Player injuries are a blemish on any sport, and basketball is no different. In terms of injury prevention, it’s easy to look no further than just a simple warm-up, some muscle stretches and then a cool-down. These are no doubt useful, but they simply don’t cut it when the insane physical stresses of professional sport are factored in. However, for the NBA- specifically the Miami Heat- injury prevention technology is now stepping up to the plate.
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In search of injury prevention and to monitor their players in more detail, the Miami Heat have partnered with VERT. VERT produces wearable jumping technology, allowing users to analyze the factors associated with strenuous jumping. Earlier this year, VERT announced the launch of VERT2, their new device to capture jump load, jump count, and even G-force. Which is of course ideal for an NBA team to track.
This range of analytics, plus many others, are transmitted through a small, stable and discrete unit attached to the athlete’s body. And, most importantly given the hectic schedule of the NBA, the information is transmitted to the analyst in real-time.
The Heat’s General Manager and Senior Vice President, Andy Elisburg, is certainly optimistic. “VERT is cutting edge. It is next-generation technology, today”. While “next-generation technology” has a dauntingly futuristic feel to it, if the partnership results in even one injury to a key-player being prevented, VERT will have proved their worth.
It is also worth noting that while VERT haven’t yet fully engaged the NBA (the Heat are the first NBA team to use their tech), the technology has already been successfully tried-and-tested at the 2015 NCAA Division 1 Women’s Volleyball Championships. It was even combined with the tournament’s broadcasting, allowing viewers to see the match stats in real-time.
Whether other teams will follow Miami Heat’s lead remains to be seen. Indeed, basketball isn’t the only sport which VERT will be interested in reaching. Ultimately, given the high-stakes, high-reward and high-profile of the NBA, it isn’t a bad place to continue their growth.