Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to compare of physical and motoric characteristics by playing positions in basketball. Seventy nine male adolescent basketball players from center (n=11), guard (n=39) and forward (n=29) playing positions voluntarily participated in the study (mean age respectively, centers: 14,9 ± 1,2 years, guards: 13,9 ± 0,8 years, forwards: 13,7 ± 1,5 years). The body height, body weight, 20 m sprint, Illiniois agility test and jumping test (vertical & horizontal) were applied. One-way analysis of variance was used to determine the differences between the playing positions. Data which passed the equality of variance test were analyzed with Tukey statistics (p<0.05). It was found that centers had significant higher body height and body weight, guards had significant lowest body height and body weight. Physical characteristics of the participants were significantly different in all playing positions (p<0.05). On the other hand, although there was no significant difference between the playing positions in the selected motoric characteristics, the forwards had the highest vertical jump, the centers had the highest horizontal jump and the best speed performance, and the forwards had the best agility performance. It is thought that these physical and motoric characteristics, which differ according to playing positions in adolescent basketball players, will guide the coaches for the selection of athletes. However, the motoric differences determined between the positions should be used as an important indicator for the coaches during the planning training.

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