5 Indicators That a Practice Activity Includes Meaningful Decision-Making
In basketball, decisions create advantages.
Whether it’s a guard deciding to reject a ball screen, a post player choosing to rotate on help-side, or a wing recognising when to cut. Every action is based on a decision.
Yet in many practices, decision-making is left out.
Coaches often assume that learning happens linearly. That drills involving a player shooting, dribbling, or passing help a player get better at executing those skills in the game. However, there is a difference between executing a skill and choosing the right skill at the right time.
This article will explore five indicators that a drill (or practice activity) truly involves meaningful decision-making—not just technical reps, but game-applicable thinking.
If you’re coaching youth players or volunteers with limited practice time, these indicators will help you evaluate and upgrade your sessions immediately
Sidebar
I am trying to be conscious of my use of the words: drills and activities.
Drills are activities in practice that have a clearly defined start and end. Players know exactly what to do, where to go, and what comes next. There are no decisions involved. Instead, the focus is on technical repetitions of the desired movement patterns.
Since there are no decisions involved in this aspect, the skill is not really being developed. Skill is defined as the perceptual-action coupling process. This means that to develop transferable skills, the activity needs to include the relevant context so players can connect the decision-making process with the technical repetition.
Small-sided games (SSG) are one of the best (and most popular) ways of doing this within our landscape at the moment. SSG are essentially games that players need to solve to win. The use of constraints within these games can shape learning by restricting certain parts of play. Therefore, SSGs are more desirable for learning than drills.
Not all my practice activities are SSGs, and since I am trying to distance myself from the word “drills”, I have elected to use the word “activity” to signal practice activities that aren’t necessarily drills.
That was a weird ramble… Let’s get back to the article. We were talking about five indicators that an activity has meaningful decision-making.
🔹 1. There Are Multiple Possible Outcomes
Why it matters:
If an activity has only one correct answer, “pass here,” “shoot now,” “cut there”, then you’re scripting, not teaching decisions.
Meaningful decision-making requires choice.
Examples:
In a closeout drill, can the defender decide whether to contest, contain, or go for a steal based on the offensive player’s actions?
In a passing drill, can the ballhandler choose between a cutter and a shooter based on help rotation?
What to look for:
Are there at least two valid outcomes depending on context?
Does the drill encourage reading the defender or the situation?
Are players ever surprised, or does it always look choreographed?
Quick Test:
If your players can do the drill on autopilot, it likely lacks decision-making. This also means that it will not necessarily transfer to game situations.
🔹 2. The Defender Has Freedom and Intent
Why it matters:
Too often, defenders are just “placeholders”. I.e., cones in jerseys. They jog, swipe lazily, or give just enough resistance to let the offense succeed.
But real decisions come from real pressure.
When defenders are given freedom to disrupt: to steal, force, block, and rotate, the offensive player must adjust, anticipate, and choose.
Examples:
In a finishing drill, the defender can jump, slide, or fake, forcing the offensive player to pick a finish on the fly.
In a 2v1 drill, the help defender can fully commit or fake help, making the passer read body language.
What to look for:
Is the defender coached to compete and think, not just participate?
Are players reacting to a live variable, not just a fixed action?
Coaching Tip:
Use phrases like “defender plays it live” or “make them guess” to open up the game.
🔹 3. The Drill Creates Consequences for Decisions
Why it matters:
If a player makes the wrong choice, and the drill continues with no penalty or feedback, the brain doesn’t register the mistake.
Consequence = Learning.
When players understand why their decision didn’t work (a turnover, a blocked shot, a breakdown), it drives deeper processing.
Examples:
In a passing drill, a late skip results in a deflection and an immediate counterattack.
In a help-side rotation drill, poor timing leads to an open layup and the group resets.
What to look for:
Is there a built-in result tied to the decision?
Do players learn from their mistakes, not just after it?
Coaching Tip:
Let the activity play out. Don’t rush in to “fix it.” Let the consequence teach before you do.
🔹 4. There’s Limited Pre-Planning
Why it matters:
When players already know what they’re going to do before the drill starts, there’s no decision being made. Just a plan being executed.
Decision-making happens in context, not in advance.
Examples:
In a 3v2 transition drill, players don’t know if the trailer is a shooter or slasher until they see the floor.
In a pick-and-roll drill, the screen angle and help coverage change each rep.
What to look for:
Are players adapting on the move?
Does success depend on perception and adjustment, not memory?
Challenge Your Players:
Ask them after a rep, “What did you see that made you choose that?”
🔹 5. The Drill Resembles a Game-Like Context
Why it matters:
Decisions don’t happen in a vacuum. They happen with a clock, with pressure, with spacing, and with consequences tied to the score.
Activities that simulate this create more authentic decisions.
Examples:
Adding time pressure: “You’ve got 6 seconds to get a shot off.”
Adding score context: “Black is down 1. Do we push for an early shot, or hold for the last shot?”
Adding fatigue: Players must make decisions when they’re tired.
What to look for:
Do players understand what’s at stake?
Does the drill create urgency or replicate real-game dynamics?
Bottom Line:
The closer your activities look to the feel of a game, the more likely it is to reinforce useful decisions.
🧠 Final Whistle: Decision-Making Is Trainable
A lot of coaches will complain that their players don’t have a good feel for the game.
Developing a game feeling doesn’t just happen. Playing more games is what helps players develop the feel for the game. Since fewer and fewer players spend time outside playing pick-up, coaches need to replicate the conditions in which players can develop a feel for the game.
This means designing practices that have small-sided games or activities that reinforce the desired behaviours through repetition (deliberate), reflection (conscious), and game cues (relevant).
Drills that isolate technical skills are still valuable, but if you want your players to become smarter, faster decision-makers, your practice has to reflect the reality of the game.
✅ Recap: The 5 Indicators
Multiple Possible Outcomes – Choices must exist
Active, Intentional Defenders – Pressure creates reaction
Built-in Consequences – Mistakes matter and teach
Unscripted Execution – Players can’t pre-plan their reps
Game-Like Context – Pressure, fatigue, and time all matter
🚀 What to do Next
Audit one of your favourite drills against these five indicators.
Ask yourself:
“Where’s the decision?”
“What’s the player reacting to?”
“Would this happen in a game?”
Make one small tweak.
Add a live defender, a scoring rule, a time constraint, and watch how the learning deepens (Yes, it will be messy, but chaos is needed when learning).