Coach ,

All coaches know that effectively closing out is crucial for a team’s defense. 

This is why we’ve taken three closeout drills from three quality basketball coaches and are sharing them with you today. 

Dave Adkins - 2 Man Closeout Drill

Dave Adkins - 2 Man Closeout Drill

David Adkins joined the Washington women's basketball program ahead of the 2024-25 season, bringing 15 years of collegiate and NBA experience to the Huskies' bench as an Associate Head Coach. 

Prior to his appointment at Washington, Adkins served as the Director of Player Development for the Denver Nuggets. His NBA tenure also included pivotal roles with the Portland Trail Blazers (2022-23) and the Washington Wizards (2014-2021). 

In his ‘Player Development: Offensive and Defensive Combination Drills’ clinic, Coach Adkins details the 2 Man Closeout Drill, which begins with one coach at the top of the key, one each at each wing, and two players on each elbow. 

The coach at the top of the key passes the ball to one of the wings, where the player will execute a closeout, contesting a potential three while still being capable of defending a drive. 

Once the closeout is executed, that coach will pass the ball back to the top of the key while the coach then swings it around to the other side. 

Once each player gets a repetition then the next two players step up and the drill continues. 

After each player gets one rep on each side, the drill will progress so that the coach dribbles takes dribbles down toward the baseline or to the corner, where the player will defend them without fouling before executing a closeout when they pick up their dribble. 

Peter Morales - Closeout Drill

Peter Morales - Closeout Drill

Peter Morales is the head coach of the Eastwood High School men’s basketball team, which is based in El Paso, Texas. 

Coach Morales discusses his favorite Closeout Drill in his ‘Defensive Drills and Practice Planning’ course, which begins with three players grouping up in three different lines, with the ball in the middle line. 

The middle player then passes it to either side then goes and executes a closeout on the player they passed it to. The offensive player will catch the ball, get into a triple-threat position, and then either make a move to shoot, dribble, or pass, which will force the closing-out defender to react. 

From there, the offensive player will pass to the third player in the group and do the same thing, and the drill will continue that way for 2-3 minutes. 

Craig Kennedy - 1 on 1 Close Out Drills

Craig Kennedy - 1 on 1 Close Out Drills

Kennedy was named the head coach of Spring Hill College’s Men’s Basketball team in June 2018. He is a 38-year coaching and teaching veteran who has coached at Troy University, Georgia Southern University, Auburn University, and the University of Winnipeg. 

Coach Kennedy’s ‘Practice Drills’ clinic explains the Michael Murphy drill, which begins with one player above the block and one outside of the lane. 

The player above the block passes it to the other player, cuts up to the opposite wing, and the other player then passes the ball back to them and executes a closeout. From that point, the drill becomes a simple one-on-one, where the offensive player only has three dribbles to work with. 

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