Basketball Warmup Drills

Why Warmup?

Every basketball practice should be kicked off with a series of warmup drills that prepare the body and mind for the high-charged activities to come.  These basketball warmup drills ought to consist of exercises that warmup the body as a whole as well as a selection of drills that focus on the muscle groups used most during the sport.  

Go At It Alone

Some basketball warmup drills involve the team as a whole while others are individual drills.  At our practices, we run the individual drills first followed by the team stretching and drills.  The individual drills are executed at each player’s own pace while the team drills are structured and performed at the same time, allowing each player to begin at their own pace before proceeding to the pace set for the team by the coach.    

First off, players should run a warmup jog for anywhere from three to five minutes around the gym.  Players should be careful not to over-exert themselves though they should get to the point during the warmup jog where they break a sweat.  After the warmup jog, my players stretch and loosen up their shin muscles by walking one length of the gym on just their heels with their toes pointed upwards.          

The next of the individual basketball warmup drills is a skipping drill which is excellent for developing the quick footedness necessary of a good basketball player.  For the skipping drill, I have my players skip twice around the gym focusing on the bounce in their step.   

After skipping, we work on our side step with this defensive sliding drill.  Players begin standing in a line assuming the defensive position with their heads up.  The coach, who is facing the line of players, points either left or right and the players slide in the corresponding direction.  When sliding, make sure your players stay low, keep their legs uncrossed and feet at least shoulder width apart.  While this drill is tough work, it builds crucial stamina that comes in handy towards the end of the game. 

All Together Now 

After these individual basketball warmup drills we perform a series of drills as a team.  First, players run the length of the gym dribbling a ball, first controlled dribbling then speed dribbling.  Next we practice our pivots by dividing into groups of three and having the players stand in a line.  Player one dribbles a few hard dribbles, stops quickly, then turns and passes the ball to the next player in the line.  Player two receives the pass and repeats the drills as player one moves to the end of the line.  Continue the drill in this manner for one minute then switch directions. 

Finally, we end our warmup routine with this jumping drill.  To begin, have your players stand in a straight line in front of the basket.  The player at the front of the line throws the ball towards the basket so that it bounces high off the board.  The second player in line jumps for the rebound, catches it, lands the jump and throws another high rebounding shot.  After receiving the rebound, the player goes to the end of the line.  The drill continues in this manner for three minutes.