Evaluation of Leg Joint Injury Risk Following Aerial Basketball Catching Movements

The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the risk of lower-extremity injury during landing, after catching a basketball in the air for a rebound or a steal. A total of 32 (15 females and 17 males) recreational basketball players were asked to perform 4 different arm-reaching movements during the flight phase: no reaching, left (LAR), right (RAR), and bilateral (BAR) arm reaching. Knee and hip flexion and abduction angles at initial ground contact, peak ground reaction force within 100 milliseconds after contact, and peak moments for the hip and knee joints were analyzed. LAR, RAR, and BAR showed significantly smaller peak hip and knee flexion angles, while LAR demonstrated a significant increase in the knee's peak abduction angle. Furthermore, the peak abduction moments of LAR were significantly increased in both males and females. Aerial basketball catching movements resulted in stiffer leg joints and larger knee abduction during landing, which was a potential factor in increasing the risk of lower-limb injury upon landing. It is recommended to include a softer landing technique and implement a training program for enhancing knee joint stabilization in the frontal plane.