A lot of people are asking: what it means to “”break in” basketball ball and how to do it. Here I will try to cover what is that and how it works. We got many questions regarding that because people who are looking to buy a ball and gathering information are seeing feedback who states that the ball needs breaking in. So if you want to know what does this mean and why it makes basketballs better – read on.
New balls you get out of the box are sometimes slippery and hard to grip throwing off your handles and shot. Some balls need break in some not, it depends on the ball you got. In general it just means that wearing it down to the point where you get a good grip and just easier to control it with your hands. It’s best to compare this with a pair of new shoes, then they are brand new they are crispy and stiff, but later on after you wearing them for a while they start to mold to your feet more and at the end they become comfortable. Important thing is that you should not use it outside to make this process faster, especially with genuine leather balls made for indoor use only. We heard that some people do that to break in the ball faster but this just makes the ball’s grip uneven.
I got a nice video tutorial for you where folks are breaking in an official NBA game ball.
In video you see Coach Collin Castellaw where he shows how to break in the ball in an easy way, actually it’s easier than you think. NBA balls coming fresh and just taking them out of the original packing you will notice that they come super stiff, this makes them not so fun to use in your game and they can a pretty long time to break in. NBA league teams only use balls in official games after they use them for around half of the year in individual workouts before they use it in practice game plays. The Coach recommends a few drills and by using them you will be able to break in the ball quickly. The best one is called couch dribbling as it’s really awesome and you can do it by sitting on the couch and watch TV while you are doing it. Much space is not needed either. The only thing you need is a chair. So you are sitting on the chair and now start work with the ball between your legs, bounce it hard. Now if you don’t know what handles you can do, there is a few: right hand pounds, in-out cross, under the legs, these are the best drills to break in ball without going to the gym or basketball court. Most popular drill to break in a new ball is to use pound dribbles – pounding the ball at maximum power trying to keep it as low as you can by your ankles.
These drills are used widely among many players who are seeking to get the best performance from their ball, because you get become a better ball handles and of course breaking in the ball faster.
Method 2 – Using Chemicals
Another way to break in your ball is by using some chemicals – Aquaphor and Timberland Suede and Nubuck cleaner. Watch video about this method below, but keep in mind that the best method to break them down is simply by using them. Be careful using chemicals as scrubbing too hard may cause the color of the ball to fade and become lighter.
So now all you need to do is take your ball if you already have it and use one of the methods or check out our recommendations of the best balls available in the market today.