Rebounding is a contact sport. Practice without contact doesn’t translate. Three on three at the rim teaches kids to find a body, get low, and fight. This is the drill that produces actual rebounders.
What you need: A hoop, a basketball, six players, a coach to shoot.
Setup: Three offensive players spread around the perimeter. Three defenders matched up. Coach above the free throw line with the ball.
How to run it:
- Coach shoots a missed shot (intentionally short or long off the rim).
- Defenders find their man, turn, get low, box out. Arms wide.
- Offensive players try to break through.
- Whoever gets the rebound starts a fast break or resets.
- Do 8 reps. Rotate offense and defense each round.
What to watch: Are the defenders making contact on the box-out? A box-out without contact is a sit-down. Find the body, hit the body with the butt, hold for two counts.
If they’re struggling: Drop to two on two. Less chaos. Same fundamentals.
If they’ve got it: Score it. Defense gets a point for every rebound, offense gets a point for every offensive board. First to 5.