What is the dribble pass in basketball
The dribble pass consists of offensive action in which a player in possession of the basketball initially dribbles it and then immediately throws it, particularly with one hand, to an open teammate for a possible playmaking or scoring opportunity.
In other words, the dribble pass is a type of one-handed pass that occurs instantly after dribble action. Furthermore, the dribble pass could also be utilized as either an air pass or a bounce pass.
Why is the dribble pass potentially effective
The dribble pass is potentially effective because it could be used to move the ball quickly from one area to another, especially before the defensive team is able to limit or completely prevent possible offensive opportunities from that dribble pass.
As a simple example, let’s say offensive player A is dribbling the ball at the top while being guarded with man to man defense by an on-ball defender as well.
Let’s also say that offensive player B is near the basket and just happens to be open to receive the ball from player A.
At this point, player A could execute a two-handed pass such as the lob pass or perhaps the overhead pass so that player B could receive it and score near the rim.
The potential issue though, is that those types of basketball passes are typically slower to execute than the dribble pass.
Basically, when a player is dribbling the basketball and has the opportunity to pass it to a teammate, primarily for scoring/playmaking purposes, it is generally more effective to use the dribble pass (i.e. pass off the dribble) as opposed to executing a two-handed pass variation.
This is important to comprehend because, with a two-handed pass, particularly off the dribble action, an offensive player has to gather the ball with both hands and from that gathering, the defense could have enough time to react to that pass such as with a deflection from the on-ball defender or perhaps, a defensive closeout from an off-ball defender.
However, it should be noted as well that it is not wrong to use a two-handed pass and there could be certain instances where it is more logical or efficient to use the two-handed pass instead of the one-handed pass, such as a skip pass across the court.
It is just that, as mentioned previously, two-handed passing, especially off the dribble, takes more time to gather the ball, and that could result in certain defensive stops, which is detrimental to the offensive team.
When is the dribble pass typically useful
The dribble pass is typically useful in situations such as during a perimeter cut, standard basket cut, backdoor cut, transition offense, or baseline drive and drift action.
Perimeter cut
A dribble pass could be useful when an off-ball offensive player cuts towards the perimeter area because that same player could receive the ball swiftly for a potential scoring or playmaking opportunity.
As a basic example, let’s say that offensive player A is dribbling the basketball at the top while offensive player B, initially near the low post, cuts to the perimeter area via a down screen set by offensive player C.
From that point, player A could consider using a dribble pass as opposed to a basic two-handed pass.
As a result, player B could receive the ball much more quickly before the on-ball defender guarding player A is able to react effectively with active hands and/or before the off-ball defender guarding player B is able to closeout efficiently.
Standard basket cut
A dribble pass could be useful when an off-ball offensive player cuts to the basket, especially following dribble penetration action.
For example, let’s say that player A starts near the right side wing and is able to get dribble penetration towards the middle via an on-ball screen from player B.
As that happens, let’s also say that player C is near the left side corner and that same player’s defender is focusing too heavily on the ball and therefore, loses sight of player C.
When that occurs, player C could execute a standard basket cut and receive the ball from player A via the dribble pass for a scoring opportunity near the rim.
Backdoor cut
A dribble pass could be very useful when an off-ball player executes a backdoor cut to the basket.
Moreover, this type of basketball cut action is also probably one of the more common times that a dribble pass could likely occur.
As an example, let’s say that player A has the ball at the top and player B is situated near the right side wing.
Also, at the same time, let’s say that player B’s defender executes denial defense so that player B cannot easily receive the ball from player A.
To counter that denial action, player A could initially dribble towards player B in an instant. This dribble action triggers an automatic backdoor cut towards the basket from player B.
Following that, player A could then execute a bounce pass off the dribble action (in other words, a dribble bounce pass) so that player B could receive the ball and potentially score at the rim with a layup.
Transition offense
A dribble pass could be useful during transition offense, mainly within an offensive numbers advantage such as a 2-on-1 or 3-on-2 situation.
As an example, let’s say that there are three offensive players during primary break but only two defenders at that point within transition defense, which attempt to protect the basket and the middle, respectively.
In other words, it is a 3-on-2 scenario prior to secondary break action.
Let’s also say that offensive player A is in possession of the ball and that same player dribbles it down the middle of the court to attack the basket.
Furthermore, let’s say that offensive player B is cutting to the basket from the right side wing and offensive player C is cutting to the left side corner during the fast break action.
Following that, player A could execute the dribble pass to either player B or player C for possible scoring opportunities before the defense has time to react efficiently.
Baseline drive and drift
A dribble pass could be useful, in certain instances, when a player with the ball gets dribble penetration, particularly near the baseline and afterwards, executes a drift pass off the dribble to a teammate near the opposite wing or corner area for a scoring/playmaking opportunity.
For example, let’s say that offensive player A drives baseline towards the basket, which in turn, influences help defense from the strong side and weak side.
Therefore, a help defender near the strong side, specifically near the basket steps over into the dribbling pathway of player A to limit or prevent the dribble penetration.
At the same time, another weak side help defender, initially near the weak side wing or weak side corner, drops back or slides towards the basket to help the helper.
When that occurs, player A, still near the baseline, could execute a drift pass off the dribble, particularly with one hand if that is feasible, to the open teammate on the opposite side for a scoring/playmaking opportunity.
How to practice and improve the dribble pass
A player can practice and improve the dribble pass with a basic drill in which that same player stands about four to six feet from a wall, executes a basic pound dribble with one hand, quickly throws it to the wall to complete the dribble pass, and then catches the ball with one hand or both hands after it bounces off the wall.
This simple wall passing drill could be executed continuously until the player is comfortable performing the dribble pass with confidence.
Furthermore, the player could implement dribbling moves such as the crossover, between the legs, or behind the back dribble followed by a pass to the wall and subsequent catch.