For beginner basketball players of any age, it’s all about the basics — and using games like tag to teach the basics.

These 10 great drills are developmentally-appropriate, easy to teach and fun to play — the equivalent of a triple double for any coach-parent.

The Name Game
Players get to know their teammates in this friendly warmup.

Red Light, Green Light
Build players’ muscle memory by pairing quick stops and explosive speed in this schoolyard favorite.

Gimme Five
Players practice dribbling the ball in a fun activity that also helps develop their coordination and agility.

Mascot Tag
Players go wild for this fast-paced tag game. 

Team Tag
Building agility and coordination is great fun in this schoolyard classic, which also helps players learn to change speed and direction while they dribble the basketball.

Pattern Dribbling
This activity helps players learn about court markings— and develop their technical dribbling skills, with an assist from their favorite characters.

Sharks & Minnows
Sh-sh-SHARK! Dribbling players pretend to be minnows who must cross an ocean full of hungry sharks.

Construction Site
Don’t forget your hard hat! Players learn to make decisions while dribbling in this activity. 

The Floor Is Lava
A fiery favorite gets a basketball spin in this activity that combines cooperative play with learning passing fundamentals.

Snake
Let’ssss teach playerssss to communicate and move as a team, while developing agility and coordination.