Duke Basketball Workouts

Since the early 1980s, Duke basketball has experienced great success under the tutelage of men's head basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. "Coach K" has hired a number of former players as assistant coaches and together they have created a workout program that is effective in producing results. From skill development drills to weight training, Duke's basketball workouts have been instrumental in the success of their individual players and their team.

Stretches

Duke begins every workout with a series of stretches that help prevent injury. These stretches also increase strength and flexibility. You can do these stretches by beginning with the butterfly groin stretch, sitting Indian-style with the bottoms of your feet together pushing your knees toward the ground. Other exercises are chest, hamstring, standing groin and calf stretches. Adding spinal twists will reduce the risk of back injury.

Jump Rope Workout

Coach K utilizes a series of conditioning workouts to ensure that his players are in top physical shape. A large portion of this conditioning workout includes jumping rope and sprinting. You can simulate these workouts by jumping with both feet together, then with each individual foot and then with both feet together again. Jumping for 30 seconds followed by a 15-second rest period is recommended. Incorporate high-knee jumps, lunges and double steps into your workout as you feel comfortable.

Ball Handling Workouts

Duke basketball players do a series of stationary and full-court basketball drills to improve their ability to handle the ball in game situations. Stationary drills include dribbling the ball around your body, high-low dribbles, dribble figure-eights and figure-eights without dribbling by moving the ball quickly from hand-to-hand while keeping your eyes focused on the rim. Full-court ball handling drills include drills designed to change speed and direction. These drills include a full-court stop-and-go dribble, between-the-legs dribbles and crossover dribbles. After you can do each of these drills with one ball, try them with a ball in each hand.

Shooting Workout Drills

Conditioning workouts designed by Duke are meant to be done at full-speed. This does not necessarily mean rushing through each drill, but doing the drill efficiently and making each shot count. Shooting drills done by Duke include the Mikan and reverse Mikan drills to improve footwork, as well as block-to-block and elbow-to-elbow jump shots. You should strive to make ten shots in each spot. After you feel comfortable shooting from close-range, step out behind the three-point line and make 10 shots. Coach K suggests making a free throw between each set of shots and running a sprint for each foul shot missed.