Basketball skills and drills

I’ve known for a while that my daughter isn’t among the most athletic girls in her age group. That fact was driven home recently when her dad and I signed her up to play basketball at the local girls club.

The other girls on her team had a basic grasp of dribbling, but my daughter spent more time chasing the ball than touching it. At one point during her first practice, my husband and I couldn’t help but laugh as our girl went in for a layup, hopped three times, and threw the ball right into the rim.

But, as they say, the important thing is that she has fun. That’s good, because she did have fun, but unless she shows a lot of improvement, I predict a lot of bench time for her this season.

So, later that night, I said, "I thought you did very well for your first time playing basketball, and you know what, I think it would be fun if you and I could spend a little time every night working on dribbling."

"Because I'm the worst one?" she said.

I was floored. I had no idea that she had realized the other girls were more skilled than she was.

I took a moment to consider how to answer and then said, "No, because everyone can use some practice. The other girls ... I can tell it wasn't their first time playing. You'll get better, but everyone needs to practice."

It didn't take long for me to realize that my plan to practice with her nightly was too ambitious. Between working late and holidays, we have been averaging about two to three practices a week.

But already, I've seen some improvement. She's made about 30 baskets total over the past few weeks, and can manage as many as 12 bounces while dribbling before the ball gets away from her. She has a ways to go, because she ducks rather than rebounds and cannot dribble while moving.

But I'm proud of her.