Because of the potential injury risk that it posed, there was a time when dunking the ball was a big no-no in the NBA. Because there were no three-point lines and most shots were taken near the basket, people who jumped too high then landed too hard.
Injuries that were feared to happen before can now be avoided and even reduced nowadays, thanks to an ingenious training technique called plyometrics. When done correctly and regularly, it can reduce the force impact on the joints because plyometrics is designed to enhance the proper nerve/muscle control of the knees. Plyometric training is also said to help avoid ACL or anterior ligament, an injury that can sideline basketball players for the entire season.
The best thing for basketball players to improve their Vertical Jump is to do plyometric training. If they are going to learn to dunk the ball effectively, an important skill they need to master is their ability to leap into the air, which this jump measures. Learning how to dunk is every aspiring player’s dream and unfortunately, it is something that they are not born with. To do it well, they need to learn and master it.
Being tall has nothing to do with learning how to dunk first of all. Not even sweating when they did their famous dunks, Nate Robinson and Spud Webb, who stood at 5”9 and 5”8 respectively, were some of the best dunkers in the NBA.
Plyometric training involves routines from low-intensity leg jumps to high-intensity depth jumps, the perfect warm-up that starts the perfect Vertical Jump. Enabling you to be more flexible and loosen you up is what stretching exercises do. Start by jumping up to and down from height boxes or benches as high as 42 inches. Beginning initially with ground level jumping on soft surfaces like padded mats or grasses is recommended before progressing to cones or barriers finally on to bounding exercises performed in straight lines or random patterns. Practicing more in the courts and visualizing yourself actually dunking the ball helps. Focus 100% on improving your technique and not just on jumping as high as possible.