If you're starting to learn how to play basketball, working on your dribbling, shooting, and passing skills is crucial if you want to become a great player. Dribbling is arguably the most important aspect of the sport. Every player has to start somewhere, so read on to learn some fantastic tricks to elevate your game.
The importance of dribbling
Dribbling is important for both offensive and defensive basketball. On the offense, it's used to free yourself from congested areas and drive the ball up the court. Dribbling in defense can be an effective stalling tactic when you're being pressed. You need to be able to dribble with both hands to enable you to move freely in either direction and make it harder for a defensive player to guard you. In your practice sessions, work on dribbling with your weaker hand.
Mastering these six basketball tricks will help you become a valuable team player and dominate on the court. Any trick you learn can go a long way toward smashing the opposition.
1. Crossover
One of the first dribble moves a player needs to practice when they start learning basketball tricks is the crossover dribble. It's also one of the easiest basketball moves for a player to perform, but don't be fooled by the simplicity — players at all levels use the crossover to blow past an opponent.
The crossover involves bouncing the ball from one hand to the other in front of you. You would mostly use this move when you want to change direction and you're not being closely guarded by a defender who could poke the ball away from you.
2. In-and-out
A great basketball move for players learning the game is the in-and-out dribble. It's a move that's designed to fool a defender into thinking you're going to perform a standard crossover. You can get a defender to switch their weight to the wrong leg, opening up a driving lane to attack.
While bouncing the ball with one hand, you use a fake move of the head and shoulders to make it look like you're going in the other direction. You move the ball inside and then back out by changing the position of your hand on the ball and then move forward in the same direction.
3. Through the legs
The through-the-legs dribble is similar to the crossover in that you bounce the ball from one hand to the other, but you cross it between your legs. As the ball passes through the legs, the front leg makes it difficult for an opponent to reach in. It also keeps the ball further from the defense.
Young players can find this move difficult because of the coordination and timing involved. However, when you learn to stay low and explode out of it, this can be one of the most effective basketball tricks.
4. Behind the back
Like the through-the-legs move, the behind-the-back dribble enables you to cross the basketball from one hand to the other while protecting it from a defender. As you pass the ball behind you, your whole body protects it.
One of the biggest advantages of this basketball move is that you can pass the ball out in front of your opposite hand, allowing for a quick offensive attack. While you're on a fast break and a defender lunges in to take the ball, using the behind-the-back dribble helps you protect the ball and escape from your opponent without breaking your stride.
5. Hesitation dribble
The hesitation dribble is a straight-line move that's often used to explode past a defender, giving you the opportunity to attack the basket or enable a teammate to shoot. The aim of this dribble move is to make your opponent think you're going to stop — and then you burst past them.
As you're dribbling quickly down the court, you slow down for a split second, slightly raise your body, and look at the basket or a teammate as if you're going to shoot or pass the ball. To stay in a good defensive position, the defender will slow down and, as they lose their momentum, you push off on your back foot and explode past them.
6. Spin move
One of the most difficult basketball tricks to learn is the spin move, but it's important for you to have this dribbling skill in your repertoire. When you've put in the work to practice this move, it's a quick and effective weapon to use against your opponents.
For the spin move, you plant your inside foot and reverse-swivel around the defender while taking the ball with you and protecting it with your body. You have to make sure your hand stays on top of the ball, because if your hand goes under, you may get stopped for a carrying violation.
how to do tricks in basketball
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How to dribble an opponent in basketball
Sovsport.ru tells how to develop technique in basketball in order to dribble past opponents.
Without the ability to do tricks in basketball, it is virtually impossible to beat an opponent. Breakthroughs from ring to ring without changing the trajectory of movement is an unprecedented rarity. You can reach the distance for a throw due to a well-executed combination or individual skill.
Players with deceptive feints are the key to the success of any team. And there should be more than a dozen deceptive movements in the asset.
So how do you dribble around an opponent in basketball? The main thing is to be well oriented on the site. Especially when the player is with the ball and chooses a further direction of attack. This is both the ability to give a convenient pass to a partner, and to perform a productive throw.
All feints are achieved through long practice. They are often practiced in a one-on-one game. You can also train at home in front of the mirror, performing deceptive body movements.
You can start with a simple game under the hoop to find out the most comfortable deception moves for you in basketball. Your partner stands under the ring and imitates defensive movements, and you try out various tricks, choosing the most suitable ones. It is advisable to record workouts on video so that later you can see your mistakes.
If it is not possible to train with a partner, chairs can be used and basketball feints are passed around them.
Beginners should start by running the ball. Every basketball player started with the simplest exercises. It was they who became the basis for more complex ones.
Basic stance when dribbling: legs bent at the knees, pelvis lowered, body tilted slightly forward, shoulders turned, head raised.
During the dribble, the player must be ready at any time to change direction, stop, pass or throw a ring.
The ball is covered from the opponent with the body, shoulder, free arm. The hand that dribbles the ball regulates the force of impact, the height of the rebound and the direction of the ball. In this case, only the fingertips touch the ball, the player should not look at the ball, but only control it with peripheral vision. Partners, defenders, and referees should be in the player’s field of vision at the same time.
Deceptive moves in basketball are divided into four stages:
1. Being in front of an opponent, you need to find a bypass to the basket.
2. It is necessary to make a false move or step to the side in order for the defender to try to block this path.
3. When the opponent starts moving, make a dash in the opposite direction to catch the opponent by surprise.
4. It is necessary to leave the opponent behind with one or two steps and in no case push him away with your hand. This may result in a foul.
Having mastered the basics of dribbling, you need to complicate it by alternately changing hands, that is, dribble the ball alternately with the right, then with the left.
source: "Soviet sport"
An original way to beat a defender in basketball
Hello, dear visitors of the site basketball-training.org.ua (how long have I not written this phrase ...). A few days ago, while playing basketball on one of the courts in Kharkov, I ran into a player who, when beating, used one very interesting trick that I myself like to use (but which had not yet been used against me until now).
It was then that I realized how effective this method can be, especially if it is performed by a player who is not as slow as me. Yes, I'm really far from the fastest player, so most of my "feints", if you can call them that, are based on using the opponent's speed against him (and a little physics, which you can still come in handy even on the basketball court).
So, today we're going to talk about the defender's supporting leg, the leg on which the weight is transferred, and which we will use for our own purposes. Let's get started.
3 elements to beat successfully
First, you must get the ball in position from which you can attack the ring. Well, or your defender must think that you can do it. Everything is trite, but nevertheless, over and over again I come across the fact that the majority are either just too lazy to spend their energy on getting rid of guardianship and they ask for the ball a couple of meters from the three-point line, from where it is very problematic to threaten the ring. Or they just don't know how to open up.
Related article: 3 easy ways to get the ball in basketball
So, your goal is to get the ball at least on the three-point line, and at the most already inside the arc. This move will not work if you get the ball under the basket or on the edge of the three-second zone.
The second stage is to stagger the defender 2-3 times, simulating a pass. You just do a few lunges to the side, and at this point you need to concentrate on the legs of the defender: which of them is his weight on. Which leg becomes his support during the execution of your false display for the passage. Did you see?
The third point is the passage itself. If you know which foot the defender is on, where his weight is concentrated at the time of your deceptive movements, then you should know the following: he will not be able to step with this foot. In any case, for this the defender will have to shift the weight to the other foot - and even if he is very fast, these fractions of a second will be enough for you to beat him.
Yes, this trick will not work every time. Yes, you will not beat the defender with 100% probability. But by using this trick, you can buy time and create space. Another "trick" - step as close as possible to his supporting leg: even if he reacts very quickly, he will most likely break the rules.
How to defend yourself against such a technique?
No matter how interesting and promising the above trick looks, there is a defense against it and it is quite simple.
First method: block the attacker's strong side from the passage, positioning yourself at almost a 90 degree angle to it. Either close your weak side (let the player go to your strong side, or to the side where there is a safety net). This is a budget way. You save energy, but still give the attacking player more freedom of action.
The second way is to do hellish footwork. I won't tell you too much, it's better to look at the video, as Andre Iguodala shows in the video for Nike:
See the topic: Nike Signature Moves Part 1
where is your body weight now. Of the minuses - an unprepared player after 2-3 such defenses will “sit down” very much and become slow in defense.
The third option - get as close as possible to the player, even in the process of receiving the ball. Thus, the attacker will not have much time to think: on which leg is your weight concentrated, where to stagger you, etc.
Small conclusions
The method described above is suitable for a measured pace of the game, even more so for a streetball match in which there are no quick breaks and the probability of an effective 1v1 beat is much greater.
The method described above is not a panacea, but simply one of the ways to use the laws of physics and the lack of experience of the defending player.
This method is difficult to apply neat if you are far from the basket (1-2 meters from the three-point line) or if the defender is very active.
Defending against such a technique is quite simple, the main thing is to understand that the opponent is going to use it (most often, he looks at your feet).
You move the ball inside and then back out by changing the position of your hand on the ball and then move forward in the same direction.
While you're on a fast break and a defender lunges in to take the ball, using the behind-the-back dribble helps you protect the ball and escape from your opponent without breaking your stride.
When you've put in the work to practice this move, it's a quick and effective weapon to use against your opponents.
For entertainment only. #kalusugangpinoy #TiktokU #learnontiktok #fyp #foryou #basketball #streetball". Twister | Basketball Trick Tutorial | 1. BTL 2. Shammgod 3. Spin Pivot. original sound - Lil Flash.
5K Likes, 21 Comments. TikTok video from John Hansberry (@jqbasketball): "How to HEZIIIIII🔥". How TO HEZI🔑 | For a beginner | Show you 3 tactics/techniques to hezi✅ | .... Violin.
TikTok video from James and Jesus (@jamesandjesus234): "Teaching you how to do trick on basketball 🏀 #fyp #foryou #viral #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #blind #single #jamesgilleand35". Teaching you how to do trick on Basketball. original sound.
9K Likes, 38 Comments. TikTok video from ShiftGeneral 🪬 (@shiftgeneral): "Simple moves you can easily learn #xyzbca #greenscreen #greenscreenvideo #viral #blowthisup #basketball #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #fypシ #trending #LENOVOJUSTBEYOU #nba #sports #kyrie #kyrieirving #ballislife". 3 Dribble moves beginners can learn to cook their defenders | Through the legs | In and Out | .... THIS AINT WHAT YOU WANT.
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TikTok video from Hennen Workouts (@hennen_workouts): "#basketball". 5 moves for fast players 🎒💨 | 1. Scissor Step | 2. In & Out Cross | .... the way life goes.
This is both the ability to give a convenient pass to a partner, and to perform a productive throw. 
Yes, I'm really far from the fastest player, so most of my "feints", if you can call them that, are based on using the opponent's speed against him (and a little physics, which you can still come in handy even on the basketball court). 
This move will not work if you get the ball under the basket or on the edge of the three-second zone. 
Another "trick" - step as close as possible to his supporting leg: even if he reacts very quickly, he will most likely break the rules. 
Of the minuses - an unprepared player after 2-3 such defenses will “sit down” very much and become slow in defense. 
