Warm-up"Lauren Jackson Says"8 min
- Five pairs spread across the court, one ball per pair. The attacker faces the hoop; the defender stands between them and the hoop.
- Coach calls commands. The defender only reacts to the call they hear.
- "Shoot": the attacker holds the ball above the shoulders. The defender jumps in close with both arms up.
- "Jab": the attacker jabs and brings the ball down. The defender jumps back to arm's length.
- "Go": the attacker dribbles to a target line. The defender tries to beat them there.
- Swap roles every 4 calls. Last 2 min: defender scores a point every time they beat the attacker to the line.
- Theme link: "jab → jump back to arm's length" is the exact distance a closeout has to arrive at.
Block 1Mass closeout7 min
- Adds: the closeout footwork, with no attacker.
- The whole team stands in a line down the split line, in stance. Coach on the opposite wing with the ball. Each player imagines their own attacker on the sideline straight across from them.
- When the coach's arms start the pass (not when the ball is in the air), everyone turns and sprints. They chop their feet the last few steps and arrive at arm's length with two hands high. Then they jog back and go again.
- Progress when: most players start moving on the coach's arm action, not on the ball's flight.
- Regress if: players run past their imaginary spot. Put a cone at arm's length from the sideline as the stopping point.
- Cues (questions): "When did you start moving, on the pass or after?" "Could you go left or right from where you stopped?"
Block 2Slide or run?9 min
- Adds: a moving dribbler and one decision: slide or run.
- Pairs line up on the half-way line facing a sideline. "Shoot", "jab", then the attacker dribbles to the sideline and crosses over after 2–3 dribbles. The defender uses a drop step to change direction.
- The rule, from Moore: if your nose is in line with the dribbler's outside shoulder, slide. If your nose falls behind the shoulder, turn and run, then catch up and shut the gate.
- Round 1: the attacker goes the direction the coach calls, so the defender knows it. Round 2: the attacker picks.
- Progress when: defenders switch from sliding to running without being told.
- Regress if: defenders keep sliding while beaten. Freeze the rep and ask the nose question.
- Cues (questions): "Where was your nose?" "Were you still between them and the line?"
Block 3Closeout to the high-five10 min
- Adds: starting from a closeout. The defender now has to arrive before containing. The attacker has a target, not a basket.
- Groups of 3 (two groups of 3, one of 4): one passer, one attacker on the wing spot, one defender starting in the paint. The passer passes to the wing, the defender closes out, and the attacker dribbles to give the passer a high-five. The defender wins if they stop the high-five.
- Rotate passer → attacker → defender every rep.
- Progress when: defenders get to arm's length before the attacker's first dribble.
- Regress if: the attacker wins every rep. Start the defender halfway between the paint and the wing.
- Cues (questions): "Did you arrive before or after their first dribble?" "Did you run past them?"
Water3 min
Block 4Closeout 1v1, 3 dribbles max10 min
- Adds: a real basket. The attacker can score, but only with 3 dribbles or fewer.
- Four quarter courts (each half split down the middle). The coach or a sub passes in, the defender closes out from the paint, then it's live 1v1. Two subs rotate in each rep.
- The 3-dribble cap keeps the attacker going straight at the defender, so the defender gets a real containment rep rather than a chase.
- Progress when: defenders hold attackers to 3 dribbles without them scoring on most reps.
- Regress if: the attacker scores most reps. Go back to the high-five target for 2 min, then return.
- Cues (questions): "What did your feet do when they put it on the floor?" "Who got to the spot first?"
FinisherGuard Your Yard10 min
- Teams of 5 (Red vs Blue). Quarter-court 1v1 starting from Moore's format: the pair pass back and forth to half-way, then "go" makes it live. The two subs keep score for their team.
- Scoring:
- Defender, 2 pts: a stop. The attacker picks up the ball outside the key, or turns it over.
- Defender, 1 bonus pt: walls up (belly to belly, arms up) when the attacker picks up.
- Attacker, 1 pt: a basket.
- Team with most points wins.
Huddle3 min
- Ask, don't tell: "What made it hard to stay in front?" "When did you have to run instead of slide?"
Coach notes
- Decision errors vs execution errors:
- Sliding while beaten, instead of running, is a decision error. Fix it with the nose question, not a technique demo.
- Arriving on straight legs, or sprinting all the way into the attacker, is an execution error. Send the player back to Block 1 for 2 reps.
- Common failure: reaching. U10s chase the ball with their hands and stop moving their feet. In Blocks 1–3, a reach makes the rep a loss for the defender.
- Common failure: "long closeouts" from too deep. If defenders start too far away, they arrive late and fly past. Shorten the distance before anything else.
- When beaten anyway: turn and sprint to get back to the hip. Don't keep sliding (Mike Kelly, Coaching Clinic, closeout Q&A).
- Judge the decision, not the stop. A defender who arrived right and still got scored on did their job. Say so.
Sources
| Source | Used for |
|---|---|
| Jarrod Moore — Building Layers for Individual Defence | Warm-up, Blocks 2–4, finisher |
| Sam Gruggen — Skill Development for Junior Athletes 1 | Block 1, mechanism |
| Shannon Seebohm — 2017 ACJBC Trans-Tasman Clinic | Block 4 dribble cap |
| Luke Brennan — Coaching Conference, Grassroots Skills (2020) | Finisher |
| Mike Kelly — Coaching Clinic | Coach notes |
| Curtis Sardi — BNSW Defensive Style of Play | Two-hand closeout at U10 |
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.