Mirror the Ball
Train following the ball with the eyes and hands, not biting on fakes.
- Duration
- 6 min
- Steps
- 4
- Equipment
- 1 item
- Difficulty
- Beginner
How to run it
- 1
Coach holds the ball and moves it side to side and up and down.
- 2
You track the ball with both hands, staying in a stance.
- 3
Do NOT reach or lunge — just mirror with the hands, eyes on the ball.
- 4
30 seconds, 4 rounds.
Coaching points
- Eyes and hands follow the ball together.
- Never reach in — that's a foul and a beat.
- Stay balanced and ready to slide.
Equipment
- Basketball
Why it works
Young defenders reach for the ball and get blown by. The nugget: the ball is a magnet — kids chase it and fall for every pump fake. Mirroring trains the discipline to track the ball with the hands without lunging, so a kid stays in front of their man instead of biting on a fake and giving up the drive. This is the habit that turns a reacher into a real defender.
Mirror the Ball
Purpose: Train following the ball with the eyes and hands, not biting on fakes.
▶How to run it
- 1Coach holds the ball and moves it side to side and up and down.
- 2You track the ball with both hands, staying in a stance.
- 3Do NOT reach or lunge — just mirror with the hands, eyes on the ball.
- 430 seconds, 4 rounds.
✓Coaching points
- ✓Eyes and hands follow the ball together.
- ✓Never reach in — that's a foul and a beat.
- ✓Stay balanced and ready to slide.
▢Equipment
★Why it works
Young defenders reach for the ball and get blown by. The nugget: the ball is a magnet — kids chase it and fall for every pump fake. Mirroring trains the discipline to track the ball with the hands without lunging, so a kid stays in front of their man instead of biting on a fake and giving up the drive. This is the habit that turns a reacher into a real defender.