score
  4. teammate ready to shoot on the catch.

Setup. 6 players, 1 coach, 1 hoop, 3 balls. Groups of three in Blocks 1–3; the finisher plays 3v2 with one resting.

Prints on A4 for the clipboard: diagram on the left, rules on the right, and no block split across a page.

Warm · 6B1 · 7B2 · 8B3 · 9Finisher · 10

Warm-upHead, shoulders, knees, go6 min

112Cball on the floor between themfirst to the ball attacks, the other defends
Two face each other at the top of the key, ball on the floor between them. Touch what the coach calls; on "go", race for the ball and play 1v1 to the rim.
  • Pairs face each other at the top of the key in a stance, the ball on the floor between them. The coach calls body parts (head, shoulders, knees, toes) and they touch them. On "go", both race for the ball: whoever gets it attacks the rim, the other defends. One possession, next pair. Winners stay on for one more.
  • Theme link: the first player to act gets the advantage. That's the whole 2v1: act before the defender decides.

Block 1Elbow 2v1: shoot or pass7 min

12A112defender comes → pass (A) · defender stays home → shootthe extra-pass catcher: shoot onlyshooter out · defender becomes an attacker
The defender passes out to either elbow and closes out. The catcher shoots if the defender is late, passes across if they come. The other elbow can only shoot.
  • Adds: a defender who has to choose who to guard.
  • Attackers on both elbows, in a shooting stance before the ball arrives. The defender starts under the rim with the ball, passes to either elbow, then closes out. The catcher shoots if the defender is late, or passes across if they come. Whoever catches the extra pass can only shoot.
  • Shooter goes out and rebounds; the defender becomes an attacker, the next player defends. The players run the rotation themselves.
  • Defender: fake one way, then close out the other. Two attackers beat one defender, so the defender has to gamble.
  • Progress when: the catcher decides on the catch, with no hold and look.
  • Regress if: catchers aren't ready and the defender gets there anyway. The defender has to touch the baseline after the pass out.
  • Cues (questions): "Where was the defender when the ball got to you?" "Who threw a fake first, you or them?"

Block 2Drive and read: no pass through the middle8 min

123112shaded = shoulders to hips: never pass through itdefender stays → layup · defender comes → bounce or lobone pass max
Drive straight at the defender. If they stay home, finish. If they step up, pass to the teammate on the block, bounce or over the top. One pass at most.
  • Adds: a dribble drive, so the defender's choice now happens at speed.
  • Ball at the top, a teammate on the block in a stance, the defender under the rim. The ball handler drives straight at the rim. Defender stays home → finish. Defender steps up → pass to the block, bounce pass or lob, never through the defender's middle (shoulders to hips). The block player steps into the catch and scores. One pass at most.
  • Rotate: ball handler → block → defender → line.
  • Progress when: passes go around the defender on 4 out of 5 reps, and the ball handler scores when the defender stays.
  • Regress if: ball handlers pass early, before the defender has moved. Rule: the defender must make a move before the pass is allowed.
  • Cues (questions): "What made you pass?" "Where were the defender's hands when you threw it?"

Water2 min

Block 32v1 from half-way9 min

11231216 seconds to scorewide until the defender picks
Ball handler pushes from half-way, teammate runs wide. The defender starts at the free-throw line and has to pick. Six seconds to score.
  • Adds: speed and space. The defender is now moving too, and has to pick on the run.
  • Groups of three, one at a time. The ball handler pushes from half-way with the teammate wide on the other side. The defender starts at the top of the key. Score inside six seconds. The teammate stays wide until the defender picks, then cuts to the rim.
  • After the rep: ball handler defends next, defender goes to the line, teammate brings the next ball. Start from both sides.
  • Progress when: the ball handler gets to the free-throw line before deciding.
  • Regress if: the defender keeps stealing passes. The defender starts at the free-throw line, not the top of the key.
  • Cues (questions): "When did the defender pick?" "If you'd kept going one more dribble, what would have happened?"

Finisher3v2: split, kick, extra10 min

12312132defenders touch the arc before they playon a kick-out: shoot or pass, no re-drivelayup = 2 · other make = 1 · pass through the middle = defence ball
3v2. Beat your player to the paint (split); if the help comes, kick. The catcher shoots or makes the extra pass, never drives again.
  • Three attackers on the arc, two defenders who must touch the arc with a foot after the first pass before they can play. Live 3v2. Beat your defender into the paint (the split). If help comes, kick it out. On a kick-out the catcher can shoot or make one more pass, but can't drive again.
  • Scoring:
    • 2 pts: a layup.
    • 1 pt: any other make.
    • Defence: a stop, or any pass thrown through a defender's middle, wins the ball.
  • Shooter steps out, resting player steps in on defence, a defender moves to offence. First to 7.
  • Progress when: attackers drive first and pass second.
  • Regress if: the offence passes around the arc without driving. Every possession has to start with a drive.

Huddle3 min

  • One question to the group: "When the defender came to you, how did you know it was safe to pass?"

Coach notes

  • Decision errors vs execution errors:
    • Passing before the defender has moved is a decision error. It gives the defender time to recover. Ask Block 2's question: "What made you pass?"
    • A pass picked off through the defender's middle is execution. The read was right; the pass went the wrong way. Back to Block 2 for bounce and lob passes.
  • Common failure: the teammate without the ball stands still or drifts in. Ask them to be in a shooting stance before the ball comes, and stay wide until the defender picks.
  • Judge the decision, not the outcome. A correct pass that's fumbled was still the right read. A layup scored after passing up an open teammate was still a guess.
  • Let them run it. Players work out their own rotations in Block 1. It's messy for two minutes, then it flows, and they're thinking instead of waiting.
  • Running it for 60: add the 15 minutes to the live end, not the technique blocks. Block 3 goes to 14 min. The finisher goes to 18 min, with the second round played without the touch-the-arc rule so the defenders start closer. The huddle goes to 5 min, with a second question: "Who was open on the kick-out, and why?"

Sources

SourceUsed for
South West Coaches Conference — Drills for Decision MakingWarm-up, Block 1, Block 2, finisher
Mike Rao — A Championship SeasonBlock 3
junior.basketball (original)Block 3 six-second rule, finisher scoring

Related

More session plans, the Session Design guide this format follows, Game-Based Practice for why every plan ends live, and blank session plan templates to write your own.

Unofficial resource. Drills are adapted from recorded coaching clinics and credited to the coaches named in Sources above; anything marked junior.basketball (original) was written for this plan. Not affiliated with or endorsed by those coaches or the organisations that ran the clinics. Full credit to every presenter.