← All resources

Session Plan · U10 · Team (7 or more) · 60 min

Pass to the Space: Lead the Receiver

Why it works

A defender can only guard where the receiver is now. A pass thrown at the receiver's body goes to the one place the defender is already standing next to. A pass thrown to a space, away from the defender, makes the receiver run onto it, and the defender has to turn and chase. That only works if the pass is flat and firm, so it arrives while the receiver is still running, and if the receiver doesn't leave too early, so the defender can't follow them there. The passer picks the space; the receiver goes the moment the ball leaves the passer's hands.

The thread through every block

  1. See where the defender is
  2. pick the space away from them
  3. flat, firm pass to the space
  4. receiver runs through the catch.

Setup. 10 players, 1 coach, 2 hoops (full court), 10 balls, 16 cones in 4 colours, bibs. Groups of 3 at four stations (two per end), with the spare player rotating in as a defender.

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

Warm · 10B1 · 8B2 · 10B3 · 12Finisher · 16

Warm-upTriangle passing10 min

12123catch between the cones, still running
Three cones, three players. The runner leaves on the pass and catches halfway to the next cone.
  • Three cones in a small triangle, one player at each. Pass with the outside hand (a one-hand push pass) to a teammate who is already running to the next cone. They catch halfway, still moving, and pass on. Then the passer runs to the empty cone.
  • The runner doesn't leave until the ball leaves the passer's hand. Right hand first, then reverse it for the left.
  • Challenge: 40 catches in a row with no drops and no passes behind the runner. Restart the count if either happens.
  • Theme link: the pass already goes to where the receiver will be, not where they are. There's just no defender yet.

Block 1Pass to the cone8 min

1212receiver can't move until the pass
The receiver stands in the middle of four cones. The passer throws to a cone, not to them.
  • Adds: a target that isn't the receiver.
  • The receiver stands in the middle of four cones, about 2 metres from each. The passer throws to one of the cones, not to the receiver. The receiver can't move until the ball leaves the passer's hands, then runs and catches it at the cone.
  • 5 passes, then rotate: passer → receiver → feeder → passer. Use coloured cones, and let the passer call the colour after the pass for the first round only.
  • Progress when: most passes arrive at the cone at chest height without bouncing first.
  • Regress if: passes float and the receiver has to wait for them. Move the cones in to 1.5 metres.
  • Cues (questions): "Did you pass to them, or to the cone?" "Did the ball arrive before you did, or after?"

Block 2Away from the defender10 min

12122pick the cone furthest from the defender
A defender stands next to the receiver. The open cone is the one on the other side of them.
  • Adds: a defender, so one or two cones are now covered.
  • Same set-up, plus a defender who stands next to the receiver, touching distance away, and chooses which side to stand on. The passer has to pick the cone furthest from the defender. The defender can step and deflect once the ball is thrown, but can't move before.
  • If the defender touches the ball, they swap with the passer. Otherwise rotate every 5 passes.
  • Progress when: passers pick the far cone without looking at the coach.
  • Regress if: the defender gets most of them. Defender keeps their hands behind their back for a round.
  • Cues (questions): "Which cones could the defender reach?" "Which one was the hardest for them to get to?"

Water2 min

Block 3Lead with a hand12 min

12122show a hand on the side away from themcatch and score
The defender picks a side. The receiver leads away from it with a hand target, the passer hits the hand. Same on the left wing.
  • Adds: the receiver chooses the space, and the defender is allowed to move.
  • Passer at the top, receiver on the wing with a defender. The defender chooses where to stand: high side or low side. The receiver leads into the space away from them and shows a hand as the target. The passer hits the hand. The receiver catches on the move and goes to score; the defender can chase but not reach in from behind.
  • 3 reps, then rotate: passer → receiver → defender → passer, with the waiting player stepping in as the next defender.
  • Progress when: the receiver waits for the passer to look before going, and the pass hits the hand.
  • Regress if: the defender keeps getting there first. The defender has to start with one foot on a cone.
  • Cues (questions): "Where was the defender standing before you went?" "When did you go: before the pass, or as it left their hands?"

FinisherWhistle ultimate16 min

121251234634end zoneend zonejoker plays for whoever has the ball
Two games, one down each side of the court: 2v2 plus a joker. Score by catching a pass in the end zone.
  • Two games, one on each long half of the court, 2v2 plus a joker (O5, O6) who plays for whichever team has the ball. A team scores a touchdown by catching a pass inside the end zone (the last 2 metres before the baseline). No dribbling.
  • Coach's whistle rules. Any of these is a turnover, and the other team goes the other way straight away:
    • the ball goes over your head before a pass (no overhead throws);
    • the ball touches the floor (no bounces, no bobbles);
    • a "dead duck": a floating pass that arrives late;
    • turning your back on a defender ("turtling") instead of facing up and pivoting.
  • Second round adds a one-second hold: catch, look, pass.
  • Scoring:
    • 2 pts: a touchdown caught on the run, onto a pass thrown to space.
    • 1 pt: any other touchdown.
  • Swap jokers and teams every 4 minutes.

Huddle2 min

  • "When the defender stood next to your teammate, where did you throw it?" "Who got more catches: the players standing still, or the ones running onto the ball?"

Coach notes

  • Decision errors vs execution errors:
    • Throwing to the receiver's body when the defender is right there is a decision error. Freeze it and ask Block 2's question, "Which cones could the defender reach?"
    • A pass that floats or lands behind the runner is an execution error. Back to the triangle for 5 passes, then back in.
  • Common failure: the receiver runs before the pass is thrown, so the defender just follows them. The rule from Block 1 stays all session: go as it leaves the hands.
  • Common failure: the passer waits for the receiver to be "open" and stand still. In this session, open means running into space.
  • Judge the decision, not the catch. A pass to the right space that gets dropped was still the right pass. Say so.

Sources

SourceUsed for
Mike MacKay — A Games Approach to Teaching Skills 2 & 3Mechanism, Blocks 1 and 2
Dan Becker — Purposeful Skill Development for Youth BasketballWarm-up, Block 3 hand target, finisher rules
junior.basketball (original)Block 3 format, finisher scoring and joker

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.