How to Jump Higher For Basketball When it Counts

There are several ways to go about jumping higher for basketball. And in this article I'm going to give you a few ways to jump higher in basketball where it counts most.

Before we get into the actual "how to" when it comes to jumping higher in basketball, let's first examine when you need to jump higher. Basketball is a game of constant jumping, running, change of direction and lateral movement.

To improve in the jumping part of the game you must first understand that you want to aim for explosive jumping ability. Not just jumping higher. Second there are only a few areas where jumping is required in basketball.

The three main areas where you'll need to jump higher are:

1. Rebounding
2. Shooting: layups, jump shot
3. Defense: block shots, guard in bounds etc.

Rebounding

One nice way to improve your rebounding is to work with the medicine ball. The medicine ball is great for building strong hands and will improve your jumping.

One drill I recommend is holding the medicine ball above your head and jumping with it. Try to touch it against the backboard if you can. Do this drill for improving your jumping and strengthening your upper body for snatching more rebounds. This will also help you to be stronger with the ball.

An important thing to consider when working on your rebounding is that it isn't always the person who gets up the highest. Quick jumping is important when it comes to rebounding. If you watch some of the greatest rebounders of all time, they weren't necessarily the highest jumpers. Also, timing and just having a nose for the ball is important with rebounding.

Shooting

If you want to jump higher when shooting layups and jump shots you'll need to push yourself in practice. You can also work on strengthening your legs as well, but I think you'll notice that unless you really work on jumping higher with the ball, you won't jump as high.

I have seen players with the highest vertical jumps who don't jump very high when they shoot. The reason for this is that they never train their legs and body to get up high with the ball. So to prevent this disconnect I recommend you work on jumping with the ball.

Additionally, you can do all of the other stuff that contributes to higher jumping also. Just make sure you spend time working on it on the court too.

Defense

One of the things that I have noticed when training players, is that when it comes to jumping higher on defense it isn't necessarily all about how high you get up. I think it is important to be well conditioned because often times when players tire, they aren't as good off their feet.

So to improve in this area I recommend incorporating some jumping to your defensive training. If you are working on defensive slides, also add something where maybe you jump up and down to guard the inbounder or something like this.

Just like with rebounding and shooting, it is important to work on explosiveness when working on your defense. If you can get off your feet faster than your opponent, you'll get more blocks and alter more shots.

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