How to dribble a basketball well

How to Dribble a Basketball (3 Killer Drills for Beginners)

Dribbling the ball well in basketball is the one true skill that can separate you from the rest of the competition. The ability to handle the ball in a way that renders the defense helpless can affect the flow of a game and put you in control.

Those new to the game may need a brief definition of what exactly dribbling is in the game of basketball. It is the act of bouncing the basketball up and down as you move down the court in order to avoid traveling. Even though some players on basketball teams may handle the ball more than others, dribbling is a skill that will be used by every basketball player to some degree.

Let’s take a look at some drills and techniques to help you learn how to dribble a basketball. Once you have these down, you just need to put forth the effort to become a great dribbler.

Dribbling Technique

If you watch someone dribbling the ball really well, it doesn’t look too hard to master. The secret is that dribbling really isn’t a hard skill to learn, with the proper technique and hundreds (maybe thousands) of hours of practice anyone can learn to dribble.

So what are those proper techniques?

1. Stay Low

Having a low center of gravity helps with dribbling in many ways. You are in a stable position to run while dribbling and are able to endure physical defenders and keep the ball. It also helps with our second step on technique, which is to make sure to keep the ball as low as you are.

2. Dribble Ball Low

A general rule of thumb while dribbling the ball is to keep the height of the bounce between your knee and waist and never dribble it higher than your belt line. The lower the ball, combined with your body also being low, the more difficult for the defender to steal the ball from you.

3. Keep Your Head Up

This step will take some time to master. Dribbling with your eyes up and not on the ball is hard initially, especially during a game. But once you are able to both dribble and survey the court, you are in a much better position offensively. Maybe a teammate is open for a basket, or maybe you are open for a jump shot if your defender is not guarding you closely. There are a number of situations that you may not be aware of on the basketball court if you don’t have your head up while dribbling.

4. Fingertips, Not Palm

The ball should rarely ever touch the palm or heel of your hand while dribbling. Using your fingertips, instead of your palm, can give you more control over the ball. If you were to use your palm your technique would look more like you are slapping at the ball instead of bouncing it and receiving it with your fingers and a softer touch.

5. Bounce The Ball Hard

Once you have mastered how to dribble the ball you are going to want to make sure you bounce the ball hard to the ground. In your dribbling motion, your arm will extend and your wrist should snap forward while your fingertips push the ball to the ground. Bouncing the ball hard ensures the most efficient motion and gives you a better chance of the ball bouncing with enough speed to return to your fingers each time.

3 Killer Dribbling Drills for Beginners

1. Stationary Dribble

While this drill may seem too easy, it is used in practice and drills at all levels of play, including in the NBA. While they use the drill as more of a warmup, it is highly effective at the beginner level due to the repetitive nature of the drill.

For the Stationary Dribble (also called “Pounding”) drill, you will bend down in a low athletic stance and quite literally pound the ball to the ground as hard as you can. Remember to keep the ball between your knees and waist when you are dribbling. This drill is great for your muscle memory and also gets you very acquainted with the act of dribbling at a basic level. You can switch hands for this drill and “POund” with both your left and right hand to practice with both.

2. Stationary Crossover Dribble

The crossover is one of the most effective moves in basketball if done right. It is a change of direction move, like the between the legs or behind the back move, where you dribble hard in one direction and then plant your foot, dribble the ball across your body to your other hand, and quickly change the direction of your move.

A great starter drill for the crossover is a stationary move where you get into an athletic stance and continuously cross the ball over for a period of time. Once you get the hang of it, compete with yourself: count how many crossovers you can do in one minute and try setting a new high score every day.

3. Zig Zag Dribble

Now that you have gotten the hang of dribbling in a stationary position, let’s add some moving with our dribbles. This drill will involve approximately 100 feet of straightaway distance, preferably the length of a basketball court.

You will start in one corner of the basketball court and begin to dribble diagonally up the court until a certain point, usually marked with a cone or chair, and then make a change of direction move back towards the sideline of the court. You can start with crossovers at the cone or chair and work your way up to changing direction between your legs or behind your back in the drill. The video linked in the title does a great job of showing the full scope of the drill.

Best Dribblers in the NBA Today

There are so many talented ball-handlers playing in the NBA, which makes it tough to pick out only a few. However, the two I chose are on another planet in terms of their ball-handling and may all go down in history as some of the most talented dribbers ever.

James Harden

Harden is one of the top scorers in the league each year and the main reason is because of how talented a dribbler he is. His moves are all very complex and he uses several moves in a row during most of his attempts to get to the basket. He is a deadly outside shooter too making defenders have to guard his jumper which helps his chances of blowing by them for a layup.

Kyrie Irving

Irving can get by his defender and to the basket literally almost every time he touches the ball. He is known around the NBA as one of the best finishers meaning he can get to the rim, and once he does he usually always finds a way to put the ball in the hoop.

Irving looks like he has the basketball on a string on the court and has put together an impressive highlight reel of his dribble moves that should be studied by any player wanting to become great at dribbling the basketball.

Conclusion

Learning to dribble well can be tedious and involves doing the same task over and over again for hours before you can become great. However, the best players understand the importance of dribbling and work on it relentlessly.

Who are some of your favorite ball-handlers in the NBA today? Drop us some names in the comments section!

How to Dribble a Basketball (7-Step Guide + Drills)

Learning how to dribble a basketball is usually the very first skill a player will learn.

It’s easy enough to bounce the ball up and down while standing still…

But when a player’s trying to figure out how to:

• Keep their head up to see teammates.
• Move around the court.
• Protect the ball from the defense.

Then learning how to dribble a basketball can be intimidating.

But there’s good news…

Practicing your dribbling and ball-handling skills requires only two things:

1. A basketball
2. A small area to dribble.

You don’t need a basketball hoop, a teammate to pass you the ball, or a fancy basketball gym with perfectly polished hardwood floors.

In the steps below, I’ll teach you the best way to dribble a basketball and also give you several dribbling drills to practice as well.

Let’s get started…

The first step in learning how to dribble a basketball is to relax your fingers and make sure they’re spread out evenly on the basketball.

Young kids have a tendency to keep their fingers together unless they’re taught otherwise.

Spreading your fingers out increases the surface area and gives the player more control.

The other issue is players making their hands and fingers too stiff…

Which results in players ‘slapping’ at the ball.

It’s important players get comfortable relaxing their hands and fingers.

Some coaches and trainers tell their players the basketball should never touch the palm of their hand while they’re dribbling…

I disagree.

This results in a bunch of 5-year-olds making a claw shape with their hand, bouncing the ball with the top of their fingers, and then wondering why they can’t dribble.

The basketball SHOULD touch all of the pads on your hand…

But it’s the fingertips which control the basketball.

All players should be bending their knees and staying low to the ground when they have possession of the ball.

There are several reasons for this, but the main benefit is…

Being low to the ground makes you explosive.

If your defender reaches in to steal the basketball, you’ll be able to immediately explode past your opponent and attack the rim.

Whereas if you were more upright, you’d first have to drop down before you could attack.

Players need to push the basketball into the ground with force when they’re dribbling.

Do this by extending the elbow and snapping their wrist at the bottom of the movement.

The less time the basketball is out of your hands, the more control you have.

If a player bounces the basketball without much force, the ball can easily be tapped away by a defender because of the time extra time it isn’t in the offensive player’s hands.

Players have to make sure they’re protecting the basketball when dribbling.

There are several ways to do this:

1. Raise your non-dribbling arm for protection

This is known as an ‘arm bar’.

An arm bar will hold off a defender who’s attempting to close down the space and will also deter defenders from reaching in and attempting to steal the basketball.

But make sure to never push off with it.

2. Use your body to shield the ball

Turning your back / shoulder towards the on-ball defender will also provide protection.

Defenders will have a difficult time reaching all the way around the dribbler’s body and tapping the ball away without fouling them.

When first learning how to dribble a basketball, it’s natural for players to look down at the ball when they’re practicing.

But as they improve, players need to be encourage to raise their eyes up and see the floor.

When in game situations, this will allow them to read the defenders and their teammates to make the right passing decisions.

"I learned at a young age to dribble with both hands, and that allows me to be more creative when I go against bigger and stronger opponents" - Steve Nash

Have you ever coached against a player who can only attack the rim using their dominant hand?

They’re incredibly easy to stop.

All a defender needs to do is overplay their dominant hand and the offensive player will either have to pass the ball to a teammate or they’ll attempt to drive and lose the ball.

Which is why players must learn how to dribble equally well with both hands.

When a player can do this, their opportunities immediately double.

One of my favorite dribbling quotes of all time comes from former Australian basketball coach, Lindsay Gaze…

"You dribble to score, not to explore."

Mindless dribbling is something that’s becoming more and more common in today’s game.

Players are putting the ball on the floor as soon as they receive it without having a smart reason for doing so. This is often leading to them wasting the dribble.

On the Coaches Clipboard website, it’s written there are only six reasons to dribble.

1. To advance the ball up the court.
2. To drive to the hoop.
3. To get open for a shot.
4. To open up a passing lane, to have a better chance of completing a pass.
5. To get out of a trap.
6. To kill the clock at the end of a game.

1.

How the Drill Works:

A player dribbles a basketball up and back in a small area performing different dribbling moves. At home, this area could be the driveway. At the gym, this area would be the full or half court.

Purpose:

Learning the basics of how to dribble a basketball. This is a great way to introduce new dribbling movements to players without overwhelming them.

Instructions:

1. Get one basketball and line up on the baseline.

2. Dribble the full length of the court practicing a specific dribbling move while trying to keep your head up to see the floor.

3. Each time you get to an end and turn around, switch up the move your practicing.

Dribble Moves:

Here are a few of the different dribbles I like to use with beginner players:

• Right Hand
• Left Hand
• Crossovers
• Behind the Back
• Through the Legs
• Dribble Low
• Dribble Backwards
• Walking
• Jogging
• Sprinting

Coaching Points:

• Do your best to keep your eyes and head up throughout the drills to see the floor.

• When performing the different dribbling moves, do your best to explode out of the move to practice getting past your opponent.

• Go slow in the beginning and focus on technique before adding speed.

2.

How the Drill Works:

This drill involves keeping a balloon in the air while simultaneously dribbling a basketball. When the balloon hits the floor, the player loses their score and starts back at zero.

Purpose:

An incredibly fun drill designed to improve a player’s ability to control the basketball. The drill achieves this by forcing players to keep their eyes and focus on the balloon instead of the basketball.

Instructions:

1. Players begin by dribbling the basketball while holding a balloon.

2. When they’re ready, the player throws the balloon directly up into the air.

3. The player then continually taps the balloon into the air while keeping their dribble alive.

4. A player is out when they lose control of their basketball or their balloon hits the floor.

Variations:

Opposite Hand - Players are required to dribble the basketball in their non-dominant hand only.

Change Hands - Players must switch which hand they’re tapping the basketball with each time they keep the balloon alive.

Coaching Points:

• Ensure you’re in a low stance while maintaining the dribble. The closer the basketball is to the ground the easier it will be to control.

• Attempt to keep your eyes up and on the balloon at all times.

3.

How the Drill Works:

A player gets a basketball and finds a small, flat area where they can dribble. They then perform a series of one and two-ball ball-handling drills.

Purpose:

Players work on keeping their heads up while performing a variety of creative dribbling and ball-handling moves to improve their feel for the basketball

Instructions:

1. The player starts by setting up a small timer (phone, iPad, clock, etc) to track the time spent on each dribbling drill.

2. Each drill should last 15 - 30 seconds depending on the level of the players and which drill the players are doing.

3. The entire set should last approximately 5 minutes.

Dribble Moves:

Below I’ve listed several one-ball and two-ball dribbling drills to use.

If you’re looking for a bigger list, there are 50 dribbling moves here.

One Ball:

• Ball Slaps
• Finger Taps
• Wraps
• Pound Dribble
• Spider Dribble
• Crossover
• Through the Legs
• Behind the Back
• Figure 8
• Scissors

Two Ball:

• Double Pound
• High and Low
• Double Figure 8
• Double V
• Kills

Coaching Points:

• Attempt to keep your head and eyes up throughout the drill.

• Get out of your comfort zone by pushing hard for the entire duration of each drill. Don’t worry if you mess up once or twice, that means you’re extending yourself!

• Do these dribbling drills every day!

Learning how to dribble a basketball at an advanced level can give you a huge advantage over the opposition and teammates you’re battling with for playing time.

If used correctly, dribbling will allow you to get to any spot on the floor.

This can set both you and your teammates up for high-percentage shots.

Leading to more points score, more wins on the scoreboard, and more fun during games.

So, get out there and improve your dribbling skills!

How to dribble in basketball