Kickball Skills: Mastering the Chest Pass

Gene Efird, a former college basketball player, has helped make the chest pass one of the most popular moves in kickball.

One of the most efficient techniques to make outs in kickball is through use of the chest pass. It's a move that has been popularized in kickball by former basketball players, like Gene Efird. And it makes sense why. The chest pass is one of the most fundamental passes in hoops.

A crisp chest pass explodes from the body and zips to the target in a straight line. It eliminates the long wind up of an over hand throw and allows a defender to use their natural momentum to quickly and accurately make the pass.

Sounds easy, right? Well, yeah, it is if you grew up playing basketball. But for those of us who haven't? Fortunately, because it's such a common technique there are a lot of resources and drills for learning the proper way to execute the chest pass. I'm going to share some of them here.

Here's some of the key points to remember.

1. Place your hands to the side and slightly behind the ball an bring it to chest level. 
2. Your feet should be shoulders length apart with your elbows in. 
3. Keeping your eyes on your target (usually first base), step forward and extend your arms fully. 
4. Be sure to snap your wrists to generate more power. You should finish with your palms facing outward and your thumbs pointed towards the ground. 

Kaylee Zapata demonstrates good chest passing form in the VA Freedom tournament. 

Now that you have the proper form, it's time to practice! Here is a drill that you can do with your team. Not only does it help reinforce the right fundamentals, but it is an excellent warm up as well. 

Of course, if you don't have your entire team, all you need is a teammate (or a wall) and a kickball. Practice throwing back and forth. The more reps you get, the better you'll get. You'll be Efird level in no time!