30-minute basketball practice plan

Your 30-minute session

8 players · 1 adult
Have the equipment listed for every active group. Recheck the grouping if attendance changes.

1. 0–3minutes

   Warm-up

   Walk around a clear area, gradually picking up the pace. Introduce today’s focus and show the first activity.

2. 3–11minutes

   Stationary crossover dribble

   Change dribbling hands in front while keeping the bounce controlled. Use 1 group of 8 players. Equipment below is needed for each group.

   How to run it

   Each player has a basketball and a clear personal area. Repeat the layout in separate personal or pair areas with full movement clearance.

   1. Begin with three comfortable dribbles in one hand.
   2. Send a low controlled bounce across the front to the other hand.
   3. Pause after three dribbles in the new hand and repeat.
   4. Gradually shorten the pause only when both hands retain control.

   Equipment: 1 appropriate practice ball per player

   Keep it safe: Use a size-appropriate basketball, dry footing and a reachable basket where required. No contact screens, contested rebounds or reaching into another player; clear spare balls from movement areas. Match challenge to demonstrated skill and comfort, not age alone. Offer rest and shorter turns; the age range does not establish fitness or readiness.

3. 11–18minutes

   Partner chest passing

   Make a pass your partner can receive without moving off their spot. Use 1 group of 8 players. Equipment below is needed for each group.

   How to run it

   Partners face each other 2–3 m apart on flat spots. Use a comfortable ball size and clear passing lanes. For odd attendance, use one trio: the extra player observes from outside the active lane and rotates in after each attempt. Use existing visible markings for all spots and boundaries if flat markers are unavailable; choose another activity if the stated layout cannot be made clear.

   1. Receiver shows ready hands; passer sends a gentle two-handed chest pass.
   2. Receiver catches, settles, and returns the ball only after the partner is ready.
   3. After four each, partners choose to keep the gap or move one small step apart.

   Equipment: 1 appropriately sized basketball per pair; 2 flat spots per pair (or equivalent visible existing markings)

   Keep it safe: Coach checks the surface and clear run-off space before starting; stop the activity if footing or spacing becomes unsafe. No contact or grabbing from another player. Pause for a loose ball entering another activity. No forceful passes toward faces; stop if another person crosses the lane. Keep spare balls and personal equipment outside all movement and collection paths.

4. 18–19minutes

   Water break

   Offer water and reset the activity areas.

5. 19–27minutes

   Three-player weave at walking pace

   Pass ahead and follow behind the receiver along separate moving paths. Use 1 group of 8 players. Equipment below is needed for each group.

   How to run it

   Three active players spread across an eight-metre-long, six-metre-wide clear lane with one ball. With four to nine players, everyone else waits in an observation queue outside the lane and its return route. After each three-pass run, one waiting player replaces the left, middle or right starting role in turn; the replaced player joins the back of the queue. With only three players, change starting roles after each run. Do not start until the previous group has returned outside the lane.

   1. Middle player passes gently to one outside player.
   2. Passer walks behind that receiver while the other outside player moves toward the next receiving space.
   3. New ball carrier passes ahead to the next player and follows behind that player.
   4. Stop after three passes, check spacing and walk back outside the lane with the ball secured. Make the planned role change, pass the ball to the new middle player and confirm all three are ready before restarting.

   Equipment: 1 appropriate practice ball

   Keep it safe: Use a size-appropriate basketball, dry footing and a reachable basket where required. No contact screens, contested rebounds or reaching into another player; clear spare balls from movement areas. Match challenge to demonstrated skill and comfort, not age alone. Offer rest and shorter turns; the age range does not establish fitness or readiness.

6. 27–30minutes

   Cool-down and check-in

   Walk at an easy pace, offer water, and ask players to name one thing they want to try again next time.