how does playing 20-30m a game wear u out?

you can't compare the intensity and physicality of a pickup game to an NBA game. yes each player is very strong and in very good shape, that means everyone you play against is very strong and in very good shape, they push each other to the limits every night.

 

Chow,

Good NBA players:

1) Play 30-40 minutes a night, and sometimes more than 40.

2) On days off, usually have practice, of at least 2 hours.

3) Usually will lift weights on their off days, and even on game days

4) Play back to back games against some of the strongest athletes in the world.

5) Have a hectic travel schedule. Perfect example was last night. Rockets played Atlanta Friday night, and immediately afterwards, got onto a plane and flew halfway across the country to arrive in Minnesota at 2am in the morning.

So in the end, if you played 2 hours worth of basketball, everyday for at least 180-210 days straight, plus fly at least 80 times during that time, plus lift weights, plus play against strong competiion, then I would bet you would be tired too if not even more so.

 

Have you ever played on a school team? I could play 3 hours straight with my brothers, but even playing a quarter in a game kills me.

There's a lot to do before a game. Sometimes you walk through your plays and offense or have a light practice. Lots of practices and weightlifting sessions during the week take their toll. I'd imagine that traveling 3 states in 4 days would get you tired.

During the game itself, it's a whole lot different than playing a pick-up game. You have to worry about helping out your teammates on defense, running plays properly, actually TRYING the whole time. Running the court is totally different from cherry picking or letting the other team have easy fast break layups. There's just a different feeling around it.

 

this pretty much sms it al up. Playing against strong competition is verry different from playing against weaker players. I played the highest level of basketbal in holland (my team name was Prisma), but i got bad knees and now i play in a smaller club in a team that plays a lot lower. After the games at prisma a was broke down, hurt and verry tired. after the games i play now i could play for another 2 hours. It is verry physical on the nba level. and you will feel verry sore after games. your boddy must heal.

 

If you are tired before you start, you become overtired and never realy fully recover before the next Game or session. This is Yao Mings problem. It was realised prior to his arrival.

 

you are wrong and heres why: everything else everyone has already said is also true, but did you take the time to consider that a 48 minute nba game takes about 2.5-3 hours to play? im pretty sure that when you say you play 2-3 hours with your friends you dont stop time when theres a break.

 

It so so stupid to compare your meaningless pick-up game exploits, high school, or even college career to the pros. Never start a thread with, "When I played.....", the whole premise of your argument is doomed to fail because there is no comparison.

 

Man if I were the moderator I would lock out at least half of the crap up here. Comparing your 2 hours playing time to these guys careers. You also don't carry the load they do of playing for your city, living up to the amount of money they are paid and lets not forget the TRAVELLING!!

 

read the prior posts.. no one compared their pick up games to NBA games.

 

why is this posted in the Rockets Forum?

 

They are talking about the same thing as in this thread: http://bbs.clutchcity.net/php3/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48404

They should be merged.

 

Then what in the hell did the person who started this thread mean when he said "I used to basketball with my friends 2 and 3 hrs every other day....."?

 

Well, I am going to go against the grain here and agree with the original poster.

I have never understood how some of these basketball guys run out of gas soo fast. I think it maybe just an personal endurance issue, or dare i say, a lazy issue (lack of proper training, two sandwiches comes to mind). Some people have more, some less. I see cuttino play forever it seems, and run off the court hopping, and then you see yao bending over after 5 minutes, i would think a lot of it is genetic. I myself, and yes i am comparing myself, have played in some damn intense games in the middle of the summer, 120 degree on the black top, with no water, full court....blah blah blah for hours at a time. And i did this all summer...not just a day and then nothing for a month.

And i know people have said you cant compare yourself to them. But how many times have you heard a player said they didn't play as hard as they should...almost every other night with these rockets it seems. so it isn't like they always go 100 percent all the time either... but again, you may say that is still not the issue.

when they go against some of the strongest players in the world...it is realitive, i think. i assume the player getting tired is just as strong as the other players on the court,...meaning when i play against someone, my strength should be somewhat equal, which is the same for nba players, so it should cancel each other out. and the extra weight training during the season is supposed to help them....not make them tired, i hope. if it did that...then why would they do it. because no matter how strong you are...if you are tired...it doesn't help.

also, lets take the minutes that they normally play...an average player plays around 30 minutes for one game. that includes...10 timeouts....half time...free throws....and the talking to the refs....blah blah blah, that is a lot of breaks. and yes breaks do help you when you play, that is why they take them, so when i play nonstop for hours....i think that is a little harder then if i took soo many breaks, with the best trainers in the world watching you, best liquids available, best food, massages everyday, best equipment, whirepools... advise on how to prepare for a game...and also doing nothing else all day but play ball...instead of coming from work all day...and then having to play. meaning they may play a higher level of basketball, but the lux. offered to them to get ready for a game is sooo much more than i have ever had access too.

and when they travel may be the only excuse sometimes...also when they travel...they have everything done for them...it isn't the same as a normal person, they have the trainers and stuff take their heavy stuff...the get driven around...the best food, hotel rooms, plane rides are all first class, the best entertainment along the way....i think they sometimes use that as an excuse, because the way they travel, it is easier than when i have to go to work sometimes. and if you know houston traffic.....

so when a player plays 30 minutes over a 2-3 hours span, he is acutally only playing one fifth of the time...so the other time, he is just chilling...or resting...or standing there. which is a looot of relaxing time.

but i just think it boils down to a persons individuals endurance level...some people have it...steve, cuttino..and some people dont. or some people are just too lazy to get into shape, which is why i never understood why certain players getting tired so fast..mmmm???

either way...nice chatting with yall! the rockets are going to kick the floppers from hell booty!

 

This topic has piqued my interest (doesn't usually happen, I'm just a lurker by nature) and so I will go on to RESPOND RESPOND REPLY! sorry beforehand if i miss anything

I've also wondered the same thing, but I think I have a pretty logical explanation. Aerobic and anaerobic exercise make all the difference in the world when you play basketball. When you play pickup ball, whether in the scorching sun, or out in the cold, often you are not pushing yourself to your limit. In biological terms, you do not need to push your body to produce lactic acid and "waste energy" by overworking your system.

You're right, I'm just going to use it to make a point I guess.

I know the pros are a whole different story but... my 2 cents
I used to play strictly pick-up ball when I was younger, and I could play all day (once from 8AM to like 8PM) in searing 90+ houston weather and still have some energy to play. So i wondered how the pros could be that much worse.

I got on a basketball team in high school, and had to run the point. I have TREMENDOUS respect for Francis. Number 1, if the way we trained in high school is any indicator of the pros, then the pros must be a living hell during practice. Number 2, the live game forces you to play at a higher level than you can sustain for long periods of time. Even if you catch your second and even third "winds", the lactic acid buildup becomes immense. After most games, it would take maybe 5 days of rest and light practice to fully recover.

Number 4 - I was CONDITIONED during this time. Every other day I would run cross country like no other. 6 of 7 weekdays would be about 2-3 hours of basketball practice which on cross country days would occus right after running ten kilometers. On top of this I would lift weights on weekends. Due to my relatively short height at the time 5'7" (only 5'9" now) I needed this conditioning to stay on the team.

There is truth to this statement. Like I said, the anaerobic exercise in a game is almost completely unrelated to physical endurance. From experience the only difference between players is in the mental part of the game, ie. who can push their limits at the right times and for longer periods of time.

I have also noticed this. However, I guess the problem here is that Yao has the special case of non-stop basketball for a much longer period of time, plus though this doesn't hold much weight, although some of the hardest people to guard are at the two spot, I have often found it the least energy demanding position to play. When I did run the two upon RARE occasion, I found it much easier.

sorry, but I have to disagree again. Breaks help, but in hard games it's almost as if they trick the body into thinking that your "flight or flight" response that is needed to let you perform in a game can shut down. Often breaks throw off momentum. Its very similar even in aerobic exercise like long distance running, if you ever try running for 6 k and hit your third wind, you may feel like you can run forever, but once you stop, you're out. And if you force yourself to run again after that, your body responds worse than had you not.


I just have to put this in.

Number 5 - Francis doesn't get enough credit. He is the man. No he is the BEAST. To play at his level of play every game night in night out and not really level off AT THE POINT is amazing to me. I could run the point incredibly one game, but it would cost me in the long run, so I learned to pace myself in games and save it for the big ones. Bringing the ball up the floor is hard in that EVERY trip down, someone is looking to steal the ball and contest you at least a little bit every trip down the court. While fending off your defender you often have to look to get the ball into good position to set up a play and guard the ball until the play is set

Number 6 - Yao Ming gets credit, but he MUST be tired. Being a big man is hard. I may never have been a big man, but I honestly think they do the most work on a team. They don't always have to run the floor, on fast breaks, but they are often the ones with the most defensive and offensive responsibility. Good teams almost always have a good big man, and will use that inside game, period. So good teams usually win or lose games on their inside game. Mediocre teams often live or die by the jumpshot. Bad teams just suck.

and

Pretty much sum this up, I guess all I'm saying is that from my experience, no amount of conditioning will make me or people I know immune to wear and tear, and therefore it must be so much more for pro NBA players.

 

When i say a pick up game...i mean a game in which i push myself to the limit. but that is how i played....if you didn't, then you were the one i would be frustrated with because your man keeps beating you down the court, and i had to cover two people, hehe, just because you are not pro doesn't mean you dont go all out. some of the games that i have played in my life have been very serious and important to me, regardless if i was pro or not. so yes, my games that i have played in the summer with the heat ....does count as a similar reference, in my eyes at least. but if you count a pick up game where you half-booty it, then no, it doesn't.

also, you can NOT compare running events with basketball. i ran track all distances as well, and trained everyday...but basketball is totally different. that is a timed event where when you stop does make a difference, so it is important for your body not to cool down, whereas basketball is a start stop sport...very different in terms of endurance.

i equate basketball to tennis. a start and stop all the time sport. i have played up to 7 matches before in one day, and if you were not allowed the breaks inbetween games, i think people would die half the time. and that is with playing at least 3 hours of tennis everyday just about for months before the tournament.

again, i think certain people have stamina and some dont...or some are just lazy...because it isn't just steve who plays forever and doesn't seem to get tired, that is most of the guards in the league..at least the ones who are worth a darn, also certain other players as well, such as karl malone last night...who at almost 40 kicked some butt at the end of the game, when he should be most tired.

anyways....good topic...cant believe the rockets lost again...grr. merry christmas everyone!