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Featured Application: This work provides a collection of validated basketball-related field tests and test packages intended to aid coaches and other experts in the selection of tests and the building of testing protocols. In addition to collecting study results using these tests, practical advice on test planning and execution is also given to help with the correct application of field tests. We conducted a review to collect the validated basketball-specific physical field tests and to provide practical advice for their appropriate selection and application. A comprehensive electronic literature search was performed via three electronic databases (PubMed, GoogleScholar, and SportDiscuss). Results of 93 studies provided recommendations for seven test packages and eighteen individual tests that have already been validated for basketball players. Although there is a lack of standardized, widely, and systematically used test protocols for testing the fitness levels of basketball players, standardized, normative data from NBA Combine Testing and other basketball-specific tests have the potential to help coaches compare their players with elite basketball players. Our review indicated that agility and reactive agility are fundamental skills in basketball; however, linear sprinting ability should not be considered a determining factor of success for basketball players. Finally, the countermovement jump test can help experts monitor fatigue, loss of explosive force, and interlimb asymmetries. In general, we found that identifying and developing a talented player is a complex task and requires experts from different fields, including trainers, coaches, performance- and movement analyzers, and physiotherapists. We found that during the testing of basketball players, experts always have to normalize their data with anthropometric measures for valid results. Most importantly, although experts always need to define an aim of testing and should follow the protocol of the chosen test, they also have to be open to making adjustments if the actual circumstances require it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Basketball is one of the most popular team sports in the world. A wide variety of athletic skills can be valuable indicators of a talented player. Testing these skills help trainers and scouts to make the best decisions during both youth and adult player selection of different competitive levels and field positions. However, scientific data regarding the association between field tests results and match statistics is sparse. We conducted a systematic review to logically summarize the physical field tests of athletic abilities and anthropometric measures used in basketball in different player positions at different levels, and to determine whether test results may correlate with match statistics. A comprehensive electronic literature search was performed via three electronic databases (PubMed, GoogleScholar, SportDiscus). The CASP checklist was used for checking the quality of reporting for all included articles. Based on 39 studies, it could be supported that the agility, speed and jumping test values seem to be crucial measures for basketball players. Anthropometry appeared to be the strongest discriminative factor between basketball positions, therefore, these values need to be significantly considered during selection. Moreover, the maturity status is also an important influencing factor for U-18 teams. In general, we found that successful players can be identified by their nonplanned agility and reactive power, considering that these factors affect match outcomes the most at the same competitive level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]