pittfan

Defense is area where the kids of young ages show the quickest improvement (usually a few weeks). I believe that at that age man-to-man is the best choice for the kids development. The basic man-to-man concepts are easy to teach at that age and you get the kids to be aggressive.

I will say that a zone would likely give you better rebounding at a young age (exactly the opposite of the older kids) due to the fact that the kids are close to the rim and outside shooting is poor overall for 9 years so you don't get hurt much from outside shooters.

I think you should shoot free throws any way that you make the most of them. Underhanded, conventional, or over-your-head if needed. It’s all about results not style. The trick will be to convince the kids that style doesn’t matter.

P.S.
Rick Berry is one of the best free throw shooters in history and is in the pro and college basketball halls-of-fame

I have found that plays for 8-9 year old players is too tough as they are still trying to grasp the basic skills (passing, weak-hand dribble, moving without the ball, etc.). My suggestion is to work on basic skills that the kids can use in a game such as the pick-and-roll, give-and-go, and simple cuts like the V-cut and basket cut. This will give the kids confidence and allow them to function in a game situation. Make the practices as fun as possible with competitions, make the drills short (5-10 minutes), and mix in some running drills as well.

The major concept that you can teach at this age is court spacing. My kids always want to run to the ball and thus take their defender to the ball as well. Get them to understand that spacing opens the passing lanes and makes it tougher on the defense as they have to cover more of the court.

Good Luck ... Have fun.