Using scientific guiding principles developed by coach educators Istvan Balyi and Richard Way, and found in their book Long-Term Athlete Development (2013), USA Basketball has designed a practical, functional and sequential development model to properly impart the game to a player.

As explained in the sections that follow, the Player Development Curriculum incorporates seven stages of long-term athlete development – Active Start, Fundamentals, Learning to Train, Training to Train, Training to Compete, Training to Win and Basketball for Life.

USA Basketball’s Youth Development Division was formed in 2013 to promote, grow and elevate the game of basketball throughout the United States. As part of the initiative, the USA Basketball Development Model was created to help guide players, coaches, parents and administrators through the sport. The model includes

Unlock the secret to crafting drills and practice plans that perfectly match your team's cognitive and motor skill growth at every age level.

Develop an understanding of the rules. Defense- learn correct defensive stance, to play defense with feet not hands, stay between the man and the basket. Offense- Learn correct techniques for dribbling and passing. Begin to gain an understanding of spacing on the court.

Develop and support a healthy community basketball structure with a mix of existing and new clubs and community providers across NZ that includes strong connections with schools. diverse range of communities. Help players from deprived areas overcome barriers to fully participate in development pathways and fulfill their potential.

Coaching young players requires a high level of responsibility and hard work to teach the game in the proper way. The goal of this book is to give coaches a complete guide on how to work with young boys and girls in order to make them learn, play and love the great game of basketball.

Learn specific in-season training techniques that all great basketball players regularly use to improve their skills. There are 16 weeks of position specific basketball skill development in a very easy to follow format on SDC. The entire progression system is outlined within "SDC's Periodic Table of Basketball Skills."

This approach neglects the critical ingredients for success found in the fundamentals of Player Development at the base of the pyramid. Prepares athletes for the top of the pyramid by focusing on the foundation of success in basketball.

"This is a well thought out and detailed plan on how to teach and develop basketball skills in young players. Youth Basketball Development can be a very useful tool for any youth coach and especially those just starting out."