Let’s be honest; every basketball player wants to dunk. That statement is even more true for short basketball players. Being a short guy, all I ever wanted to do is dunk the basketball over somebody. I thought it was impossible since I’m only 5’7″ and standard basketball rims are 10 feet tall. Yet you see NBA players like Nate Robinson (5’9″) who have EXPLOSIVE jumping power, reason for which he has won the Slam Dunk Contest three times! So how does someone so short get up so tall? Let me give you 5 quick drills for short basketball players so you too can build that explosive jumping power.
Contrary to popular belief, to increase your vertical you cannot simply exercise your legs. It’s also important to note that while strength and stamina don’t hurt, the key to jumping high is how EXPLOSIVE you are.
- Jump rope – This is a great exercise for basketball players because it increases foot speed and strengthens the calf muscles. Perform four sets of 100 (a total of 400 jumps).
- Sprint-and-Drop: SPRINT the width of a basketball court, drop down, and do ten push-ups. Remember to focus on explosiveness, one second to push up, three seconds to come back down. Perform 10 sprints (total 100 push-ups)
- Box Jumps – Place a two foot tall box in front of you. With feet shoulder-width apart, perform a full squat and EXPLODE onto the box, lower down, and repeat. Perform four sets of 25 (a total of 100 box jumps)
- Truck Driver – This is basically a squat with the focus being down the road instead of up. With your feet shoulder-width apart, drop as fast as you can into a 90-degree squat. Hold the position for 4 seconds and come back up. Make four sets of 20 (total 80 truckers)
- High Knee Sprints: Sprint across a basketball court while staying on your toes and raising your knees as high as possible. Be careful not to jump on the ground. Perform four sets of 5 (total 20 sprints)
Doing these drills for short basketball players will not only help you increase your jumping power, but it will also make you a better basketball player overall.
That being said, if you REALLY want to develop your jumping power, you need more than just 5 exercises. It takes dedication, a step-by-step training program, as well as videos and tutorials on different exercises. It was with these tools and training programs that made it possible for short basketball players like Nate Robinson and I to break out and dunk 10 foot hoops!
