Are Plyometric Basketball Drills Safe?
If plyometric drills are appropriately picked and supervised, than they can be a safe and productive supplemental workout tool. However, the game of basketball itself is already very plyometric in nature, so adding a large volume of additional plyometric drills can be counterproductive and produce overuse injuries including orthopedic trauma to the joints, tendons, ligaments, and bones that occur from too much impact. Unlike many other sports, today’s basketball players play year round with no real off-season. It has been estimated that the average basketball player will perform between 450 and 500 full speed jumps per week. As such, what will an additional 50 jumps from a plyometric training program do? While plyometric basketball drills commonly referred to as ‘Plyo’s’ – can be implemented carefully into a training program as a way to help players with their body-awareness and confidence in performing certain movements, it is imperative to pick only the safest drills and use as soft
