basketball

Abstract. The article presents an analysis of the issue of low free-throw conversion rates in basketball, particularly among young players competing in Super League teams during their debut season. Purpose. The aim of the study is to analyze the efficiency of free-throw execution during competitive play among young Super League basketball players throughout the season. Material and Methods. Methods and materials: analysis of specialized scientific and methodological literature, analysis of competitive performance, and mathematical statistical methods. Results. An analysis of scientific and methodological literature confirmed that, despite modern approaches and training methods for basketball players, the issue of free-throw execution persists and requires ongoing attention from basketball specialists as well as researchers in biomechanics and sports psychology. Differences were identified in free-throw efficiency during competitive play between the experimental and control groups, both in terms of group averages and specific playing positions (guards, forwards, and centers). Unlike previous studies, our research focused on identifying the dynamics of free-throw efficiency throughout the season and the need to develop a methodology for improving the execution of this shot by young Super League basketball players; unlike their more experienced counterparts, these players are characterized by inconsistency and are more susceptible to psychological pressure from opposing fans. Conclusions. The research revealed differences in free-throw efficiency during competitive play between basketball players in the experimental group and those in the control group, both in terms of group averages and by playing position (guards, forwards, and centers).

The aim of the study consists in the theoretical substantiation of the psychological preparation of basketball players before important matches and the identification of the most effective methods of regulating the psycho-emotional state of athletes. Research methods: theoretical analysis and generalisation of scientific and methodological literature. Research results. Analysis of scientific sources and practice of training basketball teams allows us to state that responsible matches are accompanied by significant psycho-emotional stress. It can be associated with the importance of the result, the level of the opponent, the expectations of the coach, partners and fans, as well as with previous experience of victories or defeats. One of the most common psychological states before a responsible game is pre-start anxiety. Its excessive level can negatively affect the accuracy of throws, speed of decision-making, coordination of movements and the ability to act in accordance with the tactical plan. At the same time, moderate mental stress can have a positive meaning, as it helps to mobilize forces, increase the activity and concentration of the athlete. An important result of the study is the statement that the psychological readiness of a basketball player is formed in the following main areas: the formation of self-confidence, the development of concentration, the use of breathing exercises and muscle relaxation, the use of mental rehearsal (imitation of competitive moments), the formation of team psychological readiness, the importance of the coach’s activities. Conclusions. Psychological preparation is an important component of the overall preparation of basketball players and directly affects the stability of their competitive activity. Before important matches, athletes may experience increased anxiety, emotional tension, lack of self-confidence, decreased concentration, and fear of making mistakes. The optimal mental state of a basketball player before the game involves a sufficient level of mobilization, emotional balance, self-confidence, concentration, and readiness for team interaction. The most effective methods of psychological preparation are breathing exercises, muscle relaxation, positive self-suggestion, mental rehearsal, modeling competitive situations, individual methods of preparing for the match, and team guidelines. Psychological preparation should be carried out systematically throughout the entire training process. Conducting it only on the eve of a critical match does not provide a sufficient level of psychological readiness.

This study aims to explore the moderated mediation mechanism of sport confidence and coaching style in the relationship between competitive state anxiety and perceived performance among Chinese elite collegiate basketball athletes. Specifically, data were collected from 315 valid participants across 15 universities in Northeast China using validated scales, and SPSS 26.0 with PROCESS Macro (Model 7) and bootstrap (5,000 samples) were employed for analysis. Results indicated that competitive state anxiety significantly negatively affected perceived performance. Further analysis revealed that sport confidence mediated this relationship. The moderated mediation test showed that coaching style dimensions differentially regulated the path: the indices of moderated mediation for Training and Instruction, Democratic Behavior, Social Support, and Positive Feedback were significant, indicating these supportive dimensions attenuated the detrimental effect of anxiety on sport confidence. In contrast, Autocratic Behavior failed to moderate the process. Collectively, competitive state anxiety is negatively associated with perceived performance in this population, with sport confidence emerging as a key mediator. Notably, the four constructive coaching style dimensions—not the overall style—buffer the first stage of mediation by weakening the negative association between anxiety and confidence. These results underscore sport confidence as a critical mediator and highlight the need to foster confidence and adopt supportive coaching to mitigate anxiety’s adverse effects on perceived performance.

Introduction Tactical decision-making in basketball depends on the rapid extraction, maintenance, and use of changing spatial information, but the cognitive abilities associated with tactical performance may not be the same at different levels of expertise. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 90 male basketball players were classified as expert, intermediate, or novice ( n = 30 per group). Participants completed an MOT task, a computerized Corsi block-tapping task assessing VSWM, and a video-based TDM task. Group differences, within-group correlations, and expertise-moderated regression models were examined. Results Experts showed higher MOT thresholds and TDM scores than both intermediate and novice players, and higher Corsi spans than novices. Within experts, MOT was positively associated with TDM ( r = 0.535, FDR-adjusted p = 0.010), whereas within intermediate players, Corsi span was positively associated with TDM ( r = 0.726, FDR-adjusted p < 0.001). The omnibus moderated-regression interaction block was significant, F (4, 80) = 3.331, p = 0.014. Direct pairwise slope contrasts showed that the MOT–TDM slope was stronger in experts than in intermediate players (Δ B = 7.210, Holm-adjusted p = 0.043) and that the Corsi–TDM slope was stronger in intermediate than in expert players (Δ B = 6.682, Holm-adjusted p = 0.042); the other pairwise slope contrasts did not survive multiplicity correction. Sensitivity analyses using Spearman correlations, HC3 robust standard errors, and influence diagnostics supported the main expert–intermediate contrasts. Discussion These findings provide exploratory evidence that cognitive–decision associations differ across basketball expertise levels, particularly between expert and intermediate players. The cross-sectional design does not establish causal mechanisms or developmental transitions.

Aim: We examined the relationship between athlete identification and effective decision-making in basketball players, testing whether age and gender moderate this relationship.Method: The study employed the Athlete Identification Level Scale (AILS) and the Scale of Effective Decision-Making in Sport (SEDMS) within a quantitative framework. Data were analyzed via correlation, multiple linear regression, and moderation tests.Results: Athletic identity significantly and positively predicted internal decision-making. For external decision-making, image and career maturity was a significant negative predictor, whereas athletic identity was a significant positive predictor. Age and gender significantly moderated the relationship between athlete identification and effective decision-making. Specifically, higher athlete identification was associated with lower effective decision-making among older and female basketball players.Conclusion: The findings indicate that the relationship between athlete identification and effective decision-making varies according to age and gender. These results highlight the importance of considering demographic differences when addressing decision-making processes in basketball players.

هدف: این پژوهش به بررسی رابطه بین شناسایی ورزشکار و تصمیم‌گیری مؤثر در بازیکنان بسکتبال پرداخته و نقش تعدیل‌گری سن و جنسیت را در این رابطه آزمون کرده است. روش: در این مطالعه، از مقیاس سطح شناسایی ورزشکار (AILS) و مقیاس تصمیم‌گیری مؤثر در ورزش (SEDMS) در چارچوبی کمی استفاده شد. داده‌ها با استفاده از همبستگی، رگرسیون خطی چندگانه و آزمون‌های تعدیل‌گری تحلیل شدند. یافته‌ها: هویت ورزشی به طور معنادار و مثبت پیش‌بین تصمیم‌گیری درونی بود. برای تصمیم‌گیری بیرونی، تصویر و بلوغ شغلی پیش‌بین منفی معنادار و هویت ورزشی پیش‌بین مثبت معنادار بود. سن و جنسیت رابطه بین شناسایی ورزشکار و تصمیم‌گیری مؤثر را به طور معناداری تعدیل کردند. به طور خاص، شناسایی بالاتر ورزشکار با تصمیم‌گیری مؤثر پایین‌تر در میان بازیکنان بسکتبال مسن‌تر و زن همراه بود. نتیجه‌گیری: یافته‌ها نشان می‌دهند که رابطه بین شناسایی ورزشکار و تصمیم‌گیری مؤثر بر اساس سن و جنسیت متفاوت است. این نتایج بر اهمیت توجه به تفاوت‌های جمعیت‌شناختی در بررسی فرایندهای تصمیم‌گیری در بازیکنان بسکتبال تأکید می‌کند.

Background Athletic performance in open-skill sports depends on the efficient integration of cognitive and motor processes under dual-task (DT) conditions. Reliable measurement of these processes is a prerequisite for assessing the functional profile of young athletes (aged 13–15) and for guiding training. Objective This study examined the test-retest reliability (TRR) of center-of-pressure (COP) and fNIRS-derived cortical activation metrics across zero-load, low-load, and high-load conditions, assessed the reliability of N-back performance under the two dual-task conditions, and descriptively compared cortical activation patterns across load conditions in adolescent basketball players. Methods Twenty male adolescent basketball players completed a within-subject test-retest protocol involving two visits separated by 7 days. At each visit, participants performed quiet stance alone under the zero-load condition and concurrently with auditory 0-back and 2-back tasks under the low-load and high-load conditions, respectively. Test-retest reliability was quantified using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for COP indices and fNIRS-derived t-statistics in the bilateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) and motor cortex (MC) across all three load conditions, and for N-back accuracy and reaction time under the two dual-task conditions. Results Most indices yielded moderate-to-excellent point estimates of reliability (ICC range: 0.609–0.984), although precision varied, with several 95% confidence intervals spanning multiple reliability categories. COP whole path length, path length per unit area, and the N-back metrics showed good-to-excellent point estimates (ICC ≥ 0.784), and fNIRS-derived t-statistics in the PFC and MC reached ICCs of up to 0.984 under high-load conditions. Within the COP domain, whole path length, circumference area, and path length per unit area constitute three non-redundant indices; mean sway velocity is a duration-normalized expression of whole path length (MSV = WPL/T) and is therefore not counted as separate reliability evidence. Grand-average maps of fNIRS-derived GLM t-statistics appeared qualitatively similar across sessions. Conclusion These findings provide preliminary test-retest reliability estimates for selected multimodal neurobehavioral measures in male adolescent basketball players although reliability alone does not establish clinical utility and estimates with wide confidence intervals require confirmation in larger samples. Whether these measures can support monitoring of cognition–action coupling or inform interventions remains to be determined in future validity and responsiveness studies.

زمینه: عملکرد ورزشی در ورزش‌های مهارت باز به ادغام کارآمد فرایندهای شناختی و حرکتی تحت شرایط دو‌وظیفه‌ای (DT) وابسته است. اندازه‌گیری پایا از این فرایندها پیش‌نیاز ارزیابی نمایه عملکردی ورزشکاران جوان (۱۳ تا ۱۵ ساله) و هدایت تمرینات است. هدف: این مطالعه پایایی آزمون-بازآزمون (TRR) شاخص‌های مرکز فشار (COP) و شاخص‌های فعال‌سازی قشری استخراج‌شده از fNIRS را در شرایط بدون بار، بار کم و بار زیاد بررسی کرد، پایایی عملکرد N-back را در دو وضعیت دو‌وظیفه‌ای ارزیابی نمود و الگوهای فعال‌سازی قشری را به طور توصیفی در شرایط مختلف بار در بازیکنان نوجوان بسکتبال مقایسه کرد. روش‌ها: بیست بازیکن نوجوان پسر بسکتبال در یک پروتکل آزمون-بازآزمون درون‌گروهی با دو جلسه به فاصله ۷ روز شرکت کردند. در هر جلسه، شرکت‌کنندگان ایستادن ساکت را به تنهایی در شرایط بدون بار و به طور همزمان با تکالیف شنیداری 0-back و 2-back به ترتیب در شرایط بار کم و بار زیاد انجام دادند. پایایی آزمون-بازآزمون با استفاده از ضریب همبستگی درون‌کلاسی (ICC) برای شاخص‌های COP و آمار t استخراج‌شده از fNIRS در قشر پیش‌پیشانی دوطرفه (PFC) و قشر حرکتی (MC) در هر سه وضعیت بار و همچنین برای دقت و زمان واکنش N-back در دو وضعیت دو‌وظیفه‌ای محاسبه شد. نتایج: اکثر شاخص‌ها برآوردهای نقطه‌ای پایایی متوسط تا عالی را نشان دادند (دامنه ICC: ۰.۶۰۹ تا ۰.۹۸۴)، هرچند دقت متغیر بود و چندین فاصله اطمینان ۹۵٪ چند دسته پایایی را در بر می‌گرفتند. طول کل مسیر COP، طول مسیر به ازای واحد سطح و شاخص‌های N-back برآوردهای نقطه‌ای خوب تا عالی داشتند (ICC ≥ ۰.۷۸۴) و آمار t استخراج‌شده از fNIRS در PFC و MC در شرایط بار زیاد به ICC تا ۰.۹۸۴ رسید. در حوزه COP، طول کل مسیر، مساحت محیطی و طول مسیر به ازای واحد سطح سه شاخص غیرتکراری هستند؛ میانگین سرعت نوسان، بیان نرمال‌شده بر حسب زمان از طول کل مسیر است (MSV = WPL/T) و بنابراین به عنوان شواهد پایایی جداگانه محسوب نمی‌شود. نقشه‌های میانگین کلی آمار t مدل خطی تعمیم‌یافته (GLM) استخراج‌شده از fNIRS در جلسات مختلف به طور کیفی مشابه بودند. نتیجه‌گیری: این یافته‌ها برآوردهای مقدماتی پایایی آزمون-بازآزمون برای برخی شاخص‌های نورو‌رفتاری چندوجهی در بازیکنان نوجوان پسر بسکتبال ارائه می‌دهد، هرچند پایایی به تنهایی سودمندی بالینی را اثبات نمی‌کند و برآوردهایی با فاصله اطمینان وسیع نیازمند تأیید در نمونه‌های بزرگ‌تر هستند. اینکه آیا این شاخص‌ها می‌توانند از پایش همبستگی شناخت-عمل یا طراحی مداخلات حمایت کنند، نیازمند بررسی در مطالعات آتی روایی و پاسخگویی است.

Basketball training imposes multiple demands on athletes, which can be classified as external load (EL), internal load (IL), and cognitive load (CL). Although coach behavior is known to influence athletes’ responses during training, its relationship with different load dimensions remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to analyze coach behavior throughout the competitive microcycle and determining its influence on CL, EL and IL. A longitudinal observational descriptive study was conducted over 10 weeks with 12 professional female basketball players. A total of 25 training sessions were analyzed and categorized according to their position within the microcycle (MD-5 to MD-1). EL was assessed using Player Load and Average Player Load (Avg PL) via inertial devices. IL was quantified through TRIMP, RPE, and sRPE. CL was measured using cognitive RPE Cog and sRPE Cog. Coach behavior was coded using the Coaching Behaviour Assessment System (CBAS), grouping behaviors into three categories: SUPPORT, PUNISHMENT, and INSTRUCTION. Kruskal–Wallis tests, Spearman correlations, simple linear regressions, and Mann–Whitney U tests were applied. Significant differences were found between session types for RPE, sRPE, sRPE Cog, and Avg PL (p < 0.05), showing a progressive reduction as match day approached. SUPPORT and INSTRUCTION showed very large correlations with RPE Cog (r=−0.78 and r=+0.79, respectively; p < 0.001), explaining >60% of its variance. PUNISHMENT was significantly associated with both cognitive load and subjective internal load variables. No significant associations were found between coach behavior and objective EL or IL measures. Coach behavior was associated with cognitive load in professional basketball training, independently of task design or microcycle timing. Its monitoring and structured planning may contribute to a more precise and comprehensive management of training loads.

تمرین بسکتبال، مطالبات متعددی را بر ورزشکاران تحمیل می‌کند که می‌توان آن‌ها را به‌عنوان بار خارجی (EL)، بار داخلی (IL) و بار شناختی (CL) طبقه‌بندی کرد. اگرچه رفتار مربی به‌عنوان عاملی تأثیرگذار بر واکنش‌های ورزشکاران در طول تمرین شناخته شده است، اما ارتباط آن با ابعاد مختلف بار تمرینی همچنان به‌خوبی درک نشده است. هدف این مطالعه، تحلیل رفتار مربی در طول میکروسیکل رقابتی و تعیین تأثیر آن بر CL، EL و IL بود. یک مطالعه توصیفی مشاهده‌ای طولی به مدت ۱۰ هفته بر روی ۱۲ بازیکن حرفه‌ای بسکتبال زن انجام شد. در مجموع ۲۵ جلسه تمرینی مورد تحلیل قرار گرفت و بر اساس موقعیت آن‌ها در میکروسیکل (از MD-5 تا MD-1) دسته‌بندی شدند. EL با استفاده از Player Load و میانگین Player Load (Avg PL) از طریق دستگاه‌های اینرسی اندازه‌گیری شد. IL از طریق TRIMP، RPE و sRPE کمی‌سازی گردید. CL با استفاده از RPE Cog شناختی و sRPE Cog اندازه‌گیری شد. رفتار مربی با استفاده از سیستم ارزیابی رفتار مربیگری (CBAS) کدگذاری شد و رفتارها در سه دسته حمایت (SUPPORT)، تنبیه (PUNISHMENT) و آموزش (INSTRUCTION) گروه‌بندی شدند. آزمون‌های Kruskal–Wallis، همبستگی اسپیرمن، رگرسیون خطی ساده و آزمون Mann–Whitney U به کار گرفته شد. تفاوت معناداری بین انواع جلسات برای RPE، sRPE، sRPE Cog و Avg PL (p < 0.05) مشاهده شد که کاهش تدریجی آن‌ها با نزدیک شدن به روز مسابقه را نشان داد. SUPPORT و INSTRUCTION همبستگی بسیار بالایی با RPE Cog (به‌ترتیب r=−0.78 و r=+0.79؛ p < 0.001) نشان دادند و بیش از ۶۰٪ واریانس آن را تبیین کردند. PUNISHMENT با هر دو متغیر بار شناختی و بار داخلی ذهنی به طور معناداری مرتبط بود. هیچ ارتباط معناداری بین رفتار مربی و شاخص‌های عینی EL یا IL مشاهده نشد. رفتار مربی به طور مستقل از طراحی وظیفه یا زمان‌بندی میکروسیکل، با بار شناختی در تمرینات بسکتبال حرفه‌ای مرتبط بود. پایش و برنامه‌ریزی ساختاریافته آن می‌تواند به مدیریت دقیق‌تر و جامع‌تر بارهای تمرینی کمک کند.