Youth Basketball Shooting Drills

Youth Basketball Shooting Drills: Build Great Shooters from the Ground Up

At the youth level, every great shooter starts the same way: with solid fundamentals. Before worrying about three-pointers or step-backs, young athletes need to master balance, body control, and consistency. That’s why this page is dedicated to youth basketball shooting drills that reinforce the right habits early.

Whether you’re a coach looking to run better practices or a parent supporting your athlete at home, these drills are designed to make a difference. We’ve broken them into categories that reflect the core shooting fundamentals every player should develop:

🔹 Shooting Base

  • A strong shot starts from a strong base—feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, and body aligned.
  • The best shooters look the same every time because their base is reliable.
Focus Drill: Balance in shooting stance for 30 seconds—no ball. Then reset and repeat. The goal is quiet feet, strong posture, and balance over power. (Video coming soon)

🔹 Shot Preparation

  • Being “shot ready” is both physical and mental—hands up, feet set, ready to fire.
  • Developing this habit makes players more confident and quicker to score.
Focus Drill: Toss the ball in the air, jump stop to catch, and immediately show hands and set your stance. (Video coming soon)

🔹 Hand Placement

  • Youth shooters often misplace their hands—pushing with the guide hand or flattening the shooting hand.
  • Clean mechanics start with the correct grip and release.
Focus Drill: One-hand form shooting from close range. Guide hand stays off the ball. Emphasize lift, alignment, and control with the shooting hand only. (Video coming soon)

🔹 Eyes, Motion & Follow-Through

  • Great shooters focus on the rim, drive their motion up and out, and hold their follow-through.
  • Young players should feel the rhythm from legs to fingertips.
Focus Drill: 10 straight makes from 2 feet, all perfect form. Hold the follow-through until the ball hits the net. (Video coming soon)

Build from Fundamentals to Game Shots

This page will continue to grow as we add more downloadable charts, skill trackers, and videos. On our basketball workouts for shooting page, you’ll find full drill descriptions organized by skill level and workout duration (15, 30, 45, and 60 minutes). Each drill builds off these four fundamentals—and everything we do comes back to them.

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