Basketball Medicine (Ball)

Beth Biscoff

One of the reasons I write this blog is to support the idea that there should be a specialty devoted to the science and practice of optimizing health, preventing injury, and enhancing the performance of basketball players.

There's already the STMS (The Society for Tennis Medicine and Science). There should be an SBMS (Society for Basketball Medicine and Science) as well, don't you think? I do, but we're getting off the subject here...........

Usually, when I want to see what other folks are up to, I perform a google search for "basketball medicine" . What comes up? Well, this blog, for one, but otherwise, mostly ads for medicine balls that can be used in training for basketball (and an ocassional reference to the Medicine Hat College Women's Basketball Team - Go Rattlers).


It's time to recognize the use of Medicine Ball Drills for basketball training.

And, personal allegiances aside, I can think of no better person to offer a list of medicine ball drills for basketball than Jonas Sahratian, the Strength and Conditioning Coordinator of the UNC Men's Basketball team.


Here's a link to the article that appeared last year in Men's Health.

Remember, though, this workout is really for older (ages 16+ for girls and 18+ for boys) players who are more physically mature. If you're in that older age group and want to increase your core strength, and power - this would be a good addition to your current workouts. Start slow, increase your load, and measure your results (how you feel, how you move, how you improve your performance on the court).

What's the Best Mouth Guard for Basketball?

Associated Press


After my post lamenting the fact that many NBA players still "don't get it" when it comes to wearing a mouth guard, one of my readers asked a great question - which mouth guard would I recommend?

A while back, I wrote about the most common types of mouth guards out there.
A little while later (and after more than 35 years of playing basketball without one- yeah, I'm old) I decided that I'd have to buy my own mouth guard to avoid being a hypocritical "do as I say, not as I do" advice-giver.

I knew that a simple plastic mouth guard wouldn't work (I'd seen too many people gagging and drooling while wearing one) so I went and bought a Shock Doctor brand "boil and bite" type mouth guard from the local Dick's Sporting Goods store . After following the directions to make a custom fit, I used it for the next month or so. It was OK, but not completly comfortable and sometimes made it hard to call out picks/switches, etc.

Finally, I went to my local dentist and had them make an impression of my bite. They sent this out to a company and a few weeks later, I returned to their office to have my custom-molded mouth guard fit. At first, it felt pretty much like the boil and bite I was using before, but, after they trimmed it a few times, it slipped over my upper teeth, fell easily into place, and hardly felt like it was there. Total cost was around $150.

Needless to say, I've been most happy with my mouth guard, wear it when I play, and have been thankful that I was wearing it on several occasions when an errant(?) elbow hit my mouth.

Now I know that not everybody can afford a custom molded mouth guard from their dentist, and I know that younger players might outgrow several pairs of mouth guards, having to buy new ones every so often. I also know there are other options, like Sportsguard Custom Mouthguards where you make your own mold, send it off to the company, and then get your personalized mouth guard in the mail a few weeks later. It's less expensive ($55-$65), and is an option for those do-it-yourself ballers.

So what's the best option for you? Every dentist will tell you that the only one that works well is the custom-made guard from your dentist's office. While I agree with them, not everyone can afford this. Bottom-line - "The best mouth guard is the one that's worn".

So, while I'd recommend getting a custom-made mouth guard from your dentist, you've got to try the different types out yourself and decide.

Tough Break

Ric Tapia/Icon SMI

Best wishes for a speedy recovery go out to Aussie guard Patty Mills, a good person and an excellent ballplayer who broke his right 5th metatarsal bone last week before the NBA Summer League even began.

While Portland Trailblazer releases stated that they wouldn't know how long he might be out until after his surgery (performed yesterday- no news yet), I'd hazard a guess that he sustained a Jones fracture (one of three ways/locations where you can break the 5th metatarsal bone), which can require placement of a screw followed by 6-8 weeks of recovery before returning to the court.

Mills, who had an unrelated metacarpal (bone in the hand) fracture earlier this year, is still young, relatively small and light (less pounding over time) and still has great potential. Here's hoping this unfortunate break only delays an eventually successful NBA career.

The Lakers Have No 'Guards

Mouth guards, that is.

A few weeks ago, a reader wrote " Hi. I've seen a few of your blog posts on the importance of wearing mouthguards. I even got one myself a few months ago. Now, in watching the NBA Finals, I made a point of counting the number of players who were wearing mouthguards. And.. I only counted two: Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis. I didn't see anybody else. What gives?

Knowing that several players wear clear mouth guards that aren't easy to spot, I decided to first find out if this reader's count was true.

After speaking with the Head Athletic Trainers for both the Lakers and the Magic (special thanks to Gary Vitti and Tom Smith for their time), I was disappointed to hear that only 4 players on the Magic (Jameer Nelson, Rashard Lewis, Adonal Foyle & Tony Battie) wear mouth guards on a regular basis. (I was also impressed by the readers astute observation).

Worse, NONE of the LA Lakers wear mouth guards! (Not even Pau Gasol who has braces on his teeth and is just one elbow away from some severe lip shredding).

I learned that several Lakers (including Kobe) have tried wearing mouth guards but have chosen not to wear them.

So What gives?

If they're like their counterparts in other countries (where research has been done to better understand why professional basketball players choose to not wear mouth guards), it's either because they feel they can't breath, speak, or play as well when their mouthguards in place.

And what about professional football players (who all wear mouthguards), boxers, and other sports where everyone uses mouthguards? They wear them because they are required to and, more importantly, have worn them since they were young (and hence, they've gotten used to the feeling).

To be honest, I'm disappointed that so few players on these two teams wear mouth guards. I wish they had the foresight to protect themselves from some serious harm, but it's a free country and, for now at least, the NBA, NCAAA, NHSAA and AAU don't require it (but maybe they should start - Research has shown that dental injuries in basketball happen 13 times more often than dental injuries in football).

It would be interesting to do some research on NBA players and their use (and feelings about using) mouth guards during practice and games. If there are any aspiring dental researchers out there, send me an e-mail at pdrehab@med.unc.edu

Happy Father's Day

I had the pleasure of being involved in the Eric Montross Father's Day Basketball Camp this past week. Eric and Laura Montross have been running the camp for 15 years, with proceeds benefitting the North Carolina Children's Hospital (a great cause).

The best thing about this camp is that it allows both the children (boys and girls) as well as their fathers, to participate in the drills, games, meals, etc.

I and some of our resident physicians, along with volunteers from the camp, ran the (younger) campers through stations similar to what college athletes are asked to do at the NBA Combine each year.

In 50 minutes of "well-controlled chaos", the boys and girls were measured (height, wingspan), tested (vertical jump, 3/4 court sprint, lane agility, flexibility) and given a peek at their future (estimated adult heights).

I got to calculate their adult heights (based on a multiplier-method formula) and enjoyed seeing the happiness in the eyes of those who were told that they would be taller than their mom/dad.

I expect that most of the father's were equally happy when their children shared this information with them. After all, don't all parents hope that their children will outgrow, outperform, out-do them as adults?

Happy Father's Day to you all.

Eat Your Wheaties(?)

An article that just came out in the Journal of the International Society for Sports Nutrition touts the advantages of eating Wheaties after a workout, saying it helps the body recover from exercise better than a sports drink.

In their recent (May 14) article entitled Cereal and nonfat milk support muscle recovery following exercise, researchers from the Exercise Physiology and Metabolism Laboratory at The University of Texas at Austin examined the effects of eating cereal and (nonfat) milk or a sports drink immediately following exercise on the body's ability to make glycogen (muscle fuel) and protein (a building block for muscle growth).

In the experiment subjects either drank two 20-ounce bottles of a 6% carbohydrate sports drink or ate a bowl (73 grams) of Wheaties with 350 ml nonfat milk (and some additional water).

The subjects then exercised by riding stationary bicycles and blood and muscle tissue studies were performed before and after they ate/drank either the cereal and milk or the sports drink to analyze how well their muscles recovered from the exercise.

The authors concluded that their results "suggest that Cereal is as good as a commercially-available sports drink in initiating post-exercise muscle recovery." and went on to say the "readily available foods such as cereal and nonfat milk can provide postexercise supplementation and be used in lieu of a commercially-available sports drink after moderate exercise. Cereal and nonfat milk provide a less expensive whole food option as compared to sports drinks. It also provides easily digestible and quality protein in the milk, which could promote protein synthesis and training adaptations, unlike a carbohydrate sports drink. This is a potential option for individuals who refuel at home".


OK. I agree with all that they say, but let's take a closer look at the real-world implications.
While this may be an option for people who run/bike and finish their workout at home, not every basketball player is going to be that close to a cupboard and refrigerator when they're out on the court or at a tournament.

More importantly, the authors aren't really comparing eating cereal and milk to the "gold standard" recovery drinks that include protein (and not just carbohydrate-only drinks like in this study).
And what about just plain old chocolate milk?

To their credit, the authors admit that "Although muscle response during recovery to a carbohydrate-protein drink may be similar to that seen after whole-grain cereal and nonfat milk, we chose to compare a carbohydrate-only drink."

Why?

Because "Recreational athletes may be more familiar with carbohydrate drinks due to high product awareness and accessibility, and may not understand the benefit of added protein in post-exercise supplementation."

I think that's taking it a little out there, but it's understandable that a conclusion like this would be reached in a study that was supported by Wheaties and the General Mills Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition.

While this may be true for many recreational athletes, I hope that readers of this blog will know better and will understand the difference between sports drinks that rehydrate and "recovery drinks".

One other implication of using cereal and milk to refuel - it usually takes the stomach longer to process/digest solid foods like cereal than it does liquids. So think twice about eating cereal and milk if you don't have much time between games of a tournament, unless you don't mind cramping up on the court.

All that being said, I think that Wheaties and milk is an excellent option for breakfast (and late night snacks).

Breakfast of Champions? Absolutely.
The best Post-exercise recovery option? I'm not convinced.

P.S. - Congratulations to the 2008-2009 UNC Men's Basketball Team. I guess the Wheaties Box pictured above needs to be updated to 6-Time National Champions (5 men's and 1 women's).

Wayman Tisdale

ESPN.COM

Time to get back into it.

It's been 3 months (to the day) since my last blog post. On January 15, 2009, I wrote about Coach Kay Yow and her battle against Breast Cancer. The post was written from my father's hospital bedside as he was recovering from surgery to treat his pancreatic cancer.

Unfortunately, the cancer had progressed too far by that time and he decided to forego chemotherapy and entered hospice care. I and the rest of my family took time off from our other pursuits to be with him and my mother and to make sure that he was comfortable.

Last month, he died peacefully at his home, and I began to mourn his loss.

I wasn't sure when I'd feel ready to start writing about basketball medicine again. It's a topic I love to think about and discuss, but it just didn't feel right to return to it. The piles of related research articles and papers grew on my desk as I waited for the time that it felt right to return to this blog.

Now's the time.

I previously wrote about Mr Tisdale in an earlier post. As I learned more about him, I realized that this was a man who contributed in many different ways, not just on the basketball court.

In an AP News article from today, the Governor of the State of Oklahoma said, "Wayman Tisdale was a hero both on and off the basketball court. ... Even in the most challenging of times, he had a smile for people, and he had the rare ability to make everyone around him smile. He was one of the most inspirational people I have ever known."

Kirk Whalum, a jazz saxaphonist who worked with Tisdale, described him as "a big guy with a big sound and just an incredibly warm and gentle heart. "

That's the kind of person you want to have in your life, not just on the court. And the world is a better place when people like him can excel in basketball, and use that noteriety to touch people's lives.

It touched mine today. Having been born in the same year as Mr Tisdale, his life, cut too short, motivates me to get back into it now and do what I can to help others enjoy, participate, and learn from the game of basketball.

May he rest in peace (and harmony).