2 nights ago, Russell Westbrook became yet another casualty of a significant injury and it couldn’t have come at a worse time. It seems like more ‘stacked’ teams in NBA with high potential for championship/deep playoff runs are set back because of major injuries to star players. It’s normal, it happens all the time, but with the increased speed and tempo of today’s NBA game and in basketball in general, the likelihood of freak injuries like torn ligaments and tendons, as well as contusions, concussions, sprains and fractures increases.
Injuries happen when there’s a disconnect between your mind and body. Usually when a player jumps up, the mind focuses and prepares itself for the landing so the body’s defense mechanisms ‘brace for impact.’ If you lose focus and there’s disconnect for even a split second, you’re essentially fucked. Think back to Derrick Rose’s injury, Kobe’s recent injury. Westbrook wasn’t doing anything crazy like jumping, twisting or contorting but his mind was on dribbling the ball up, not expecting Beverly to leap in to steal the ball.
In basketball, there’s so much you have to be aware of and your mind doesn’t have the capacity to process to focus on everything equally. And players who are more aggressive and hyper than others, like Westbrook, Rose and Lebron James with their explosiveness are at greater risk.
Unlike NBA superstars, the rest of us average ball players don’t have the luxury of ‘superstar treatment’ when recovering from and rehabbing after injuries. Even with insurance, most major injuries lead to thousands of dollars out of pocket. One ACL tear might be enough to stop you from balling or partaking in any athletic activity for the rest of your life. At the end of the day, you can just keep your fingers crossed and pray to God you don’t have to endure anything as bad.
Here are some simple tips to follow that could potentially increase your chance of major injury prevention.
1) Wear protective gear, such as a knee brace and/or ankle tape support especially if you have a history of structural issues.
2) Warm up before every game. When you walk in the gym and you’re immediately asked to jump in a 5 on 5 full court game, resist the urge. Stretch, walk, jump, dribble and shoot around to break at least a small sweat before you go full court.
3) Don’t get unnecessarily cute with your crossovers, layups and dunks. You might just snap your own ankles or blow out your knees trying to showboat.
4) Try to be as mindful of ‘the land’ when you go mid-air as much as possible.
5) Strengthen the essentials: your knees, back and legs. Not just the muscles, but the joints and bones as well. Supplement with calcium, glucosamine/MSM and protein to get stronger.
6) Increase your flexibility: Take some yoga classes and loosen up the muscles in your body. Yoga not only helps prevent injury but with looser back, arm and leg muscles, you perform better. Ball handling becomes easier because you’re able to dribble low and wide. Your on-ball defense and rebound box-outs improve. With a cooler and calmer head, your court vision increases and game pace decreases for better passing. Your muscle memory is sharper so you shoot with a better release too. So man/woman up and get in a yoga class or DIY. I imagine Pilates has similar benefits.
7) Limit playing in non-competitive games. No matter the intensity of the game, there’s always a risk of landing awkwardly and tweaking something. Why take the risk by playing in non-competitive games with little kids and/or older people who are there just for fun? I realize this isn’t exactly a tip, but you’re better off shooting around alone.
The challenge most serious players face is finding a healthy balance between playing aggressive and playing mindfully. The more aggressive you are, the more productive. The risk of injury increases. And vice versa. Ultimately, it comes down to you and what you want to get out of playing ball. For guys like Kobe, Rose and Westbrook who are motored to be aggressive,