Jake’s practice plan

Jake has the eyes-up habit and natural feel with the ball — this session builds on that by demanding he stays low through every transition and adds the hesitation pause he needs to become shiftier with the ball.

---

Two-ball dribbling if a second ball is available, single ball if not. Low dribbles — ball bouncing below the knee on every rep. Right hand 30 seconds, left hand 30 seconds, alternating crossover 30 seconds, between the legs 30 seconds. Two rounds.

The goal here isn't moves — it's getting the knees bent and keeping them there before anything else starts.

---

Set three cones in a line, about 6 feet apart, running from the top of the key toward the basket. Jake starts at the first cone with the ball live. He attacks the second cone at pace, then freezes — body stops, ball keeps bouncing low, one full beat — then explodes past it. Same at the third cone. Walk back, repeat.

The freeze is the whole point. His body stops but the dribble never dies. That one beat is what makes a defender's feet stall. Right now Jake goes one speed — this teaches him that the pause before the move is what makes the move work.

Two cones set 10 feet apart. Jake starts at the left cone in a low defensive-style stance, ball in his right hand. He slides laterally to the right cone — not running, sliding, feet never crossing — then attacks hard to the basket off the right cone for a finish. Walk back. Alternate which hand he attacks with on each rep.

The lateral slide keeps his hips low and wide. The attack off the cone should feel like a spring releasing — all that stored energy from the slide turning into an explosion.

Jake starts at the three-point line, attacks the cone (playing as a defender) hard, retreats one dribble back, and immediately attacks again. The retreat should be one controlled dribble — not two, not three. The moment the retreat dribble hits the ground, he's already deciding which direction he's going.

We've seen he does the retreat well but needs to make the second attack quicker and more decisive. This locks in that timing.

---

Start 4-5 feet from the basket, directly in front. No dribble — catch, load, shoot. Ten reps right elbow, ten reps left elbow. The focus is sequencing: knees bend first, ball rises second. If the ball goes up before the knees load, the rep doesn't count. Hold the follow-through for two full seconds on every attempt — guide hand drops to the hip, shooting hand stays up.

Two dribbles from the wing, pull up at the elbow for a mid-range jumper. Right side five reps, left side five reps, repeat twice. The dribble setup is Jake's strength — use it here. The pull-up is where the knee bend has to show up. He should feel his weight settle into the floor before the ball goes up.

Mix in a catch-and-shoot from the wing off an imaginary pass every third rep — ball already loaded when it arrives, feet already set. This is the read he needs for games: sometimes he's pulling up off the dribble, sometimes he's catching and shooting. Both need to feel the same in the legs.

---

Jake starts at the right elbow. One dribble hard toward the lane, gather off two feet at the block, float the ball up soft off the glass. Five reps right side, five reps left side. The gather is everything here — two feet landing together before the ball goes up, not a running one-foot jump. The floater isn't a layup. It's a shot released early before a rim protector can get to it. He needs to feel the difference between the two.

Jake starts at the right baseline corner. He drives hard along the baseline into the lane, and instead of going all the way to the rim, he releases the floater at the near block — before the imaginary help defender gets there. Five reps right to left, five reps left to right. The left-to-right drive finishing with the right hand is his stronger direction — use it to build confidence. The right-to-left drive finishing left is where we need the reps.

The release point is key: if he feels like he went too far under the basket, he went too far. The floater lives in the lane, not at the rim.

---

Ten free throws to close the session. One routine every single time — bounce twice, look at the rim, sit into the knees, shoot. No rushing. Given what we saw today with him hitting the back of the rim repeatedly, watch the release point: if he's going long, the ball is leaving his hand late and flat. The fix is releasing a beat earlier at the top of his jump, letting the wrist do the work rather than the arm pushing forward.

---

One thing to watch today: every time Jake resets between reps — standing still with the ball — check whether his knees stay bent or whether he straightens up. That habit between reps is the one that carries into games. If he's tall when he's waiting, he'll be tall when it matters.

About ParentEdge