Basketball training isn’t much different from other forms of sports training except some tweaks here and there. But, before jumping into high octane basketball training, you must understand the benefits of basketball training.

There are many benefits of basketball training but the two that stand out are athletic performance and injury prevention.

Strengthening your core, quads, calves, biceps, back and chest allow you to jump higher, take it to the hole stronger and provides more stability when taking more contact. Vince Carter is a great example in this situation. Imagine if Carter didn’t workout in any way shape or form. You have to realize that guys his size would be eating him up like sweet potato pie. But, with the extensive training that NBA professionals do allows him to jump and stay in the air for longer than his opponents and still manage to dunk OVER them; Sorry Alonzo Mourning. As a person who resides in Toronto, Ontario, home of the Raptors and as much as I hate Carter (as a player), that kind of performance is jaw dropping.

As you can see basketball training can add to your game instantly and as you progress in the training by lifting more, the benefits of basketball training will become more apparent.

Something that many basketball players don’t care is the importance of injury prevention. As a player, it is critical to realize that if your hand is broken, you cannot play basketball! It sounds stupid that way but if you’re training long and hard for something, you should do everything in your power to prevent that effort going to waste.

Basketball is a contact sport and it gets under the boards for a rebound, setting picks and screens and sometimes, the game just gets physical in the heat of moment. Basketball training allows you to take some of the damage due to the new muscle on your body. It is a good practice to stretch for 5 minutes before and after your workouts and especially if you’re playing ball.

PS: Strength Training does wonders for your game. What was something you experienced when you started training for basketball?