Preferences and levels of satisfaction in technical and tactical actions and in type of offense and defense utilized in competition by youth basketball players

Abstract

The purposes of the present study are: a) to assess which technical and tactical actions of the game youth basketball players like to do in competition at different learning stages, b) to find out how much they like to play offense and defense, c) to assess the type of offense and defense that they prefer to execute, and d) to record the basic tactical team resources (BTTR) that are most requested by the youth player at different learning stages. The sample was composed of 989 youth basketball players who participate in the Spanish Basketball Federation leagues (60.1% from mini-basketball and 39.9% from the under-14 category). The results indicate that in competition: a) the action that players most like to execute is the shot, b) players prefer to be on offense than defense, c) the defensive game system that players most enjoy is man-on-man defense, d) players prefer pre-established offensive systems as opposed to open systems, and e) basic tactical team resources players most enjoy are give-and-go, clear-outs, and penetrate and dish. These data may serve as a reference when doing short-, medium-, and long-term planning. In any case, it is necessary for coaches to combine the preferences of the players with the actual needs of each learning stage.