Chloe was one of the players on my 4th grade basketball team.

She was a great kid. She was a not-so-great basketball player.

This wasn’t her fault. She tried hard. She just hadn’t played very much.

Unfortunately, she was still a “drill killer.” If you’ve coached youth basketball for any length of time, you know what I mean. The kid who just can’t do the drills right. Their lack of skill and experience combine to muck up every drill.

That’s really frustrating for you. It’s frustrating for the other players. You know who else it’s frustrating for? The “drill killer.” No kid likes consistently screwing up.

That was the situation I found myself in with Chloe. For the first couple of weeks of the season, it was discouraging—for everyone!

Then I stumbled across the following idea from another coach. It turned around her experience and set our season on a better path.

Name It, Claim It, & Tame It - The Power Of Ownership

After practice, I called Chloe aside. I asked her to come up with a dribbling drill. She would teach the drill to the team at next week’s practice. She agreed to do so.

The following week, Chloe showed up. However, she didn’t have one drill. She came in with seven. While this was great, it was a little much.

I asked her to pick the three that she liked the best. Once we narrowed it to three, I told her to choose the one she thought her team would most enjoy and that she would feel most comfortable teaching.

When practice started, I had the team circle up. I told them Chloe was going to lead us in a dribbling drill to start practice. I was anxious to see how this was going to go!

Chloe stepped up - and nailed it! While her drill was nothing fancy, it was fun and age-appropriate. Even more importantly, she demonstrated it with confidence and precision.

This told me something. She had clearly been practicing the drill. Just a week ago, she couldn’t have done it. Now, she was smiling and succeeding. And her teammates were following her lead.

From that point on, we named the drill the “Chloe drill.” Whenever we called it out, you could see her light up. This was HER drill. She owned it.

I wish I could say all of a sudden Chloe transformed into a great basketball player. That’s not the case. However, what happened was probably more important.

• Her confidence grew.

• She saw that she could improve her skills.

• Her teammates' belief in her grew.

• Her overall experience was much better.

Did she still screw up drills from time to time? Yes, but her ability to bounce back became greater. She had seen herself succeed. As a result, she became a more resilient and better player.

So the next time you have a “Drill killer” on your team, don’t give up on them. Instead, give them some ownership. You might be surprised what they do with it!

Related Resources

For those coaching true beginners, consider Jim Huber Beginner Basketball Ages 5-9. This is a great resource to help those new to the game. Coach Huber provides a variety of games and age-appropriate drills that lead to rapid improvement and a positive experience for young players.

The Youth Coaching System with Jim Huber provides an entire blueprint for coaching a youth team. It's a one-stop shop for all youth coaching needs. If you're looking for a proven system to get the most from your team, this is the resource for you!

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