Basketballl Question

I used to be a PG for my HS basketball team. My ball handling wasn't really that good before but my coach taught me and told me to practiced what he calls the '8 Dribbling Drills or 8DD for short'. I know you said that you are already 'proficient' with the basic dribbling and whatnot but the only thing I could tell you is, even pros practice their basic dribbling skills and drills because it's a fundamental in basketball that should not be overlooked. Just look at MJ and Kobe...

Anyway the '8 DD' consists of these:


1. Around the Body: 8 Sets Clockwise/ 8 Sets Counter-Clockwise at first.

-Keep increasing your sets as you get more accustomed to it.
-Do it as fast as you can while doing it properly.







2. Basic Dribble:

-Use your index and middle finger as a pointer/guide as you bounce the ball to the floor (similar mechanics to shooting.)

-Bend your knees a little (The closer you are to the floor, the less time the ball has to travel when it bounces from the floor which means better dribbling for you. You'll easily be able to do crossovers, between the legs, shift speed, etc.)







3. Crossover drill (Shifting the ball from left hand to right hand... and do this while stationary)

-Remember, this is just a drill and you're not playing yet.







4. Between the Legs







5. Behind the Back (do this while stationary/ don't move from your place)







6. Figure 8 Dribble/Reverse Figure 8









7. Spider Dribble (My favourite drill of all...lol.)







8. Two Ball Dribbling: Preferred (If you only have 1 ball though, an alternative is the Rocker Drill: Dribble the ball back on forth, then switch to your other hands then do the same.)

Two Ball Dribbling:


Rocker Drill:


------------------------

My Tips:

1. Try to spend about half an hour a day doing all these things (I used to even spend about 1 and a half hour just doing these drills while listening to music).

2. Don't spend to long on one drill. Try to do everything equally. Spend your time practicing each drill.

3. Speaking of music, listening to one while doing the drills help. Especially upbeat/dancy types of songs.

4. Try to do the drills without looking at the ball (REALLY IMPORTANT).

5. When you're resting, try to just touch and get the feel of the ball. As you keep on doing this, your hands will remember the texture of the ball which will help you in your ball dribbling. When you become really good, sometimes when you execute the more advance dribbling moves (e.g. Killer Crossovers, Spins, etc.) you'll sometimes even forget you have a ball in your hands.

6. Remember the basic posture of dribbling. Keep the ball low and bend your knees (It's really hard to teach this through a computer. lol. Best advice that I can give you is to watch the vid on top and watch how he does it.

7. As you become better at the drills, try executing it while moving.

8. And the most important thing, keep on training hard and don't ever lose the basketball passion.