The spin move is a reverse pivot on the move: you plant your inside foot, spin backward around the defender and pull the ball around your body to your other hand. It's a way to get around a defender in the open court while your body stays between the ball and them. It's quick when practised, but it turns your back for a moment, so a defender or a second defender on your blind side can steal it.
Set up
Dribble at the defender with your fingertips, the ball low and close, your head up and eyes forward.
Eyes up, ball low.
Make the move right in front of the defender, not from far away, so the spin takes you past them.
Close enough to go around.
Plant your inside foot, your front foot nearest the defender, as it lands forward. Starting the spin with that foot already forward means your other leg has less ground to cover.
Inside foot down, spin starts.
Move
Reverse pivot on the ball of that foot: turn backward around it with your knees bent a little, and swing your other leg around toward the new direction.
Turn on the ball of the foot.
As you turn, pull the ball hard and quickly around your body with your dribbling hand, keeping it close so your body is between it and the defender.
Ball pulled tight, body as a shield.
Keep your hand on top of the ball the whole pull. Under NBA rules, putting any part of your hand under the ball to carry it or pause it is a violation. Other leagues word the carry rule differently, so check yours.
Hand on top, never under.
Finish the turn and continue the dribble with your opposite hand. Don't pick the ball up: if you gather it, NBA rules give you two steps to stop, pass or shoot, and other leagues set their own step rules.
New hand, dribble alive.
Get your head around and eyes up as you come out, then attack past the defender.
See the floor, then go.
Feel it
A good spin feels like one quick turn on the ball of your inside foot with the ball pulled tight into your body and handed to your other hand as you come round. You come out with your eyes up and the dribble still going. If the ball swings wide behind you or you lose sight of the floor for long, a defender can tip it from your blind side.
Fix-its
- The ball gets tipped from behind Pull it harder and closer around your body and over toward your other hand, so your body covers it the whole turn.
- The spin is slow and the defender recovers Start the pivot when your inside foot is already forward, so the other leg has less ground to cover.
- You get called for a carry Keep your hand on top of the ball as you pull it. A hand under the ball is a carry.
- A second defender steals it on your blind side Know where help is before you spin, and get your eyes up as soon as you come round. The spin is riskier than other moves against a blind double team.
- You lose balance or the pivot foot slides Turn on the ball of the foot with your knees bent a little, not flat-footed or back on your heels.
Drill
- Pivot footwork without a dribble: 15 forward pivots, then 15 reverse pivots on one foot, then switch feet and repeat.
- Stationary spin: set a cone or chair as the defender, dribble at it, make the spin right in front of it, then attack back the other way with your other hand.
- Sideline spins: spin move down the floor and back twice, starting with each hand, as part of 5 to 10 minutes of dribble moves every practice.
- Add a defender who plays you live, so you practise the pull, the hand change and looking up for help on your blind side.
Sources
- Coach's Clipboard — Dribbling and Dribble Moves
- Coach's Clipboard — Footwork (Pivots)
- Basketball For Coaches — Basketball Moves
- Jeff Haefner (Breakthrough Basketball) via ACTIVE.com — 5 Crossover Dribbling Techniques
- NBA — Official Rules, Rule 10 (Dribble, Section II; Traveling, Section XIII)
Last checked 2026-10-26.