4-Out Motion

Scrimmage/finisher

Flow offence with four out, one in — pass, cut, replace.

12 min 4+ Half court
TeamworkPassingU12U14U16

Read & react

4+ · 1 ball, half court

Get everyone ready

Four out, one inFour players around the arc, one near the basket. 12345

● Player / attackGold: ball

Illustrated steps · 5 seconds per step at 1×

Set up

Four players around the arc, one near the basket.

A coached example. In live play, players make their own decisions; the outcome can change.

Look for: Cut hard after every pass.

Playback options
Illustrated steps · 5 seconds per step at 1×
Coach’s notes & group organisation

Four players around the arc, one near the basket.

  1. Pass and cut through to the basket.
  2. The inside player reads and relocates.
  3. Fill the open perimeter spots to keep spacing.
  4. Keep it flowing until a good shot appears.

Suggested reset

For a walkthrough, finish one action and stop. The shooter retrieves and returns the ball to the starting handler. Walk back outside the cutting lanes, then cycle the starting roles before repeating on the other side. Waiting groups replace the whole group between repetitions. When adding live defence, stop on a score, turnover, foul, ball out or controlled rebound; return the ball to the start and swap attack and defence.

Coaching cues

  • Cut hard after every pass.
  • Keep the floor balanced — fill spots.
  • Read the defence, don't force it.

Adapt the challenge

Easier: Walk it with no defence to learn the flow.

Harder: No dribbles at all — pass, cut and fill only.

Two-pass rule: The ball must be passed twice after every cut before anyone may shoot.

What this drill teaches

Offence as a set of habits, not a script. Pass-cut-fill means every pass triggers movement and every hole gets refilled — so five players stay organised without anyone calling plays, and reading the defence becomes the skill.

In games: Cures stand-and-watch offence — the four kids admiring the dribbler — by giving everyone a job after every pass, so the ball and the players never stop moving.

What good looks like
  • A hard cut following every single pass
  • Open perimeter spots refilled straight away
  • Shots coming from the flow, not forced against a set defence

U12: walk the flow with no defence — clogged spacing and forgotten fills are normal. U14–U16: expect smooth flow under the no-dribble and two-pass rules.

Equipment

1 ball, half court

Setup

Four players around the arc, one near the basket.

Steps

  1. 1Pass and cut through to the basket.
  2. 2The inside player reads and relocates.
  3. 3Fill the open perimeter spots to keep spacing.
  4. 4Keep it flowing until a good shot appears.

Coaching points

  • Cut hard after every pass.
  • Keep the floor balanced — fill spots.
  • Read the defence, don't force it.

Why kids love it

A flexible motion offence that works at every level and teaches reading the game.

Variations

Easier

Walk it with no defence to learn the flow.

Harder

No dribbles at all — pass, cut and fill only.

Two-pass rule

The ball must be passed twice after every cut before anyone may shoot.

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