A scouting report is only useful if your players actually remember it during the game. A wall of notes nobody reads two hours before tip-off doesn't help anyone — a short, specific report built around three or four things a player can actually act on does. Here's a structure that works whether you have game film or just a scrimmage and a parent's phone video.
What to actually watch for
If you only have one viewing of an opponent (live or on film), prioritize in this order — each one is faster to spot than the last, so this order works even if you run out of time:
- Their primary action. Most teams, especially below the college level, run one or two actions the bulk of the time. Find it in the first few possessions — it's usually the first thing they run out of a timeout.
- Who they go to in crunch time. Watch the last two minutes of a close quarter. The ball finds the same one or two players when it matters.
- Their worst free throw shooter. Genuinely useful late-game information that takes thirty seconds to note down.
- How they guard ball screens. Switch, hedge, or drop — this alone tells you most of what you need for your offensive game plan.
The structure
Four sections covers almost any opponent, from a youth team to a varsity rival.
- Their offense — primary action, who they run it for, their best shooter and where from.
- Their defense — base coverage, how they handle ball screens, press or no press.
- Individual notes — 2-3 players max, with one strength and one weakness each. More than that and nobody retains it.
- Our game plan — the two or three adjustments you're actually making, stated as instructions, not observations.
Filled-in example
| Section | Notes |
|---|---|
| Their offense | Runs a lot of side ball screens for #11. #4 is their best catch-and-shoot threat, mostly from the left wing. |
| Their defense | Switches 1-4 on ball screens. No full-court press. |
| #11 (PG) | Strength: gets downhill left. Weakness: average right hand finisher. |
| #4 (SG) | Strength: catch-and-shoot left wing. Weakness: 68% FT, foul him late. |
| Our game plan | Force #11 right on ball screens. Chase #4 off the left wing, live with him attacking the rim. Foul #4 if we need a stop under two minutes. |
A few things that make it actually get used
- Keep individual notes to 2-3 players. Scouting the entire opposing roster produces a report nobody reads. Pick who actually matters.
- Write the game plan as instructions, not descriptions. "Force #11 right" is something a player can do. "#11 likes going left" is just a fact they have to translate into action themselves, under pressure, mid-game.
- Build it from whatever you actually have. A scrimmage, a parent's phone video, or a conference call with another coach is enough for the four-section version above — you don't need full game film to make this useful.
- Keep last season's reports. If you play the same opponents every year (true for most conference/league schedules), last year's report is most of this year's report already done.
This is exactly what HoopVault's scouting report tool is built around — one report per opponent with an offense/defense/game-plan structure and a roster of their key players, plus a one-click printable version to hand out before the game.
Build your first scouting report in HoopVault — free to browse, no card required.