Miscellaneous footwork
Squaring up to shoot: When a player intends to shoot it is necessary for them to square their basket to the hoop as soon as possible. In a game situation a player is going to be moving, cutting, and coming off of screens and will not always be in an ideal shooting position. It is important to get the feel for squaring your body to the basket in various situations. A player’s feet should be square to the hoop (with the left foot slightly in front of the right for a right handed shooter, vice versa for a left handed shooter). In addition, the waist and shoulders must also be square to the basket. You should be completely balanced and feel comfortable prior to your shot. A couple tricks to do this are: chopping your feet as you come around the screen and working on catching the ball in an already squared position.
Moving, Cutting, Spotting-up: As a player develops a feel for the game they learn how to “get-open”. There are certain elements of floor spacing and movement that can be taught, but it is also largely a “feeling” a player develops with experience, film review, watching basketball games, and quality face to face coaching. There are a few moves such as the Euro Cut that can assist a player in creating an open opportunity.
Passing body position: It is also important to use the correct footwork when passing the basketball. Combinations of pivoting and ball fakes are crucial in order to pass around defenders, into the post, and breaking double teams. See the passing section for more information on how passing and footwork are linked.
Slide, backpedal, score
One player stands on the sideline at foul line level in a defensive stance facing the baseline. The player slides from sideline to elbow, then back. Upon returning to the sideline the player will closeout on the other play, than begin to backpedal as fast as they can. As they begin this, a coach or another player throws a basketball (or tennis ball to any location on the court, and the player has to get to the ball and catch it in the air by any means necessary). At this point the player catches the ball and must try to score on the hoop that he started near. The player/coach who threw the ball will play defense.
Lane perimeter slides + finish
Starting at either block, slide across the lane along the baseline to the other block. Once you reach the other block, pivot (either front or rear) and slide down the lane to the elbow, at which point you will again pivot and slide across the foul line to the other elbow. Finally, pivot and slide down the other side of the lane to the block where you started. Once you reach this block sprint to the elbow opposite of you and receive a pass from a coach/player (you can also simply have a ball sitting there that you pick up). Catch the ball, make a move, score, then pass teh ball back to your coach (or place at the elbow), and repeat.
