You’ve just found one of the best ball handling drills resources out there.
If you want the ability to control your opponent and make ’em look silly, then spend some time on this page and on our second ball drills page.
Learn these basketball dribbling drills, practice them with passion and you’ll be motoring through, around, over and under your defenders in no time. You’ll make ’em wish they had just stayed home!
That all sounds great but you need to pay the price for that kind of ability. Study the drills we’ve laid out for you. Use them and practice them.
Some of these drills are easy and some are much more difficult. Don’t get discouraged if you struggle on some of them in the beginning. Put in the time required to master your basketball dribbling drills & skills and watch your over-all game soar to new heights.
Stationary Ball Handling Drills
1) Tap Drill
Extend your hands over your head and tap the ball quickly between your fingertips. Work your way down to the floor
and then back up over your head.
2) Neck Circles
Move the ball around your neck in a circular motion.
3) Waist Circles
Move the ball as quickly as you can around your waist.
4) Leg Circles
Move the ball around your right knee as you stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Then do the same around your left knee. You can also do this ball handling drill with your feet positioned close together and moving the ball around both legs.
5) Waist/Leg Circle Combo
Combine the 2 previous drills into one. Stand with your legs together. Start at your ankles and work the ball around your legs. Then move up to your knees, then waist and then back down to your ankles again. Work on gaining a quick, fluid motion up and down.
6) Wall Drill
Hold the ball above your head with both hands standing about three feet from a wall. Bounce the ball off the wall 10 times with your right hand and then 10 times with your left hand using the top, padded areas of your fingers. This may be a bit difficult when you first try, but it will help you develop the proper feel for the ball.
7) Ricochet
While standing straight up with your feet spread apart, bounce the ball hard between your legs and then catch it behind you with both hands.
8) Pretzel
Put one hand on the ball in front of your legs and one hand on the ball behind your legs while standing with your feet shoulder-width apart. Drop the ball and reverse the position of your hands. Try doing this ball handling drill continuously as quickly as possible.
9) Run in Place
Bend over while running in place. Move the ball behind your right leg with the right hand and then behind your left leg with the left hand. Keep doing this while being sure to keep your feet in a straight line.
10) Straddle Flip
Hold the ball with both hands in front of your legs while standing with your feet shoulder-width apart. Drop the ball, swing your hands to the back of your legs and catch the ball before it can reach the floor. Then drop the ball once more, swing your hands to the front and catch it there. Repeat this ball handling drill over and over as quickly as you can.
11) Figure Eight
Stand with your knees about shoulder-width apart and bend over slightly. With the ball in your right hand, pass it between your legs in a figure eight motion to your left hand. Swing the ball to the front and then pass it from your left hand back to your right hand through your legs. As with all ball handling drills, start slowly and increase your speed as you get more comfortable.
Stationary Ball Drills
12) Figure Eight
Similar to the Figure Eight ball handling drill above (#11). Stand with your knees about shoulder-width apart and bend over slightly. With the ball in your right hand, dribble it between your legs in a figure eight motion to your left hand. Swing the ball to the front and then dribble it from your left hand back to your right hand in the same figure eight pattern through your legs. Start slowly and increase your speed as you get more comfortable.
13) Bongo Dribble
For this ball handling drill, get on your knees and dribble the ball as fast as you can, alternating your hands as if you were playing a set of bongo drums.
14) Leg Circles
Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Dribble the ball around your right leg using both your right and left hands. Then repeat the same ball handling drill around your left leg.
15) Draw the Picture
Stand in one spot and dribble the ball in a circle, cross, square and different letters of the alphabet. Do this with both your right and left hands.
16) Wall Drill
Bounce the ball as quickly as possible up and down a wall. Start as high as you can comfortably reach, work down to the floor and then back up again using your right hand and then your left.
17) Seesaw
Position yourself in a wide stance and bounce the ball behind your legs back and forth between your left and right hands.
18) 360 Degree Dribble
Dribble in a circle using your right foot as the pivot foot. Dribble with your right hand making both front and reverse pivots and then do the same using your left hand for the dribble. Repeat this ball handling drill using your left foot as the pivot.
19) Typewriter Dribble
Get on your knees and use one finger at a time to dribble with. Repeat this ball handling drill with all your fingers, even your thumbs.
20) Front and Back
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and dribble the ball back and forth between your legs using the same hand. Then repeat this ball handling drill with your other hand.
21) Dribble Sit-Ups
Lay on your back and begin dribbling the ball by one side. Start doing sit-ups but maintain control of your dribble as you do so. Repeat the drill with your other hand.