How to Dribble and Run Fast

Being a good basketball player requires you to establish and build upon your ball handling skills. One of the basic handling skills you need to know is dribbling, or bouncing the ball up and down. Dribbling is required for you to move with the ball. Because your goal is to move the ball down the court to make a basket while keeping it out of your opponent's hands, it is important to be able to move quickly while you dribble.

Things You'll Need

  • Basketball
  • Construction cones or chairs
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Instructions

  1. Increase Speed

    • 1

      Practice the art of dribbling while you stand still. Aim to keep the ball no higher than waist-level. Dribbling while standing still helps you develop the mechanics of dribbling.

    • 2

      Begin walking while you dribble once you feel comfortable with the basic mechanics. Dribbling while in motion requires you to push the ball down and slightly forward at the same time.

    • 3

      Increase your speed as you become comfortable with your rate of speed. The faster you move, the more forward motion you must give the ball. Increase your speed until you are able to dribble well while running at full speed.

    • 4

      Add in extra skills once you have mastered running while dribbling, such as weaving around defenders and shooting a basket. The more skills you are able to handle while dribbling, the better an asset you will be for your team.

    Dribble Subtraction

    • 5

      Count the number of dribbles it takes to get from half-court to the end of the court.

    • 6

      Dribble the ball back to half-court, counting the number of dribbles with the goal of reducing the number by one.

    • 7

      Continue dribbling the ball back and forth across the court, trying to reduce the number of dribbles by one each time until you can no longer reduce the number. At this point, you should be running close to full speed.

    Weaving

    • 8

      Set up cones or chairs 2 to 3 feet apart down the court. You can set them up across half the court or the whole court.

    • 9

      Practice dribbling the ball while weaving between the cones or chairs, switching hands so the ball is always to the far side of the cone or chair. For instance, when you pass to the left of an obstacle, you should dribble with your left hand.

    • 10

      Continue the drill, increasing your speed as you become comfortable. This drill both increases your speed and your agility.