Did you see Carmelo Anthony’s dunk on Theo Ratliff? Or Jerome Williams? And what about Francisco Elson?
One of his sickest dunks was the crazy facial over the entire Argentina team on 30.08.2007!
It’s obvious that the Denver Nuggets forward makes a lot of dunks. In fact, the 23-year-old superstar had more dunks (157!) last season than LeBron James (108), Josh Smith (101), Vince Carter (86), Shaquille O’Neil (83), Kobe Bryant (59). ) or Dwyane Wade (59)! Only four players had more dunks than Melo: Chris Wilcox (161), Shawn Marion (169), Amare Stoudemire (180) and Dwight Howard (254).
But in those days, when Carmelo Anthony was selected in the 2003 draft, many people doubted Anthony’s athletic ability, many spoke of being overweight. And they never stopped.
Last summer, the 6-8 forward decided he needed to lose a few extra pounds to get his game back where it needed to be. He followed a strict diet, mainly of fish and vegetables.
“No steak! I was on the fish diet. No carbs.” -Carmel Anthony
The result: Melo lost 15 pounds, slimming down to 225 pounds. with an impressive 8 percent body fat. In addition to normal training, he also worked on his vertical, which is now 35 inches. To get there, Anthony focused primarily on plyometric training—explosive power moves.
Plyometrics works the lengthening contraction of a muscle and then quickly follows it up with a concentric contraction, which has particular benefits for basketball players looking to jump higher and faster.
Here are some examples:
Front box jump:
Stand in front of a sturdy bench or box (use a 12-inch tall one to start with and work your way up to taller boxes). Jump onto it with both feet, landing softly with your knees slightly bent. Go down and repeat.
Side Box Jump:
This time stand with the box or bench to your left side so that you jump over it from the side. Land softly, lower and repeat. Do the second set with the box to your right.
Medicine Ball Jump:
Stand under a basket or next to a wall. Take a medicine ball and hold it above your head. Bend your knees and quickly lower the ball to your waist. Explode upwards as you lift the ball above your head, trying to touch the ball to a target: the hoop, the backboard, the bottom of the net, or a spot on the wall.
Try any of these plyometric moves two to three times a week. Do two sets of five to 10 reps, resting 60 seconds between sets.
For more exercises and crucial things to know about the vertical jump (why often what it “doesn’t” do is more important than what it “does”), take a look at this page. I highly recommend:
