Knockout

This is another good shooting game that can be done at any age.  It is a game that can be played with every player on the team all at once.  I use knockout as a reward or at the end of a practice or end of the week to let the players have some fun during practice.  Sometimes practices can become too serious, and something is needed to get the players to decompress and relax and have fun.

The way the game works is everybody on the team gets in a line with the front two players having a ball each.  The spot on the floor can be anywhere but the usual spot is at the free throw line.  I will normally start with the players at the free throw line and then move the shooting point around the floor.  Any location where the team offense could have a high volume of shots is a good choice for the starting point in the game of knockout. 

The game is very simple.  The 1^st player will shoot from the starting spot.  After their shot, the 2^nd player in line will shoot.  The 1^st player is trying to score before the 2^nd player.  If the initial shot misses, then the player follows the shot, collects their rebound, and continues to shoot until they make a basket.  The 2^nd shot and after can be from anywhere on the floor, so these shots are normally layups or offensive putbacks right next to the basket.  If the 1^st player makes their ball before the 2nd player, then the 1^st player gets their ball after the made basket and passes to the next player in line.  Player 3 then shoots and tries to score before the 2nd player while the 2^nd player is trying to score before the 3^rd player.

A player is eliminated from the game if the person behind them in line is able to make a basket before them.  So, if player 3 can make a basket before player 2, then player 2 is eliminated.  On the made basket by player 3, both player 2 and player 3 get their basketball and passes to the next two players in line.  The game continues until there is only one player left.

When the final two players are left, each player must return to the initial shooting point after each make and shoot from that spot to start their next round.  The final two can be tricky because the first player is in front of the 2^nd player to start.  Once the 1^st player makes their basket, they become the player behind and are able to eliminate the 2^nd player and vice versa.  So essentially, one player must make 2 baskets before the other player can make one basket. 

Knockout is a fun game to play with any team at any age group.  The starting spot the players must shoot from can be moved closer to the basket for younger players.  And it can be moved farther away from the basket for older players.  I will play knockout at the high school level using the 3-point as the starting point in the game at times.  This will help enforce the effort of shooting a long shot and immediately following the shot for a chance at an offensive rebound.  For younger ages like 1^st-4^th grades, the starting spot can be started at 5-10 feet away depending on the strength of the players to successfully make baskets.