Accelerometer Load Profiles for Basketball-Specific Drills in Elite Players

• Published in: Journal of sports science & medicine Vol. 15; no. 4; pp. 585 - 591
• Main Authors: Schelling, Xavi, Torres, Lorena
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Turkey Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 01.12.2016; Uludag University
• Subjects: Accelerometers; Analysis; Australian football; Basketball (Professional); Basketball players; Exercise; Global positioning systems; GPS; Human performance; Load; Physiological aspects; Physiology; Professional basketball; Skills; Sport science; Sports medicine; Training; Workloads; Spain; Acceleration; monitoring; team sport; training drills; physical demands
• ISSN: 1303-2968; 1303-2968

The purpose of this study was to quantify the workload during basketball-specific drills measured through microtechnology. Twelve professional male basketball players from the Spanish 1 Division were monitored over a 4-week period. Data were collected from 16 sessions, for a total of 95 ± 33 drills per player. Workload data (Acceleration load; AL) were obtained from a tri-axial accelerometer at 100Hz sampling frequency, and were expressed over time (AL min ). Comparisons among training drills (i.e., 2v2, 3v3, 4v4, and 5v5) were assessed via standardized mean differences. Full-court 3v3 and 5v5 showed the highest physical demand (AL min : 18.7 ± 4.1 and 17.9 ± 4.6, respectively) compared with other traditional balanced basketball drills such as 2v2 and 4v4 (14.6 ± 2.8 and 13.8±2.5, respectively). The AL min on half-court showed trivial-to-moderate differences with a likely increase of ~10-20% in 2v2 drill compared with any other formats. This study provides insight into the specific requirements of a range of exercises typically performed in basketball sessions. The use of accelerometer data is presented as a useful tool in assessing the workload.