Power Ranking the NBA's Most Impressive Ballhandlers

The NBA's most impressive ball-handlers are the ones who we love to imitate when we're practicing our own moves on the hard-court. They're the ones than make those complicated spins, whirls, twirls, jukes and crossovers look all too easy when you see them on television. 

When the basketball is in the hands of one of these 10 players, it looks more like a yo-yo, always finding its way back to the player's fingertips before beginning another descent to the floor. 

Being an impressive ball-handler is about both style and substance. It's one thing to be fancy, but it's even better when you're fancy and effective at the same time. If you spin in place and dribble through your legs in impressive fashion, it's wasted effort unless the moves help you get past your defender. 

While ball-handling can't be perfectly quantified and must be something that you observe for yourself, I have included some numbers as supporting evidence for my rankings. You'll find the more traditional stats like points, assists and turnovers per game, but there's more than that. 

82games.com provides us with two crucial stats: ball-handling turnovers per game and "hands" rating. The former separates passing turnovers and lapses in control while dribbling, while the latter is a metric derived from ball-handling turnovers, bad passes and a few other elements that go into ball-handling. 

Also keep in mind that these rankings only take into account what a player can do with the ball in his hands. Shots don't matter, and neither do assists. However, both of those areas can be supporting evidence for a player's ability to dribble, as it's easier to rack up easy buckets and dimes when you have full control of the rock. 

10. Jamal Crawford

Team: Los Angeles Clippers

Position: PG/SG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 14.0 points, 3.2 assists, 1.9 turnovers, 0.9 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 14.1

Although Jamal Crawford prefers to play off the ball instead of dribbling up the court as a point guard, he still has some of the flashiest handles in the NBA. Crawford isn't someone that you want your kids to emulate when they're learning the game, but he is entertaining to watch. 

Whether he's using the shake-n-bake or freezing defenders with lightning-quick crossovers, Crawford has a flair for the dramatic when he's dribbling the rock. 

Although a high percentage of his turnovers come from ball-handling mistakes, and he is prone to making bad passes off the bounce, Crawford's showmanship with the ball in his hands earn him the first spot in the top 10. 

9. Stephen Curry

Team: Golden State Warriors

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 14.7 points, 5.3 assists, 2.5 turnovers, 0.9 ball-handling turnovers 

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 18.4

Stephen Curry plays quite differently than Jamal Crawford even though both guards are offensive specialists. Even though the oft-injured floor general of the Golden State Warriors is a creative player with the ball in his hands, he's much more careful to avoid mistakes. 

Once the ball leaves his hand en route to a teammate, it's a different story. However, Curry is not exactly turnover prone when the ball is in his possession. 

Curry shows a lot creativity with his moves and generally makes the right decisions, but he also struggles to get into the paint sometimes because of his limited athleticism. That's the primary reason that he finds himself below the other standouts in these rankings. 

8. Dwyane Wade

Team: Miami Heat

Position: SG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 22.1 points, 4.6 assists, 2.6 turnovers, 1.2 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 18.3

Dwyane Wade sometimes gets caught trying to do to much when he has the basketball in his hands, but that's only because he can do more than most other players in the Association. 

The Miami Heat shooting guard is often referred to as one of the best slashers in NBA history, but that slashing ability comes in two parts. He can cut to the basket and finish after receiving a pass, or he can beat his man to the hoop by either driving around him or splitting a double team. 

One of Wade's best skills is his knack for breaking right through the middle of two defenders. He has remarkable control over the ball, pushing it out into open space with a hard dribble before taking possession. 

7. Kyrie Irving

Team: Cleveland Cavaliers

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 18.5 points, 5.4 assists, 3.1 turnovers, 1.3 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 18.7

By the end of the 2012-13 season, Kyrie Irving will find himself higher up in a similar set of rankings. However, I can't justify moving him past the experienced studs that you'll find above him—and one truly special young ball-handler. 

That said, if you haven't seen this Rookie of the Year show off his handles, then you're missing out. Just ask Team USA about them. 

Irving has a tendency to use fancy moves to embarrass his opponents and become a slippery player to defend, slithering by defender after defender en route to the rim or an open shot. The number of times he spun around veteran NBA players as a rookie is quite impressive.  

6. Derrick Rose

Team: Chicago Bulls

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 21.8 points, 7.9 assists, 3.1 turnovers, 1.2 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 24.8

No point guard other than Russell Westbrook is going to throw down as many thunderous dunks as Derrick Rose does on what seems like a nightly basis. 

The former MVP's crossover is simply devastating, as is the way he changes directions and contorts his body to get through the defense however he sees fit.

A lot of times, it seems like Rose is toying with whoever is attempting to slow him down. He has a knack for making the game seem like child's play, and it's all predicated upon his quickness and explosiveness.

5. Deron Williams

Team: Brooklyn Nets

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 21.0 points, 8.7 assists, 4.0 turnovers, 1.1 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 22.5

Deron Williams definitely knows how to use his size to his advantage when dribbling the basketball.

Part of the reason that he turns the ball over so infrequently is that he's a master at keeping his body in between his dribbling space and the defender. The other part is that he's an expert at maintaining ball control, constantly playing with the ball on a string. 

In addition, D-Will's crossover is just plain nasty, often leaving defenders grasping at thin air. That, combined with his step-back ability, makes him special. 

4. Ricky Rubio

Team: Minnesota Timberwolves

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 10.6 points, 8.2 assists, 3.2 turnovers, 0.9 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 23.3

Ricky Rubio drew comparisons to all-time greats like "Pistol" Pete Maravich before he even stepped onto an NBA court. He was said to be a virtuoso when it came to ball-handling and a true wizard with some of the jukes he could pull off. 

It turns out that those compliments were all well deserved. Rubio obviously has a lot of work left to do on his overall game before he can be favorably compared to NBA legends, but his ball-handling is already sensational.

He can be a bit careless at times, but his spins, crossovers and quick first step all result in an entertaining and effective game. 

3. Rajon Rondo

Team: Boston Celtics

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 11.9 points, 11.7 assists, 3.6 turnovers, 0.9 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 28.8

Now we take a pretty big jump up in both "hands" rating and the level of ball-handling employed by the remaining players. Rajon Rondo is significantly better with the ball than Deron Williams is, even though the former is only one spot ahead in the rankings. 

You simply can't make the passes that Rondo makes without complete control over the ball. The floor general's massive hands allow him to fully possess the rock at all times, palming it on a moment's notice. 

Whether he's just dribbling out the clock waiting for an opportunity to dish the ball or faking a pass behind his back, Rondo is always putting his ball-handling skills on full display. 

2. Steve Nash

Team: Los Angeles Lakers

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 12.5 points, 10.7 assists, 3.7 turnovers, 0.8 ballhandling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 31.5

Even though Steve Nash dominates the ball throughout the game—although that might not be so true now that he's on the Los Angeles Lakers—he still almost never turns it over without making a pass. It's virtually impossible to strip the ball away from Nash when he's dribbling. 

Nash excels on all parts of the court when the ball is traveling from his hand to the hardcourt and back again, but he truly stands out in two situations.

The first one is fast-breaks. More so than any other player in the NBA, Nash is special when he's running up the court with possession of the ball, trying to beat the defense to the far basket. He can navigate around any defender and drop a dime without hesitation. 

Nash's other area of expertise comes when he dribbles underneath the basket and circles back around to the perimeter, looking for an open teammate unless there's an opportunity for himself down low. 

1. Chris Paul

Team: Los Angeles Clippers

Position: PG

2011-12 Per-Game Stats: 19.8 points, 9.1 assists, 2.1 turnovers, 0.8 ball-handling turnovers

2011-12 'Hands' Rating: 32.1

Whether Chris Paul is using his ridiculous step-back dribble to create a mid-range shot for himself, crossing over a defender to get to the rim or exhibiting complete and utter dribbling control before finding a teammate, he shows off completely mastery of the ball.

CP3 has both the pure talent to be a great ball-handler and the mental chops to use it most effectively. He rarely makes mistakes, but often makes jaw-dropping plays. That's an impressive combination. 

Most point guards in the NBA have plenty of moves. However, even Paul's moves have moves. 

Just as Oscar Robertson and other great dribblers of the past did, Paul works to be in constant motion, confusing his defenders with subtle body fakes that mask his actual intention. If you blink, you'll be left in the dust. 

Paul might not be quite as flashy as other players on this list, but he's undeniably lethal with the ball in his mitts.