30 seconds left in a BIG game. Your team is up by one point. The ball is passed to you. You need to dribble the ball up court vs a defender draped all over you, get it across half court, and dribble out the clock - all while not turning the ball over and avoiding any violations (offensive foul, back court, 5-second, etc). Given your current ball handling skills, can you see yourself doing this? If you hesitated even a little bit on the answer, this Hoop Handbook is for YOU. -- I've been asked what I would do if I were working with someone who was being trained in basketball for the first time. Whether it's the 50-year-old lawyer who just wants to compete in his weekly half court games, or 6-year-old kids whose father wants them to try out every sport - I've trained both, and everything in between - the answer is always the same. 1. Layups 2. Ball Handling Aside from making a layup, which is the most basic way to score points in basketball (which is the very object of the game), handling the ball is the most important skill. In basketball, the only way to advance the ball from Point A to Point B is by either passing the ball or dribbling it. Passing is covered in another of our Programs. The program you hold in your hands covers the dribbling part, in all aspects.