Hi guys,
I coach 5th-graders team in Israel and would like to get some advice. First, here is some background about the team and the league:
+ The rim is 8'7'' (2,60 meters) and the ball is size 5.
+ We play 4on4.
+ Only pure man2man D is allowed (no zones and to double-teams).
+ Each game is 6 periods of 6 minutes, no subs during a period, each player must play min' of 1 period and max' 3 periods.
+ No screens!

Here's a sample of how we play (my team is in yellow-blue):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLAL72QvEMk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmpNWzC1FPc

As you can see, I try to play a 4-out (like 5-out, but we play 4on4) simple motion offense. First they have to pass-and-go, and only then I let them drive to the basket.
What do you think about it? I know there's nothing here that haven't been done before plenty of times, but still i'm afraid that my lack of experience will hurt this players in the future, so I want to be sure if this is the right way.

Vadim.

Vad -

They run the floor well, they find the open man and get him the ball... and they shoot pretty well for 5th graders.

Defense is good - and are decent at helping out. Both teams seem to be able to drive the ball...... is it legal to get to the help line before someone dribbles it?

I think you are doing a good job working with these boys... keep up the good work and have fun.

Thanks.
Many things I read in this site and forums helped me. some of the drills gave me more ideas, but it was mostly the principles that helped.


No, it's not legal. Some refs don't see it, some don't care and other just don't know the rules.

So if the ball is on the opposite side of the floor from your man, you cant step off your man and be in the HELP position early? We had a saying, there is no such thing as helping to early.

By the way, I liked the way those little guys played the game, tough on the ball defense, get out and go... fill lanes and pass it ahead when there is someone open. VERY UNselfish.... Great job.Your kids WILL be ready to play at the next level.

It depends on where your man is. For the 5th-6th grade leagues the official rule is that a defender must stay no more than 6.5 feet (2 meters) from his man, and may step off and eventually guard another player only when the other player passes his defender. However most coaches teach the players to be on the help line regardless of the rules.
Sometimes the players just stay in the paint, not even pretending to guard someone else, as you can see here twice (short clip): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUrNZCjnZLI


Regarding my kids - I must admit that not all of them play that well. When I put 4 less skilled players in a different period, it looked like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDpi7MH5HBM

I would think that they would want that being taught... help line defense.

As for your second group... they knew what they wantd to do but lacked the skill level of the first group.

I would say that you are on the right track with these kids... maybe you could split them up a bit... 2 better players with 2 lesser players and see how they play together?? Just a thought.

That is the big question.
As I wrote above, even the best player may play only half of the game (3 periods out of 6) so the coaches in this "mini-basket" leagues spend more time thinking which player to put in which period, than anything else.
I actually love this rules, even though my best players are also the best in the league.

What you suggested is what I and most coaches usually do. The problem with that is the weaker players don't get to touch the ball that much. So I tried something new by putting the 4 most dominant players together and then putting in 4 weaker players. It can help both ways: for the strong players - they get expirience playing more off the ball, and the less strong players can't hide anymore and must become more dominant.

The first game I did this I started the game with the 2nd/3rd-tier squad and the other team went 13-0 on us, then my 1st-tier squad went 16-7 and we ended up winning by 8, while being -22 when none of the 1st-tier players were on the court.
However in the game after that (my last game, from this week) I started with the 1st-tier squad and went 19-8, and then my 2nd tier squad went 9-9. After that I divided them equally and won 74-54 (36 minutes game).

Thats a lot of maneuvering for a 5th grade game :-) Makes you think as a coach just what is better for the team.

I wonder what everyone would do IF they didn't keep score ??

I still think your first group does a great job for 5th grade boys, keep up the good work with ALL of them. I bet there is a diamond in the rough amongst the second group.

If they have rules about playing time, I'm guessing the leagues are more about developing players and less about winning?

I'm going to assume you have 8 players? If so, I probably wouldn't worry about the score so much and split the teams up using weaks and strongs on each. One major reason is to allow the weaker players to improve their skills by playing with better teammates.

Your team looks good from the YT vids.

The leagues for 5th and 6th graders (for which this rules apply) suppose to be about develpoing and not winning, but unfortunately most coaches and parents focus on the winning.

I actually have 18 (!) players on my team, and only 15 of them are allowed to play in a specific game.