Field Testing Protocols for Talent Identification and Development in Basketball—A Systematic Review

Abstract

Basketball is one of the most popular team sports in the world. A wide variety of athletic skills can be valuable indicators of a talented player. Testing these skills help trainers and scouts to make the best decisions during both youth and adult player selection of different competitive levels and field positions. However, scientific data regarding the association between field tests results and match statistics is sparse. We conducted a systematic review to logically summarize the physical field tests of athletic abilities and anthropometric measures used in basketball in different player positions at different levels, and to determine whether test results may correlate with match statistics. A comprehensive electronic literature search was performed via three electronic databases (PubMed, GoogleScholar, SportDiscus). The CASP checklist was used for checking the quality of reporting for all included articles. Based on 39 studies, it could be supported that the agility, speed and jumping test values seem to be crucial measures for basketball players. Anthropometry appeared to be the strongest discriminative factor between basketball positions, therefore, these values need to be significantly considered during selection. Moreover, the maturity status is also an important influencing factor for U-18 teams. In general, we found that successful players can be identified by their nonplanned agility and reactive power, considering that these factors affect match outcomes the most at the same competitive level.

Collection and Advice on Basketball Field Tests—A Literature Review

“…Results of the current and our previous review [24] indicate that general anamnesis, orthopedic-, anthropometric-, and spiroergometric measurements are needed before the offseason period. Although COD (e.g., Lane Agility Drill) and RCOD (e.g., BBAGIL) testing, strength testing (e.g., handgrip strength test, 1RM bench press), and jump testing (e.g., CMJ, DJ) appear to be the most relevant tests during the pre-season, values of the dribbling deficit and COD decrement might also be worthwhile to measure.…”

“…The foremost factor is anthropometry. In our previous review [24], we found that body size affects playing position and playing level as well; therefore, experts and researchers always have to normalize their data with anthropometric measures for valid results. For example, allometric scaling models could successfully explain the influence of body size descriptors on performance, so the prediction for the future performance of the player could be more realistic [47].…”

“…Overall, the literature identifies several sport-specific physical field tests of athletic abilities that can help trainers and scouts to make the best decisions during talent identification and development. Our previous review [24] focused on the physical abilities that may potentially differentiate basketball players the most efficiently at different positions and playing levels. We found that successful players can be identified by their nonplanned agility and reactive power, considering that these factors affect match outcomes the most at the same competitive level [24].…”

“…Our previous review [24] focused on the physical abilities that may potentially differentiate basketball players the most efficiently at different positions and playing levels. We found that successful players can be identified by their nonplanned agility and reactive power, considering that these factors affect match outcomes the most at the same competitive level [24]. In contrast, to the best of our knowledge, no prior review aimed to collect field tests to help athletes and experts select the most appropriate one from this wide variety of available tests.…”