Vertical Jumping

Being able to vertical leap is essential for increasing your playing ability in any sport, especially basketball. You can use these methods when training to increase your vertical and you will get great results with them. If you want more regular play, want to score more effortlessly, or just straight up want to impress people with an ability to dunk - then implement exercises correctly and consistently and you'll see results.

Jump Shrugs

The term shrug comes from the end movement where you shrug your shoulders up. Begin like you are about to lift a bar, thrust upwards and focus on shrugging those shoulders. Do 5 or 6 in each repetition.

Shock Jumps

Find a box or platform which is approximately the same height as your ability to jump. Begin on the box and step down to the ground. Focus on landing on the balls of your feet and try not to bend the legs to absorb contact. Keep a fixed leg.

Depth Jumps

The same as shock jumps, but once you have landed on the floor jump back up as high as you can. Make the contact with the ground minimal.

Squat Jumps

Very simple but an effective way of building up the thighs. Squat in a low position and leap upwards. You can vary the routine by attempting to leap over distance thus doing squats that are like a long jump. Your thighs will tire quickly. Do one at a time or do a succession of long jumps where you land and quickly do the next jump. This will greatly improve your speed and agility.

calf exercises

The muscles below the knee are a vitally important towards achieving a high leap. Many below the knee exercises can be used including skipping with a rope, raising your toes from the ground (roll your foot up from the heel of the foot and point the toes upwards) and also stair climbing. Try running up the stairs at speed for quickest results. Always run up the stairs whenever you are in a tall building or a skyscraper. Run up those stairs.

One Leg Hops

Practice height and distance jumps one leg at a time. Aim to beat the previous jump each time. When your leg gets tired, change legs and continue. Initially the exercise seems simple but will prove most beneficial if you make the effort to achieve length and a good height.

The Vertical Project
Jump Experts
Vertical Jump Development Bible

Defense Strategies

In the average basketball game your side will, be forced to defend for approximately fifty percent of the time. It is obvious that it is a crucial part of the game. This essay is about different defensive methods. Another article has already looked at methods of practising the most crucial defense issue of them all - sprinting back to defend.

Defending comes about either because you have just scored or because you failed to score. However you lost the ball this article assumes that you have dropped back and are ready to defend.

There are two fundamental defensive strategies, one on one guarding and area marking. The first step to take to teach defense is on an individual level which means you should to start with one on one marking. Individual techniques include stance, sliding and movement. The man on man defensive techniques can be developed by playing two on two and then three on three and so on, until there is the full team game happening.

Man to man defensive strategy has now been realised at this point because five against five is a game situation. Coaching zonal defending is harder to do becauseyou have to organise as a unit. Training one person is not the same as training and coordinating a group.But the techniques used in man to man marking can be utilized as a team for zonal strategies. The plan is to pressurize the opposition so that at all moments there are one and a half defenders blocking his way to the basket, or blocking his route.

Teams with large players tend to be effective at zone defense by standing in the paint and covering the route to the basket.

The philosophy to aim for however is where both techniques are amalgamated. Man to man is good, but if an attacker stays deep who is guiding play and not looking like coming forward then a five man defense around the basket makes good sense. Conversely, if you are playing zone and you find that a player is on his own then that means another part of the court is overweighted with opposing team members. He should move from his current zone and add support where short.

In the debate between man to man and zone it is clear that some techniques of each idea is the most effective for a good defense. Coach the defensive methods that are necessary in man to man marking, but then plan as a team for coordinated zonal strategies too. You will never be the strongest defense you can be if you are all one to one marking or solely zonal marking. You have to be able to do both simultaneouslyand then you will see your defensive capabilities improve dramatically.