How to Spin a Basketball on Your Finger

Remember Curly from the Harlem Globetrotters? This is the first step to emulating the smoothness and grace he showed while spinning the ball upon his long fingers.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Basketballs

1. Balance the ball on the pads of the five fingers of your dominant hand.
2. Stretch out your arm until the elbow is slightly bent.
3. Twist your wrist to the left if you're holding the ball with your right hand (the right if you're using your left hand). At the same time, bend your elbow 90 degrees, causing the ball to hop to your fingertips and spin on your middle finger.
4. Expect to lose contact with the ball for a split second when the ball gains its maximum spin velocity; concentrate on returning your middle finger to the ball's center when it drops down.
5. Continue to spin the ball by snapping your wrist and forearm together to the right (if you're using your right hand) or to the left (if you're using your left hand), then back again as in step 3.

Tips & Warnings

• Snap your wrist more forcefully to achieve more spin. The more spin, the easier it is to balance the ball on your finger - it's the gyroscope effect.
• For the split second that you're not in contact with the ball, don't let it get much farther than an inch or two from your hand.