Footwork is an essential part of basketball and I have seen the most un-athletic basketball players have the longest careers just because they have great foot work. To this day I still see some of my old buddies tearing up rep basketball players because of footwork.
Throughout my college career in USA plyometric and footwork drills were drummed into us. It was a massive focus to be nimble and getting our body moving in its optimal motion. Perfect way of doing this was with a training ladder.
After college playing in the semi pro ranks I noticed this type of training was totally ignored. There were some clubs that focused on it during preseason but after that it wasn’t given a second thought.
In 2006 prior to me returning to Westernport to play in the Country Basketball League. I enlisted the help of a trainer. I just wanted to get back to some strength and agility training much like what I was doing in USA. One of the first things he made me do every session was to run the ladder. Few months into my agility training I saw immense improvement on the speed of my first step and vertical. Yes, other training played its part but the one constant thing I did every strength and agility session was to hit the training ladder.
In 2010 after my last official season in Europe, I ended my agility training with my personal trainer. Long story short, there was a bit of friction between us due to his new girlfriend. I felt that he wasn’t being professional enough and I took my training serious so I left. Apologies for airing some dirty laundry but I want to stay honest with you.
No trainer, no equipment but with years of training experience in my head. What do I do? I still wanted to work on my agility. So, I decided to make the first purchase of my agility equipment. I decided to buy the SKLZ Quick Ladder from Eastbay.
The SKLZ ladder includes a handy carry bag to store and carry the ladder and most importantly for the novices; a DVD with drills and instructions. Not that it matters in the age of YouTube when anyone can view thousands of drills online.
To this day the ladder serves me well and every Sunday it is the main focus of my training. The SKLZ ladder is very durable; I have used it both indoors and outdoors. For use on sand or grass there are mounting pegs much like tent pegs lock the ladder in place; preventing any movement. Although it is simply a rope ladder just for training sake it is money well worth spent to get the real thing. The spacing of the squares is accurate to the millimetre. This is important to me as we do some lunge jumps that require a certain form of rhythm.
The horizontal plastic sections of the ladder are flat which is great when footwork isn’t as sharp; it is very easy to get back into rhythm.
Since purchasing this ladder my footwork especially on defence has been quick. Advancing to running ladder drills with the basketball makes it more specific to the game. Footwork on cross overs since incorporating the basketball has been noticeably sharper.
This is one of my personal must have tools for any aspiring basketball player. Purchase price of the ladder is fairly cheap too. Eastbay has it for US$29.99 and the reviews on the ladder there seems very positive.
Thanks for taking the time to read my post. As I have mentioned in the product review section the products I review and recommend I have no affiliation with. I do not get paid or get any benefit from writing the review on my blog.
Additionally, if you are in the Melbourne area and would like to jump into one of our ladder training sessions. I run classes at In2Fitness every Sunday at 10:30am FREE OF CHARGE. If you want to help your game, feel free to join us. Just use the Ask A Question section to book in your session.
