Andreas Rauh
Andreas Rauh
Published 08 January 2025

Box and 1 - Shadow Drill

Basic Shadow Drill Setup:


Start with three players:


  1. Offensive player starting at top of key
  2. Chaser (defender) in denial position
  3. Passer on wing with basketball


Coaching Points:

I tell my chasers - imagine there's a string connecting your hip to their hip. Stay connected, but don't reach. When I see defenders reaching, I remind them that their feet do the work, not their hands.


Teaching Progression:

We start every rep from one side of half court. As the defensive player gets better, we expand the space to the entire half court. By the end of the week, we're running this drill full court to build endurance.

Basic Denial (5 minutes)
312
  • Offensive player tries to get open using V-cuts and L-cuts
  • Chaser maintains denial position, always between offensive player and ball
  • Passer cannot dribble, can only pivot
  • 30-second reps, then rotate positions
Add Screens (5 minutes)
3124
  • Add fourth player as screener
  • Screener sets screens at different angles
  • Teach chaser to "lock and trail" or "shoot the gap" based on screen angle
Double Screen Action (5 minutes)
31245
  • Add fifth player as second screener
  • Run basic stagger screen action
  • Teach chaser to stay attached through multiple screens
  • Focus on taking proper angles and not getting caught on screens
Draw Your Own Plays

Draw Your Own Plays. It's easy!

Play Creator App

Create plays within seconds with an intuitive drag & drop interface.
Your plays will be animated automatically!

© 2025. The Hoops Geek