Italian Journal of Sports rehabilitation and Posturology

2792 – 2809

Authors: Adriano Vretaros

Field tests involving vertical and horizontal jumps are routine practice in the physical training of basketball players. Therefore, the aim of this research is to map the vertical and horizontal jump tests used to assess muscular power in basketball. In this literature review, four electronic databases (Google Scholar, Scielo, PubMed, MEDLINE) in English, Spanish and/or Portuguese were consulted, where 34 primary scientific studies were chosen to analyze the vertical and horizontal jump tests used for assessment of muscular power in basketball. Basically, jump tests can be classified into stationary vertical jump tests, vertical jump tests with approach running, stationary horizontal jump tests, and horizontal jump tests with displacement. A total of 24 jump tests were found to be used in the assessment of muscular power in basketball. The five most frequently mentioned tests are the countermovement jump (CMJ, 28.3%), squat jump (SJ, 12.3%), drop jump (DJ, 7.40%), Abalakov jump (ABK, 6.17%), and horizontal jump (HJ, 4.93%). When we examine the five tests, it is clear that four of them belong to the category of stationary vertical jump tests (CMJ, SJ, DJ, ABK) and only one is classified as a stationary horizontal jump test (HJ). Four jump tests allow the assessment of explosive power (CMJ, SJ, ABK and HJ) and one measures reactive power (DJ). It was concluded that these jump tests have other essential purposes that could contribute to a more refined fit in the control and distribution of workloads.