The Best Two-Ball Dribbling Drills
Dribbling with two basketballs at a time is a useful way to improve your handle and expose potential weaknesses in your off-hand. Two-ball dribbling drills force you to work on ball control as well as develop more fluid dribbling patterns and rhythm with the ball.
Because you are using both hands at the same time, you need a higher level of coordination. And if your weak hand cannot keep up with your dominant hand or maintain the same control, two-ball drills will reveal ways in which you can improve your weak-hand dribbling.
Here are some of the best two-ball drills you can use to practice your ball handling:
Front Crossover and Handoff
- Start on the baseline with both basketballs held at about waist level.
- Advance up the court at a walking pace.
- As you start to walk, cross one ball over to your opposite hand (with a dribble) and simultaneously transfer the other ball to the hand you used to dribble with an exchange at your waist.
- Repeat this pattern as you walk down the court. You will always be using the same ball to crossover and the same ball to exchange hands, back and forth as you go.
- Go twice down the full length of the court and back.
Two-Ball Juggling
- Start on the baseline with both basketballs held at about waist level.
- Advance up the court at a walking pace.
- Similar to the previous drill, start by crossing one ball over to your opposite hand and transfer the other ball between your hands with a handoff at the waist.
- For two-ball juggling however, continue this movement in a circular pattern instead of a repeated back and forth.
- The basketballs will continuously go from being crossed over, to handed off, to crossed over, and back again as you move down the court.
- With this drill, once you feel like you have it down, try to get lower and dribble the balls faster around your knee/mid thigh level while keeping your eyes up.
- Go twice across the full length of the court and back.
Front V-Dribble
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level in a low, athletic stance.
- Dribble the balls from side to side in a V pattern in front of you while keeping each ball in the same hand (roll your hand over the top of the ball as you push it outside/inside).
- The basketballs should be traveling in the same direction and at the same pace as you remain in a low stance and walk or shuffle up the court.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
- Variation: Opposite – Instead of dribbling the balls in unison, in the same direction, dribble them in the opposite direction of each other. So both balls will be pushed inward, then both pushed outward.
Side V-Dribble
- In this drill you will dribble one ball on each side of your body in a fashion similar to the “Front V-Dribble.”
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously around your knee level, outside of each of your legs in a low, athletic stance.
- Dribble the balls from front to back on the sides of your body.
- The balls will be traveling in unison as you advance up the court, so they will be dribbled from front to back at the same time and pace in the V pattern.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
- Variation: Opposite – Instead of dribbling the balls in unison, in the same direction, dribble them opposite each other. So one ball will be pushed forward as one is pushed back, this back and forth will be repeated continuously.
High-Low
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level in a low athletic stance.
- Dribble one ball lower, around your ankle level and take the other ball higher, around your shoulder/neck level.
- Dribble the low ball as quickly as you can while pounding the high ball as hard and fast as you can while maintaining control.
- Advance up the length of the court at a walking pace, then switch which height you use for each hand before coming back.
In-And-Out Dribbles
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level.
- At a jogging pace advance up the court while keeping the simultaneous dribbles going.
- With one hand perform an in-and-out move along with a quick step outward with the corresponding leg.
- Repeat this move every other dribble as you advance down the court.
- Switch the designated in-and-out hand once you have made it to the opposite baseline.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
Zig-Zags
- Start in the corner of the baseline and take two or three simultaneous dribbles toward the center of the court before making a move and then taking two or three more dribbles up the court toward the sideline.
- Zig-zag back and forth up the court at a running pace, while dribbling the basketballs at a height between your knee and waist.
- At each change of direction make one of the following moves:
- Crossover
- Between the legs
- Behind the back crossover
- Behind the back wrap around
- Perform each of these moves while zig-zagging down the length of the court and back, then move on to the next move.
- Finally, perform a speed dribble down and back twice, one while using a simultaneous dribble, one while using an alternating dribble.
- During the speed dribble, still zig-zag, but just change directions and continue to dribble instead of making a move.
RELATED:
- The Unorthodox Training Methods Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant Use to Improve Their Shooting
- Ball-Handling Drills With Brandon Knight
- Two-Cone BallHandling Drill
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
MOST POPULAR
The Best Two-Ball Dribbling Drills
Dribbling with two basketballs at a time is a useful way to improve your handle and expose potential weaknesses in your off-hand. Two-ball dribbling drills force you to work on ball control as well as develop more fluid dribbling patterns and rhythm with the ball.
Because you are using both hands at the same time, you need a higher level of coordination. And if your weak hand cannot keep up with your dominant hand or maintain the same control, two-ball drills will reveal ways in which you can improve your weak-hand dribbling.
Here are some of the best two-ball drills you can use to practice your ball handling:
Front Crossover and Handoff
- Start on the baseline with both basketballs held at about waist level.
- Advance up the court at a walking pace.
- As you start to walk, cross one ball over to your opposite hand (with a dribble) and simultaneously transfer the other ball to the hand you used to dribble with an exchange at your waist.
- Repeat this pattern as you walk down the court. You will always be using the same ball to crossover and the same ball to exchange hands, back and forth as you go.
- Go twice down the full length of the court and back.
Two-Ball Juggling
- Start on the baseline with both basketballs held at about waist level.
- Advance up the court at a walking pace.
- Similar to the previous drill, start by crossing one ball over to your opposite hand and transfer the other ball between your hands with a handoff at the waist.
- For two-ball juggling however, continue this movement in a circular pattern instead of a repeated back and forth.
- The basketballs will continuously go from being crossed over, to handed off, to crossed over, and back again as you move down the court.
- With this drill, once you feel like you have it down, try to get lower and dribble the balls faster around your knee/mid thigh level while keeping your eyes up.
- Go twice across the full length of the court and back.
Front V-Dribble
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level in a low, athletic stance.
- Dribble the balls from side to side in a V pattern in front of you while keeping each ball in the same hand (roll your hand over the top of the ball as you push it outside/inside).
- The basketballs should be traveling in the same direction and at the same pace as you remain in a low stance and walk or shuffle up the court.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
- Variation: Opposite – Instead of dribbling the balls in unison, in the same direction, dribble them in the opposite direction of each other. So both balls will be pushed inward, then both pushed outward.
Side V-Dribble
- In this drill you will dribble one ball on each side of your body in a fashion similar to the “Front V-Dribble.”
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously around your knee level, outside of each of your legs in a low, athletic stance.
- Dribble the balls from front to back on the sides of your body.
- The balls will be traveling in unison as you advance up the court, so they will be dribbled from front to back at the same time and pace in the V pattern.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
- Variation: Opposite – Instead of dribbling the balls in unison, in the same direction, dribble them opposite each other. So one ball will be pushed forward as one is pushed back, this back and forth will be repeated continuously.
High-Low
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level in a low athletic stance.
- Dribble one ball lower, around your ankle level and take the other ball higher, around your shoulder/neck level.
- Dribble the low ball as quickly as you can while pounding the high ball as hard and fast as you can while maintaining control.
- Advance up the length of the court at a walking pace, then switch which height you use for each hand before coming back.
In-And-Out Dribbles
- Start on the baseline and dribble the basketballs simultaneously in front of your body around your knee level.
- At a jogging pace advance up the court while keeping the simultaneous dribbles going.
- With one hand perform an in-and-out move along with a quick step outward with the corresponding leg.
- Repeat this move every other dribble as you advance down the court.
- Switch the designated in-and-out hand once you have made it to the opposite baseline.
- Go once across the full length of the court and back.
Zig-Zags
- Start in the corner of the baseline and take two or three simultaneous dribbles toward the center of the court before making a move and then taking two or three more dribbles up the court toward the sideline.
- Zig-zag back and forth up the court at a running pace, while dribbling the basketballs at a height between your knee and waist.
- At each change of direction make one of the following moves:
- Crossover
- Between the legs
- Behind the back crossover
- Behind the back wrap around
- Perform each of these moves while zig-zagging down the length of the court and back, then move on to the next move.
- Finally, perform a speed dribble down and back twice, one while using a simultaneous dribble, one while using an alternating dribble.
- During the speed dribble, still zig-zag, but just change directions and continue to dribble instead of making a move.
RELATED:
- The Unorthodox Training Methods Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant Use to Improve Their Shooting
- Ball-Handling Drills With Brandon Knight
- Two-Cone BallHandling Drill