Tennessee Drill

How the Drill Works: 

The ball starts under the basket. On every trip down the floor there will be two passes and a layup. The first two passers must switch sides of the floor and then take a jump shot from either the high post or three-point line receiving the ball from the players on the sideline. The player that performs the layup then initiates the next trip down the floor with the two players that passed the ball to the shooters.

Purpose:

Allows players to work on layups as well as shooting from different areas on the floor. Two other benefits are practicing passing the ball ahead to a teammate running at full speed and the drill is also great for conditioning since the players are under a time limit.

Setup:

• The minimum of players needed for this drill is 7.

• 5 basketballs.

• See the attached picture for minimum number of players at each spot.

• The first person underneath the ring will need a basketball.

• The second player in the two closest lines will need a ball. (This is because the player starting under the ring passes to the players at the front of these lines).

• Coach decides on a time limit and the target amount of made shots

Instructions:

1. The drill starts by the player under the basket making an outlet pass to either of the wing players. It doesn’t matter which side unless the coach wants the layups made with a certain hand. 1 will then sprint up the court behind the player they passed to.

2. The player that receives the pass on the outlet will then make the crosscourt pass to the other wing player who should be sprinting towards the ring, leading them to an easy layup without dribbling. 2 will then sprint behind the player they passed to.

3. While 3 completes the layup, 1 and 2 will now set their feet to receive the pass from the players out of bounds for the shot. This can be from either the block, high post, or 3-point line. Then they rebound their own shot and join the line that passed them the ball.

4. The two out of bounds players will now become the new wing players. 3 will outlet to one of them and the cycle continues.

Scoring System:

• This drill must always have a time limit and a target for the amount of made shots.

• 1 point per made shot. Either by the player doing a layup or the two shooters making a shot from the elbow. A maximum of three points can be obtained at each end of the floor.

• I recommend running this drill for two minutes and setting a small target of makes depending on your age group the first time you run this drill. Once they’ve done it once, you’ll have a good idea of what they should be aiming for and can adjust the time and target accordingly.

Variations: 

Shot Distance – Change the distance depending on your age group. Your wing shooters can shoot from the block, elbow, or three-point distance.

Left or Right Layup – The coach has the option of letting the players choose which direction they outlet pass, or they can determine which hand they will layup with each time by designating a side the passer must outlet to each time.

Consequences – Decide if you want consequences or punishments failing to reach the target number of makes. For example: 1 run of the floor for each point failed to reach target. Or you can apply the same principle to each missed layup.