ReviewVertical jump in female and male basketball players—A review of observational and experimental studies
Introduction
Vertical jump (VJ) is one of the most prevalent acts performed by basketball players. Jumping acts are part of various defensive (e.g., blocking, rebounding, and stealing) and offensive (e.g., passing, rebounding, and shooting) maneuvers performed by basketball players in practices and games. A number of studies have examined on-court performances of elite male basketball players. For example, McInnes et al.1 found that, on average, a basketball player performs 1050 ± 51 movements during the game, such as standing, running, walking and jumping; among these, 46 ± 12 are VJ acts. Ben Abdelkrim, El Fazaa, and El Ati2 reported 997 ± 183 and 44 ± 7, respectively.
Under real-game situations, players are required not only to perform such a high number of jumping acts, but also to do them in a competitive and demanding environment in which they are performing against players from the opposing team. They are required not only to jump high, but also to jump higher than their counterparts in a given defensive or offensive situation. Therefore, it is one of the desired goals of basketball players, regardless if their playing position is guard, forward, or center, to improve their jumping ability, in addition to achieving a high level of proficiency in the other defensive and offensive acts they have to perform during the game.
To improve the VJ ability of players, basketball coaches and strength and conditioning coaches should devote a considerable amount of time to strength and conditioning programs focusing on jumping performance. It has already been established in the literature on methodology of training that basketball players should work on their jumping ability in both the preparation and competition phases of the annual training program (e.g.,3, 4). In order to appropriately plan strength and conditioning programs aimed at improving VJ in basketball players, basketball and strength and conditioning coaches who work regularly with the players during the entire training program should obtain relevant information on the physical, technical and physiological aspects of VJ in basketball. It is assumed that such information will help them to plan better short- and long-term VJ training programs, as well as to assess the contribution of these programs to jumping improvement.
The three purposes of the current article are: (a) to review a series of studies (n = 26; 15 observational and 11 experimental) on VJ in female and male basketball players—junior players, college players, national team players, and national professional league players; (b) to outline a number of limitations associated with the testing protocols used in the reviewed studies; and (c) to suggest practical recommendations for basketball coaches and strength and conditioning coaches working with elite basketball players.
Section snippets
Studies on vertical jump performances in elite female and male basketball players
Two categories of studies were reviewed: observational and experimental.5 In observational studies, the researcher observes the overt behavior/s (i.e., the VJ) of the performer and describes his or her technique (i.e., “does the performer use his or her hands during the jump?”) and/or the outcome (i.e., “what is the height of the jump?”) of the behavior. Based on these observations, the researcher can obtain relevant and reliable information on the unique phenomena of the observed event, such
Experimental studies—a one-group/treatment design
The reviewed experimental studies were composed of only one group of players, namely a training group. No control groups were included in these studies. All four studies on female basketball players found increased VJ performance following completion of the conditioning program. All of the studies used a different VJ protocol, and hence data cannot be compared among the studies. Although each study used a different conditioning program, all incorporated some type of plyometric training.
In one
Experimental studies—a multi-group/treatment design
In one study, a comparison between two groups of basketball players engaged in resistance training programs was made.29 One group (G2) participated in 5 weeks of pre-season resistance training. The training program ended once the official game season started. This group did not have any previous experience with resistance training. Another group (G3) participated in the same resistance training program but, unlike G2, continued their resistance training throughout the 20-week game season. The
Limitations observed from the reviewed observational and experimental studies
Useful information for researchers and practitioners (basketball coaches and strength and conditioning coaches) can be obtained from the studies reviewed in this article. However, analyses of the designs of these studies, and particularly of the protocols of the VJ tests used, revealed five limitations. These limitations should be taken into account by both researchers and practitioners when selecting VJ tests and administrating them to both female and male basketball players.
- (a)
The use of
Practical implications
Based on the reviewed studies, as well as on the five limitations presented in our article, three practical tips for basketball and strength and conditioning coaches are given as follows.
First, it should be noted that individual differences in jumping ability in basketball players of both genders tend to be significant. It was revealed that VJ values vary greatly—between 22 and 48 cm in female players and 40–75 cm in male players. These large variations can be explained mostly by differences in
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Dinah Olswang for her editorial assistance during the preparation of this manuscript. No sources of funding were used in the preparation of this review. The authors have no conflicts of interest that are directly relevant to the content of this review.
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