While most sports have their fair share of tension and excitement, there are few that have the same levels of intensity, passion, and physical requirements as basketball. When we say requirements, you might think we mean being tall, and while that can certainly help, it is not how many inches they are on height chart that defines a basketball player’s ability. Instead, the ability to jump higher than an opponent is often what decides whether you score the points or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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There are lots of attributes that you need to have to be a good basketball player, and height isn’t necessarily one of them. Some of the finest basketball players in the history of the game were not what you’d describe as giants. Examples include Isaiah Thomas at 5 feet, 8 inches, Earl Boykins at 5 feet, 5 inches, and Muggsy Bogues at a diminutive 5 feet, 3 inches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What counts more than your height, is the height you can reach when you jump. If you can jump 6 inches higher than your direct opponent then even if they are 5 inches taller than you, you are going to reach the ball before they do. Taking this a stage further another important factor is how quickly you can jump to a certain height. Of the two players who are capable of jumping to a particular vertical height, it will be the one who can reach that height the quickest who wins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Within a basketball game, there will be many plays where a vertical jump is vital such as interceptions, collecting rebounds from the backboard, and of course scoring by dunking the ball into the net. To find out more about how your jump can be improved so that you are the one doing the scoring for your team, check out ‘The Jump Manual,’ which has lots of exercise routines and advice to make it happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As with anything that you want to improve, you need to know what your starting point is. For vertical jumping, you need to measure your jump so that you can compare future jumps in terms of your improvement. The easiest way to do this is to use a wall, and you will also need a marker, a ladder, a measuring tape, and a friend or training partner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First, you want to stand next to the wall, and stretch your arm up as high as you can. Where your fingertips reach the highest point, your friend, while standing on the ladder, should mark this point. Then make several vertical jumps and stretch your arm upwards to try to reach as high as you can. Your friend should be looking to see which of them is the highest jump, and then mark it for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now measure the distance between your standing reach and your highest jumping reach. The difference equates to your standing vertical jump, which is the benchmark that you are going to be trying to improve upon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n