Why Basketball Agility Drills Should Focus on Improving Vertical Jump Height
New research is shedding light on the importance of improving vertical jump height in basketball. Backed by data, these findings are an eye-opener for coaches because researchers say jump height can positively affect other facets of a player’s game.
The study titled “Vertical Jump and Relative Strength are Strongly Associated with Change of Direction in Professional Male Basketball Players,” led by Professor Stefano Benitez Flores, involved eight professional male basketball players with an average age of 24 years and a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 24.1 kg/m².
Professor Flores and his team of researchers conducted a series of tests over two days to assess the players’ physical attributes and their correlation with change of direction (COD) performance.
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On the first day, players’ body composition, squat jumps (unilateral and bilateral), and countermovement jumps were measured. They also took the Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test (Level 1) to assess fitness and recovery.
On the second day, their change of direction performance and one repetition maximum for hang clean and bench press were evaluated. These exercises are standard in basketball strength and conditioning programs.
The researchers used linear regression to identify significant predictors of change of direction (COD) performance. They found that squat jump (SJ) height was the only significant determinant, explaining 58.8% of the variability in COD performance.
Additionally, change of direction performance correlated significantly with SJ height (r = ‑0.75, p = 0.034) and relative hang clean (HC) 1RM (r = ‑0.74, p = 0.038). These results indicate a strong association between a player’s vertical jump ability, relative HC strength, and agility on the basketball court.
Implementing Basketball Agility Drills For Jump Height
The study concludes that conditioning programs for basketball players should focus on exercises that improve vertical jump height to enhance change of direction performance.
Coaches can implement basketball agility drills that include:
- Jump Squats
- Tuck Knee Jumps
- Overhead Reaching Jump
- Single-Legged Cross Jumps
- Wall Touches / Cone Taps
- Lateral Plyometric Box Jumps
- Uphill Sprints
This research offers valuable insights for coaches and trainers, highlighting the importance of improving vertical jump and relative strength to boost players’ agility and overall performance on the court.
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