title: Morphological and physiological profile of elite basketball players in Belgian.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The current study aimed to gain insight into the physiological profile of elite basketball players in Belgium in relation to their position on the field.
  
  
  METHODS
  The group consisted of 144 players, divided into 5 groups according to position (point guards [PGs], shooting guards [SGs], small forwards [SFs], power forwards [PFs], and centers [Cs]). The anthropometrics were measured and the subjects underwent fitness tests (incremental running test, 10-m sprint, 5 ×-10 m, squat and countermovement jump, isokinetic test) to obtain insight into endurance, speed, agility, and power. The parameters of these tests were compared among the different positions by means of 1-way variance analysis (MANOVA). Tukey post hoc tests were performed in case of a significant MANOVA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  It was observed that Cs were taller and heavier and had a higher percentage body fat than PGs and SGs. For the anaerobic sprint test Cs were slower than the other positions. For the 5 × 10-m the PGs and SGs were faster than SFs and PFs. For the jump test Cs displayed a significantly lower absolute performance than the other positions. PGs and SGs had a higher VO(2peak) and speed at the anaerobic threshold than PFs and Cs. The isokinetic strength test showed that the quadriceps muscle group of Cs could exert a higher torque during knee extension than the other positions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The current study showed that the physiological profile of elite players in the Belgian first division differs by player position. More specifically, guards were characterized by high endurance, speed, and agility, whereas centers and power forwards had higher muscle strength than the other positions.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Movement and Sport Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Boone
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bourgois
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D056352:Athletes; D001490:Basketball / Q000502:physiology*; D001530:Belgium; D001827:Body Height / Q000502:physiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005080:Exercise Test; D006801:Humans; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000097:blood; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D010807:Physical Endurance / Q000502:physiology; D012885:Skinfold Thickness
chemical_list: D019344:Lactic Acid