Joe Haefner: Hey, this is Coach Joe Haefner. In this next video, we're going to show you some stationary ball handling drills that you can use with all skill levels. These are great for improving your hand-eye coordination, developing a feel for the basketball, and also just getting your body warmed up and ready to play.
Joe Haefner: And make sure to do these dribbling drills before you get on the court. You can do in a hallway, sideline, locker room or anywhere else that you could find some space. That way, you can maximize your time when you get to the court and two, you can also start doing some dribbling drills where you're on the move.
Joe Haefner: So, if you have the court reserved at 6:00, get there at 5:45. Maybe spend five minutes doing six or seven of these dribbling drills and then after that spend about 10 minutes doing warmup exercises that help prevent injuries and also improve your athleticism.
Jim Huber: So now what we're going to do is we're going to work on, again, as we start this, we're going to talk to BJ and RJ here, being in a good athletic stance, sitting down, head up, back up. What we're going to work on in the beginning is they're going to dribble the ball as low as they can and as we dribble it, we're going to make sure we're pushing
the ball quickly to the ground and making sure we're developing quick hands. Pound the ball to the ground. As we dribble, make sure a couple of key points is looking up, eyes through the net, the rim, so we're able to see the floor. The other thing is making sure we have our head centered in the middle so we're on balance. So the first thing they're going to do
is they're going to dribble as low as they can in their right hand, their going to have the left hand as an arm bar warding off a defender. Go low as you can. Pound it. We'll do that for maybe ten to fifteen seconds. Then they go waist high. Waist high. Hammer that ball to the ground, hard dribbles. Now we're going shoulder high, pounding, staying low.
Jim Huber: Now they're going to switch it up and go left hand. Left hand. Low as they can. Low as they can. Pound it, eyes up. If somebody's reaching in they're warding off the defender. Waist high. Waist high. Pound it. Hard dribbles. Try to get quick hands. Shoulder high, staying low. All right. Stop there. Now, another thing you can add in this drill
is a lot of times we talk about you want to fake with head, eyes, and shoulders but also with your feet. So we can work on, as we dribble the ball, we can work on the dribble, jab. Dribble, jab. Dribble, jab. So we can work on the dribble and jabbing so I'm going to have them pound the ball and they're going to jab with their opposite foot. You ready? Go ahead.
Dribble hard, jab. Dribble, jab. Dribble, jab. There we go. Dribble, jab, pound. So they're going to dribble, they're going to jab, get that defender off of them to create space. Switch hands, switch the legs. Here we go. Hard, violent jab. Good. Hard violent jab. Pound. Pound, dribble, jab. Pound, dribble, jab. All right. Stop there.
Jim Huber: So you could also add that to the drill as well. Now we're going to go here. We're going to go side to side. Front, back. Side to side. Front, back. Side to side. Front, back to your right hand. You're going to get a rhythm. Go quicker and quicker. Try to get them to lose the basketball so that way they're getting outside of their comfort zone.
Kids will sometimes do this and they'll just go through the motion. We're going to go quicker and quicker. Quicker and quicker and try to lose the ball. I love that RJ lost the ball. Get it, and come right back and start again. Go left hand. Go left hand now. You might do this about ten to fifteen seconds for what you're doing in this particular drill.
Jim Huber: All right, stop there. Okay, the next one we're going to do is we're going to work on going right hand, right leg. And you're going to have your left hand being the arm bar warding them off so we're going to work on that right now. Go ahead. Good. Good athletic stance. Head's still in the middle. We're going to work on quick hands, quick dribbles.
Reverse in the opposite direction. Same hands, same legs. Same hands, same leg. So, again, eyes up. And work on getting quicker and quicker. Then we'll switch up and we'll go left hand. Left hand, left leg. Left hand, left leg. Right hand's the arm bar. Again, sitting down in a good athletic stance. Eyes up having vision. Dribble, pound it hard, reverse it, go in
the opposite direction. Same hand, same leg. Good. Good. Try to go quicker and quicker. Quicker and quicker. Good. Stop there. So we'll do that.
Jim Huber: The next thing we're going to do is we're going to go figure eight. But we're going to go figure eight and we're only going to use our right hand. So it's going to be figure eight, right hand only and we're going to try to keep our head still in the middle and stay on balance, right? You ready? Go. So you go figure eight. Right hand only.
Again, make a mistake, BJ gets it back, starts it over. You've got to realize, you got to make mistakes. This is how you're going to get better. Don't be fearful about making mistakes. People that succeed are people that are going to make more mistakes in their life, going to learn and go through it. Reverse and go the opposite direction. Opposite direction,
same thing. Right hand, figure eight. Head set in the middle. Good, that's fine. BJ gets it right back. Starts right over. All right. So now we're going to go left hand figure eight only. Left hand. Left hand only. Sitting down good in an athletic stance. Head up, back up. Dribble the ball hard, smashing it. Again, trying to get quicker and quicker. Quicker and
quicker as you go.
Jim Huber: Get outside your comfort zone. Too many individuals go through the motions are afraid to make mistakes, don't be like that. All right. Stop there. So now we're going to go and we're going to add on to it. Now we're going to go figure eight, we're going to take as many dribbles as we can. Quick hands, quick dribbles. Goes off your foot again.
Just get it, come back and start again. You ready? Go ahead. Figure eight, good. Quick dribbles. Low to the ground. Head up. Back up on balance. Make sure to pound the ground. That's fine. He loses it, comes right back. Starts right over. Reverse to the opposite direction. Opposite direction we're going. Again, pound it, pound it. Hard dribbles, hard dribbles.
Focus on dribbling hard so it gets quick to your hands so you're saving a half second. You can sit there and be able to create more space on your shot, you can be able to pass it to an open person much quicker and you can be able to pull up or change direction much quicker in the game of basketball by saving a half second. All right, stop there.
Jim Huber: All right, so now we're going to get into it. We're going to do one dribble figure eight. We're going to go dribble, we're going to go dribble, push the one dribble, one dribble, one dribble figure eight. One dribble, one dribble. Good. Hard dribbles, pound it. Good. Quicker and quicker. Quicker and quicker as you go. Good. There you go. Good.
Try to lose it. Try to lose it. That's it. Good. All right, stop there. So we'll do that in our progression. The next thing we'll do is we'll work on what we call this spider dribble. You're going to have the ball start in the middle, you're going to tap it across the back, you're going to rotate and keep your hands going and keep the ball centered and stay
in a good athletic stance. Go ahead. Get in rhythm first and then try to go quicker and quicker. If you have your eyes down, once you get in rhythm, then bring your eyes up and try to do this without looking at the basketball. Right. So you have good vision in what you do. Right. Okay. Stop there. Now, from there, now we're going to get into progressing in this.
Now we're going to work on what we call change direction type moves.
Jim Huber: So we're going to work on this. We're going to work on now were going to have it, they are going to dribble, they are going to dribble hard, they're going to do a crossover, one dribble, all right? So they're going to dribble, they're going to set it up, you sell it with your head and shoulders, you can also have a foot fake. So you're going to
dribble, sell like you're going to the opposite direction, pop it across quick so you're going to do one dribble, come across, one dribble, come across. One dribble, they're going to come across. All right? So we're going to do that right now. You're going to dribble, fake, cross. Dribble, fake, cross. Right? Good. Pop it across. Good. Hard dribbles, hard dribbles.
Good. They'll do that. Now, they're going to go back. Now we're just going to have them go continuous. Pop it across. You're going to pop it, you're going to go continuous, cross over as fast as they can. You ready?
Jim Huber: Go continuous. Just back and forth. Back and forth. Pop it across. Quick hands working on it. Good. Stop there. Now we're going to go between the legs. It's the same thing. We're going to go one dribble, boom, pop between. One dribble, go between. One dribble, between. And they're going to turn their feet and hips in the direction they're going
to save the half second as they go between the legs to be able to push up forward to attack the defender. You're ready? Go. Let's go. One dribble between. Good. Hard dribbles. Good. Stop. Then they'll go here. We're going to have them go continuous. They're going to go back, forth, rotate their feet and hips in the direction we're going. They're going continuous,
between the legs. All right? You ready? Go. Good. Staying low. Working on getting the feet and hips turned. Working on popping through right through the center hard. Good. Stop there. Now we're going to go behind the back. So now, behind the back. We're going to work on, again, one dribble shift, get em leaning in that direction. One dribble we can sell out the
head and shoulder, we can step, come across. One dribble. Boom. And you're going to dribble it, again, behind the back, below, kind of, your butt area by your hamstring, push it across. Get in a good athletic stance and nice and low. You ready? Go. Let's go. So push it across.
Jim Huber: Good. He missed it, RJ. Goes back and gets the basketball, comes right back, again. Good. Selling it. Good. Notice how they're selling it with their hard jab, head and shoulder, good eyes. Fake, in the opposite direction they're going. Good. Stop there. Now we're going to go behind the back. We're going to do continuous. Sitting down low. Boom.
Pushing across and then trying to go as low as you can. As you get going? You ready? Go. Continuous back and forth, staying low. And then working on quicker and quicker. Try to go lower and lower. Lower and lower as you go. Right? Working on it. All right. Stop there. So the other ones that we'll add will be this. We're going to go inside out, and we're going to
sell this right here. We're going to be stationary, going here. I'm going to have them hard jab inside out, stay in here. They're going to jab hard, sell it. The head and shoulder fake and going in this direction. Just going inside out. They're going to stay in the same. So you're going to go right hand, you're suddenly going left. You're just going to inside out,
step back, do it again inside out. Continuous inside out.
Jim Huber: You ready? Go. Let's go. Good. Selling it. Hard, violent jab. Selling the head and shoulders. And then working on when they take that step. The right step. After they faked the inside out. They're long stepping by their defender, pushing the ball out, and coming right back. Now they're going left hand. Left hand, the same thing. Faking like
they're going to the right. Really selling a hard jab. Sell. Head and shoulders. Be violent with your fakes. Violent with your fakes. Good. Now we'll stop there. Now we're going to switch it up and now they're going to do inside out. But you're going to act like now somebody cuts them off, now they're going to go inside out, cross. You're going here. Inside out,
cross. All right? You ready? Go. Let's go. Inside out, cross. Boom. Come back, do it again. Inside out, cross. Same thing we're doing. Selling it. Head and shoulders, hard jabs. Tight on the cross the defender cuts the fake cross over. Now we're crossing back, attacking them. All right. Stop there. So the last thing we'll do is we'll kind of put it all together.
Jim Huber: Now we're going to go inside out, cross. Between the legs, behind the back. Inside out, cross. We're going to go between the legs, behind the back. Inside out, cross. Between the legs, behind the back. You ready? Go. Let's go. Working on quick hands. Quick hands. You can stay stationary and doing it. Stationary and doing it. Try to stay stationary
and doing it. Good. There we go. Good. Good. Good. As we start out. There you go. Then you can move. That's it. Right there. Good. Good. There we go. Quick hands. Good. Good. There we go. Good. Good. Explosive, explosive, explosive. Sell it. Sell with your fakes too. There you go. Stop there. So right there, that's a little ball handling workout to get you loosened
up, to working on quick handles, to get you ready to step on the floor, to be able to handle pressure and to be effective as a ball handler.
Joe Haefner: Hey if you liked our video click on the like button below. Also if you want to be notified of new videos, click the subscribe button. And also click on the little bell afterwards to get ensure you get notified of our new videos. And if you want to learn the same shooting techniques, tips, drills, and workouts that our breakthrough coaches
have used with NBA players all the way down to the youth level, be sure to click on the link below or in the description where you can get access to our free shooting guide.
These are some great stationary dribbling drills for all skill levels to do. These drills improve your feel for the basketball, develop hand-eye coordination, and get you warmed up and ready to play.
And make sure to do these stationary drills BEFORE you get on the court. Do the drills in a hallway, sideline, or somewhere else. That way, when you get on the court...
1 - You can maximize your court time with drills where you need a court and basket.
2 - Do dribbling drills on the move.
So if you have the gym reserved at 6pm, get there at 5:45pm, spend three to five minutes on six or seven of these dribbling drills. Then you can do other exercises to warm up, improve athleticism, and prevent injuries.
Also, if you have enough space, it's best if you walk or slowly jog while doing the drills. However, with beginners, you might have to start stationary before moving.
And be sure to read our warning about stationary dribbling drills at the bottom of the page!
Stationary Dribbling Drills - One Ball
Dribbling Drill #1: One Ball Pound Dribble - Low, Waist, Shoulder
You want topound the ball into the floor. You want the ball to spend minimal time out of your hand. You want to push with your fingertips and finger pad.
With the pound dribble, you start in a low, athletic stance. You want to have your butt down, chest up, and your head above your shoulders. You don't want to be leaning over.
You start with your opposite arm up to protect the ball. And you should be looking over your shoulder. You want your head centered over your feet with your eyes up. You can also look at the rim to practice dribbling with your eyes and head up.
To practice keeping your eyes up, you can also have someone stand in front of you. The person flashes different numbers with their fingers. You have to keep your eyes up, so you can call out the numbers. The person can be a workout partner, coach, parent, sibling, or anybody else.
This is also called a control dribble or protect the ball dribble. This stance is a great way to protect the ball or advance the ball against pressure.
Dribble as hard as you can to improve hand strength, quickness, and your ability to control the ball. It's okay to lose the ball.
Low - You start dribbling the ball really low around your ankles.
Waist - Then you start dribbling the ball at your waist.
Shoulder - Then you start dribbling the ball at shoulder level.
It's vital to be able to dribble the ball at different levels. When a defender gets close to you in a half court setting, you might need to dribble the ball low to protect it. When you are sprinting in a fast break situation, you might be dribbling at shoulder height which allows you to push the ball out and dribble with speed.
Dribbling Drill #2: Dribble Jab Fake
With the dribble jab, you jab your foot in the direction of the defender as you are doing the pound dribble.
This is a great way to use fakes to back the defender off. It is also a good way to practice the footwork needed in a hesitation jab step move.
Dribbling Drill #3: Side to Side, Front to Back
Here is an advanced dribbling drill where you alternate from dribbling the ball side to side in front of you to dribbling the ball front to back on the side of you.
If this is too difficult, you can also isolate the side to side dribble or the front to back dribble, so you're only doing one at a time.
Dribbling Drill #4: Dribble Circles - One Leg
With this drill, you are dribbling the ball around one leg with one hand. Make sure to use the armbar to practice protecting the basketball.
Make sure to practice going clockwise and counterclockwise around your leg.
When dribbling around the right leg, use your right hand. When dribbling around your left leg, use your left leg.
A way to make this easier for beginners is to use both hands when dribbling around one leg.
Dribbling Drill #5: Figure Eight - One Hand
This is another advanced dribbling drill. You dribble the ball in a figure eight motion around both of your legs. However, you only use one hand.
You want to practice going both directions with each hand.
Dribbling Drill #6: Figure 8 - Both Hands
To make this easier for beginners, you allow them to use both hands with the figure 8 dribble.
For other variations, you can also change the height of the dribble to waist and shoulder.
Dribbling Drill #7: One Dribble Figure 8 - Both Hands
For the figure 8, you can also limit the amount of dribbles around each leg. With this progression, you only do one dribble.
Dribbling Drill #8: Spider Dribble
This is the drill that improves your hand quickness and hand-eye coordination.
Your goal is to keep the ball centered between your legs and dribble as fast as you can. It's easier to start slow then ramp up your speed as you develop a rhythm.
One way to do the dribble is tap right in front of body, tap left in front of body, tap right behind back, tap left behind back, and you would continue this over and over.
Dribbling Drill #9: One Dribble Crossover - With Foot Fake
You want to take one dribble then execute a crossover dribble. To add another layer to it, you can include a jab step fake. This helps get the defender to lean to one direction to open up a driving lane to the basket.
You want to snap the ball across. That way, it gives the defender less time to react and the ball spends less time out of your hand.
Dribbling Drill #10: Continuous Crossover
With this drill, you still use the crossover. However, you do it continuously. You do it as fast as you can. You want to get the dribble wide outside of your knees too.
Dribbling Drill #11: Between the Legs - One Dribble
With this drill, you take one dribble, then dribble between your legs from front to back. You want to switch directions of your feet quickly in the direction of where you are dribbling. This helps you get in the proper position to quickly explode forward.
Dribbling Drill #12: Continuous Between the Legs
For this one, you continuously dribble the ball between your legs while switching feet. This is also called a scissor dribble.
Dribbling Drill #13: Behind the Back - One Dribble
You take one dribble, then dribble behind the back. It's like a crossover behind the back. Make sure to use the jab to fake to the opposite direction.
Dribbling Drill #14: Behind the Back - Continuous
You continuously dribble back and forth behind your back. There are no dribbles in between. You gradually lower the dribble to get as low as you can.
Dribbling Drill #15: Inside Out
You take the ball across the middle of the body. Then you bring it back to the outside. You go from inside to outside in one continuous dribble. You jab step fake to the opposite direction with your opposite foot. You also use your head and shoulders to sell the fake in the opposite direction. This is a counter to a crossover dribble.
Dribbling Drill #16: Inside Out - Crossover
Now, you add a crossover dribble to the inside out dribble. You immediately crossover dribble after the inside out dribble. This is a way to counter the inside out dribble if a defender stops you.
Dribbling Drill #17: Inside Out - Crossover - Between Legs - Behind the Back
Now, you go from inside out to crossover to between the legs to behind the back. This is a way to practice a bunch of dribbling moves all at once.
Warning! About Stationary Dribbling Drills
These are some fun drills to get the body warmed up and are a nice progression for beginners. However, only spend a few minutes on them and don't waste any court time on them!
It's vital to practice dribbling on the move and against defenders. The dribbling angle and body mechanics actually change when you dribble on the move and you add a defender. So you could be practicing skills that don't translate to what you're doing during actual games.
Here is another great resource that includes more dribbling drills on the move and against live defenders. Most of the drills are labeled, so you can quickly find them.
30 Dribbling Drills to Develop Unstoppable Handles!
Related Resources:
Free Shooting Guide: How To Develop Proper Shooting Technique & Free Shooting Drills & Workouts
Ball Handling & Dribbling Drills - Dribbling on the Move & Against Defenders
Breakthrough Basketball Camps - Ball Handling, Shooting, Guard Play, etc.
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