Basketball Pick Drills

A pick (or a screen) is a play used in basketball in which an offensive player steps in front of a defender to let a teammate get past the defender. Setting a pick involves standing your ground, with your arms at your sides, while a teammate with the ball leads the defender right into you. The pick is an essential skill, and it can be improved and refined using basketball pick drills.

  1. Pass and Screen Away

    • Set up three lines of players along the three-point arc with the one in the center acting as the point guard and two wing positions (one on the right and one on the left). Have a coach or manager play as the token defender on the left side. The point guard should dribble the ball and pass to the right wing. The point guard then screens away for the left wing (picks the defender so that the left wing has a clear path to the basket). The left wing cuts to the basket and the right wing passes it to him. The left wing then takes it to the hoop. Have the players switch around the three positions to all get practice.

    Chair Drill

    • To give your players many chances to perfect the pick and roll, substitute chairs instead of defensive players on your pick drill. Set up two chairs just to the left and the right of the free throw line. Have a line of forwards on the left and right of the court by the end line and two lines of guards outside of the three-point arc on either side. Forwards must come up and set a pick on the chair as the guard begins to drive to the side of the chair. Forwards can then roll off of the chair to be ready to receive the ball. Try this with no ball first, then using a ball and then using defenders instead of chairs.

    Pick and Drive

    • This simple drill practices for a play in which the point guard takes the ball directly to the basketball after a pick is set. There are three lines needed, one under the basket and to the right for defenders, one under the basket and to the left for rebounders and pick setters and one at the top of the key for point guards. The defender passes the ball to the point guard who then dribbles the ball forward. The defender gets in strong defensive position and the rebounder sets a pick on the defender. The point guard then drives to the hoop while the rebounder boxes out the defender. The rebounder secures the ball and passes it to the next defender to start the drill again.

    Screen and Pop

    • This drill requires two lines parallel to each other at the outside of the three-point line. The player in the first line cuts to the basket while the player in the other line screens that player. The first player fakes coming off the screen and then cuts to the basket while the next player in his line passes him the ball. The player from the other line pops off the screen and receives a pass from the next player in his line. They both shoot the balls and then retrieve them to get back in line.