Dribble moves are what really separates the best gamers from the rest in the NBA Live series, and this year there are a lot of new ones to toy around with. The basics have stayed much the same, but a few have been added, most notably nutmegs, and the realistic nature of them have played a big role in the improvement of the NBA Live series. As always, all these moves have variations which can be found by playing around with them, and your ability to pull them off depends on who you’re playing with - guys like Kyrie Irving and Steph Curry, who have extremely high dribble ratings, are the best to practice with.
Basics
These are the standard dribble moves which most people who have played NBA Live will be familiar with. They aren’t extremely difficult to pull off, and most guards and plenty of wings will be able to pull them off, to a certain extent at least. To keep things simple, all these explanations are assuming that the ball is starting in the right hand - they can be achieved just as easily in the left, simply by reversing the instructions.
Dribble Move | How to do it |
|---|---|
Crossover | Flick the R stick to the left as you reach your opponent |
Hesitation | Flick the R stick to the right as you reach your opponent |
Between the legs dribble | While handling the ball in a stationary position, flick the R stick from the left to the right repeatedly |
The above gif is a pretty basic example of the crossover. Playing with Kyrie Irving makes it easier, but you can see the simple right-to-left crossover move being pulled off just as he reaches Harden, allowing Irving to go by him and get to the rim. Not a difficult move, but one which can be hugely effective.
Intermediate
These next dribble moves can be achieved relatively easily, but they will require a little bit of practice to perfect. To properly pull them off, you’ll need players who have a decent amount of aptitude in terms of dribbling. Get them right, and you’ll be finding open lanes to the basket in no time. Again, these instructions are assuming that you begin with the ball in your right hand.
Dribble Move | How to do it |
|---|---|
Double crossover | Run towards an opponent, and just as you initiate contact flick the R stick left and then right. If you do this with turbo engaged, it will be a standard crossover - do it without turbo, and you might just be able to pull off the crossover between your legs. |
Hesitation crossover | Run towards an opponent, and just as you initiate contact flick the R stick up and then down. This will cause your player to first hesitate, then crossover to the left. |
Again with Kyrie Irving up against James Harden, this is a little double crossover pulled off by the offensive player. As you can see, even though it isn't executed to perfection it still allows Irving to get into the paint and finish what is a very makeable shot for him. Ideally, this double crossover allows you to fly past your opponent into an open lane, but as the gif above shows, even if you can't manage that you can still get yourself a good shot with this move.
Advanced
These are the most difficult dribble moves to master, and are new to NBA Live 19. They replicate moves that only a handful of players in the world can pull off, and as a result, only a handful of players in NBA Live can pull them off too. If you’re not playing as Irving, Curry, or a couple of others who have dribble ratings in the high 90’s, you can forget about pulling these off with any kind of regularity. Once again, these instructions assume you begin with the ball in the right hand.
Dribble Move | How to do it |
|---|---|
Nutmeg | Run towards an opponent, and as you reach them flick the R stick right and then left. If he or she is capable, this will make your player dribble the ball between the legs of your opponent, and hopefully open up a free lane to the basket. |
Around the back nutmeg | Run towards an opponent, and as you reach them flick the R stick left to crossover. While your player is in the middle of the crossover, make a counter-clockwise semi-circle with the R stick. This will make your player crossover your opponent, then dribble it around his or her back and through the opponent's legs |
Hesitation nutmeg | Run towards an opponent, and as you reach them flick the R stick right to hesitate. Then, do a full circle in a counter-clockwise direction. This will make your player hesitate to the right, then fling the ball around your opponent’s back and, hopefully, run into an open basket. |
This isn’t necessarily a completely exhaustive list of dribble moves, and variations of them may be discovered by playing around with the controls. With those listed above, however, you have a range of party tricks, some of which can be employed by most ball-handling NBA players, and some which can only be pulled off by the absolute elite. There are numerous more dribble moves in NBA Live 19, and thanks to Real Player Motion they are much more realistic. Being able to pull them off makes the game a whole lot more fun.