Does Basketball Make You Taller?

Ever since I was young, I’ve loved basketball. There’s something so exciting about dribbling down the court, looking for an open teammate to pass to, or taking a shot yourself to score some points. I’ve spent countless hours practicing my ball handling, shooting, and playing pickup games. However, as much as I enjoyed the sport, I always wondered – does basketball make you taller?

It’s no secret that many professional basketball players are incredibly tall. When you see stars like LeBron James or Kevin Durant up close, they seem towering compared to a regular person. Naturally, this makes you question if the hours they’ve put into training and developing their basketball skills over the years have somehow contributed to their impressive heights. Or is height purely determined by genetics?

As an aspiring basketball player still growing, I was eager to find an answer to this question. Does playing basketball really make you taller in the long run? In this post, I’ll be taking an in-depth look at this topic to separate fact from fiction.

Does Basketball Make You Taller?

Unfortunately, for those seeking to boost height, no evidence to date implies basketball—or any form of physical activity—has a statistically significant impact on maximizing height.

Genetics primarily dictate one’s height potential, while environmental elements like childhood and adolescent nutrition secondarily influence proximity to genetic height potential.

The promising information is that despite no scientifically proven effect on height itself, playing basketball provides a wealth of additional advantages establishing it as a superb option for both youth and adults.

No scientific evidence supports the idea basketball increases your height, and this lack of evidence is not due to a lack of research.

The sport of basketball has been around for a while, and plenty of research has analyzed its effects on physical parameters.

For example, a recent study looked at the effects of 10 weeks of basketball training on youth anthropometric and physiological characteristics. It observed improvements in lean body mass, jump height, grip strength, and other athletic performance.

Additional research on adults found that recreational basketball improved various health metrics, such as blood pressure and body fat percentages, after several months of play.

Although these specific studies were not specifically meant to assess changes in height, any theoretical height increases would have been noted, as this data was collected from participants.

The point is that basketball is not an understudied sport, so it’s fairly safe to assume that any research on basketball and height would be well-published and publicized.

You can further assess the potential effect of basketball and height by breaking down the sport’s athletic movements and looking for research on whether these activities have the potential to increase height.

Basketball as a sport relies heavily on the following movements, all of which have been well studied for their effects on human physiology:

• running and sprinting
• jumping
• changes of direction
• overhead tossing
• chest passing

If you expand your search to studies that have looked at these athletic skills, there’s still a lack of evidence supporting height gains from training programs incorporating exercises in these categories.

Although scientific discoveries can always change the potential evidence supporting the causes and effects of various exercise programs, no evidence supports basketball or any other physical activity intervention as a means to increase height.

How Can You Possibly Grow Taller in Basketball?

When puberty hits you, your height will grow at the fastest rate in the following two years. Puberty usually lasts between two and five years for most teenagers. But if your growth plates are still open, you have a pretty good chance of naturally growing taller.

Playing basketball regularly during your growing years, especially puberty, will promote bone growth and bone strength, thus accelerating your height development. Combine your basketball games with stretching exercises as well to foster good health and flexible muscles.

What’s more, you should be mindful of your daily nutrition as it is the most powerful external factor influencing how tall you become. In other words, if you rely heavily on junk food instead of a balanced diet, you can’t reach your full height potential. As a result, you should ensure your body acquires enough essential nutrients to grow at an optimal rate and achieve its genetically predetermined height.

In addition to nutrition, proper sleep is extremely important during development. Good sleep facilitates the release of growth hormones responsible for height growth. Not only will you feel refreshed upon waking but you also grow taller after sleeping well. Therefore, aim for at least 8 hours of sleep per day and avoid staying up late.

Leading a healthy lifestyle will also help you add inches to your height. Stay away from smoking, alcohol, and drugs to maximize height gain.

What Is the Best Age to Play Basketball?

There are no set rules regarding the age to start playing basketball. However, here is a categorization of the age groups, that can help in fine-tuning the playing skills.

Ages 5-7: This early age is best to teach fundamental movement skills like running, jumping, throwing, catching, balance, and coordination through fun games and drills. It lays the groundwork without pressure.

Ages 8-10: Children at this stage are ready for more structured skill work on dribbling, passing, shooting form, and teamwork. Their bodies are developing rapidly so they learn new skills quickly.

Ages 11-13: During early adolescence, basketball can be introduced more competitively while still prioritizing development. Athletic abilities increase and kids can understand tactics.

Ages 14-16: As teenagers go through puberty, their bodies change dramatically. This can be a prime time for competitive playing and specialization if an athlete is highly engaged.

Ages 17-20: During high school and early college, players have usually mastered basic skills and may focus on advanced techniques, conditioning, leadership, and positioning for higher levels.

So while kids as young as 5 can start casually, the general consensus is ages 8-13 are best to lay strong technical and tactical foundations, develop a passion for the sport, and avoid burnout or injury. Professional potential usually emerges between 14-20 with consistent, long-term development.

What Positions Are Likely to Improve Height?

Here are some thoughts on which basketball positions may be best to improve height while playing:

Center: This is the tallest position on the court, usually 6’6″ or taller. Playing center encourages growth towards the height needed for the position through posture, verticality, and competing against big opponents.

Power Forward: Just slightly shorter than center at around 6’4-6’8″, power forward allows for a physical style of play under the basket like rebounding and interior scoring that could stimulate growth.

Small Forward: Historically 6’4-6’8″, small forward involves a lot of high-intensity jumping and provides strong encouragement to maximize height through athletic development.

Point Guard: While the smallest position at around 6’0-6’3″, point guard still demands leaping ability for layups/dunks and verticality contesting shots. It doesn’t directly emphasize height but maintains an active physique.

In general, positions like center, power forward, and small forward that focus gameplay around the rim and require contention for rebounds offer the strongest incentives to reach one’s genetic height potential. Meanwhile, any position that keeps a body active through jumping, running, and conditioning can positively aid the physical maturation process.

Effective Ways That May Increase Height Through Basketball

Here are some effective ways basketball may help increase height through proper growth and development:

Strengthening exercises – Plays that build leg muscles through jumping, pivoting, layups, etc. can promote growth plate stimulation in long bones. This includes squats, calf raises, and lunges.

Safe posture drills – Stretching, learning to stand/land tall, and avoiding slouching reinforces straight spine habits that allow the body to fully utilize height potential.

Proper nutrition – A diet with enough calories, proteins, calcium, and vitamins D/K is vital during adolescent growth spurts. Basketball burns calories so sufficient fuel intake is important.

Adequate rest – Getting enough quality sleep allows the body and growth plates time to recover and rebuild. Tiredness can negatively impact the hormone releases tied to height increases.

Managing stress injuries – Overuse injuries that cause inflammation near growth plates may theoretically stunt their activity. Coaches should help players train and specialize appropriately for their stage of development to avoid such issues.

Genetics – No amount of basketball will overcome non-height genes, but the sport can maximize environmental factors to fully unlock one’s natural height cap set by heredity when started at a young age.

Basketball Exercises to Help Beginners Increase Their Height

Focusing on compound lower-body exercises along with supplementary full-body moves can constructively support a beginner player’s ongoing development without high injury risk. Here are some recommended basketball exercises for beginners to potentially help increase their height:

Jumping rope – Jumping rope is a low-impact full-body exercise that promotes vertical leaping ability. It stimulates growth plates in the legs.

Calf raises – Standing or seated, this targets the calf muscles to aid jumping power. Strong calves support the body during leaps and landings.

Squats – Back squats work the legs, glutes, and core. Deep squats put the body in proper alignment to utilize full height potential.

Lunges – Walking, backwards and side lunges challenge balance and stability while strengthening leg muscles used in basketball movements.

Pushups – Including inclined variations, pushups help develop an athletic chest, shoulders, and triceps for handling the physicality of the sport.

Pullups – An advanced bodyweight exercise, pull-ups prepare the back for rebounding and contesting shots at the rim.

Planks – Isometric holds like side, front, and back planks engage the core and hips for protection during jumps and changes of direction.

Stretching – Static and dynamic stretches keep muscle groups and the spine flexible to allow the body to fully extend during play.

In Summary

While genetics is the primary determinant of human height, regularly playing basketball during adolescence may provide some benefits to growth. The physical activity involved in basketball, such as running, jumping, and strength-building movements, can stimulate growth plate and hormone activity in teens. 

Maintaining healthy nutrition with enough calories and key vitamins/minerals, as well as proper sleep, are also important for achieving maximum height potential. While basketball alone will not override one’s genes, establishing good habits through the sport may slightly help maximize a person’s genetic potential if they stay actively involved throughout puberty. 

More research is still needed, but basketball appears to provide modest supplementary support to the height attainment process for many growing youths.