Speed and throwing the ball are related to jump capacity and skeletal muscle mass in university basketball players

Background: Speed and throw ball in basketball players are determinant skills for basketball performance. The purpose of this study was to determinate the relationship between speed and throw the ball with jump capacity and body composition in university basketball players. Methods: A comparative descriptive study with transversal design and a quantitative approach was performed. Seventeen male University basketball players (age = 23.60±3.45 years, height = 180.41±7.99 cm and Body Mass = 86.48±20.07 Kg) completed the following test: throwing the ball (m/s), handgrip strength (kg), speed 5-20 m (i.e., with and without the ball), jumping and reactive strength. Likewise, anthropometric variables and body composition were evaluated. Results: A very high correlation was found between the throw ball and the skeletal muscle mass (r=0.810, P<0.001) dominant handgrip strength (r=0.709, P<0.001) and non-dominant handgrip strength (r=0.610, P<0.01). The throw ball reported association with skeletal muscle mass (r2=0.67, P<0.001, 67% of the variance). Significant differences were found in speed with and without the ball at 10 m (P=0.003, ES=-0.854), 15 m (P=<001, ES=-1.548) and 20 m (P=<001, ES=-1.644). The speed of displacement without ball correlated high with the countermovement jump (CMJ) (r=-0.530, P≤0.05) Abalakov (r=-0.586, P≤0.05) and Drop Jump (DJ) (r=-0.685, P≤0.01) in the first 5 m. Conclusions: The speed and throwing of the ball are associated with jumping capacity and skeletal muscle mass. Therefore, it is necessary to work these capacities in the university basketball player to improve performance.