Setting Up Basketball Tryouts

A well-designed basketball tryout serves two purposes. It allows a coaching staff to find players for its team and gives the staff an opportunity to pass on coaching knowledge to a large group of players. Coaches should design basketball tryouts to review all aspects of the participants' game, both on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. The tryouts should be set up well in advance of the event so that both the participants and coaches can be prepared when the time comes.

Instructions

    • 1

      Set a date and location for the tryouts, whether at your school gym or a recreation center that has to be rented. Announce the tryouts several weeks or even months ahead of the date so that you and your coaching staff can make the necessary preparations and to allow the participants to take the necessary steps on their end, such as obtaining health-related paperwork.

    • 2

      Have the announcements for the tryouts posted publicly, such as in a school newsletter, a local publication and on local basketball websites.

    • 3

      Make a list of what every competitor needs to bring to participate in the tryout drills, such as paperwork (such as a physical exam verification and a parent's permission slip) and equipment (such as shoes and knee-length basketball shorts).

    • 4

      Create a list of the drills that you are going to run for the players during the tryouts. Plan for drills that focus on shooting (such as free throw and layup shooting), rebounding, ball handling, passing, defense and quickness (such a 40-yard dashes and up and downs).

    • 5

      Make sure you have all the necessary supplies on hand, such as basketballs, towels, water and sports drinks. Have jerseys with numbers made in advance so you can hand them out to the players to be able to keep track of who is who. Have cloth labels made with numbers on them (cut-up old T-shirts, permanent marker and safety pins can work in a pinch) if you don't have the budget for individual jerseys.

    • 6

      Determine ahead of time how many players and what type of players you are seeking for the team. Decide how much of the tryout time will be spent on actually evaluating players and how much will be spent teaching players certain fundamentals of basketball, especially for tryouts featuring younger participants.