jumping higher and dribling

Question
can you tell me how to jump higher.my legs are stronger because at basketball pratice they make us run all the time so i have strong legs. thank you and make the answer specfic so i can do it at home. and plus i need to make my handle better with my left. thank you very much coach.

Answer
Dear Mike,

It's good that you run a lot at practice. That enhances endurance. However, this will not make your legs explosive, fast and really strong. What will is explosive plyometric workouts.

Enchancing strength and speed entails fast twitch muscle fibers exercising. That will be achieved by explosive plyometric workouts, like depth jumps, squat hops, thrust ups and more. Backward sprints, deadlifts and reverse toe raise are the KEY workouts of the whole program. What happens is... For every contraction a muscle makes an oposing muscle must lengthen. Take the biceps for example, as you contract it, the tricpes must lengthen. The key is not to strengthen the muscles that we normally associate with increasing our vertical jump like the calf muscle or quad muscles, but to strengthen their opossing muscles like the shin muscles and hamstrings. The reason for this is the major jumping muscles will not produce their max capable power unless they know their oposite muscle is strong enough to handle it - If your oposite muscles can't handle the opposing muscles power they would simply lengthen to much and SNAP!

So, here is some good drills to execute with sets and reps prescribed. If you see that after weeks, you can perform them more easily, start to add reps easy. Add 3-6 reps every 1-2 weeks and after adding about 15 reps, make a new
set.

a)Step ups - Get a chair and ensure it will remain stable(e.g.put it against a wall). Begin with one thigh on the chair parallel to the ground. With all of your strength, push off of the elevated leg and leap off of the chair as high as you can. Crisscross or switch your legs in the air. Land with the opposite leg elevated in the chair as in step 1. Repeat the procedure until you are back to step 1. This completes 1 repetition. (3 sets x 12 reps)
b)Burnouts - Elevated as high as you possible can on your tiptoes to assure that you work the high end of your calves. As quickly as you possibly can, jump repeatedly no more than 1/2 to 1 inch off of the ground making sure to keep yourself elevated as high on your tiptoes as possible ensuring that you are working the upper calf muscles. (2 sets x 200 reps)
c)Calf raises - step on a book or stair step one legged standing on toes, heel below the step, raise yourself up only with your calf, (4 sets x 20 reps)
d)Leap ups - bend down to a 1/4 squat position and jump back into the air to a minimum of 8 to 10 inches, (3 sets x 15 reps)
e)Thrust ups - Begin with your legs straight, thrust (bounce) yourself up as high as you possibly can and when come back down you thrust at once back up trying not to bend your legs. (5 sets x 20 reps)
f)Squat hops - Squat down into a sitting position while hugging a ball for balance.Make sure that you are looking straight ahead, with your back straight,  that you are elevated on the balls of your feet (half tiptoed) and most importantly that your thighs are parallel to the ground. Hop or bounce in the seated position between 3-5 inches per hop. (3 sets x 12 reps)
g)Depth jumps(maybe the most important exercise) - Get a chair or a box and ensure it will remain stable. Watch the cushioning. Get on the chair (2 to 3 feet high), drop off with both feet and as soon as you land, explosively jump back into the air. (4 sets x 10 reps)
Do not overtrain. Do not train two days in a row. This will cause an injury or a burnout which will leave you behind.. If you feel any strain or sharp pain in the first days, stop at once, massage, ice and stretch the particular muscle group.
Warming up, stretching and cooling down is of the utmost importance.

Dribbling with the left is the most common problem that all of my players used to have. It's all about practice here. Do whatever you think will enhance coordination and  control of your weak hand. Try dribbling with the left all the time at practice, urban or wherever you are.

Sincerely Yours,
Coach B.Anagnostou
Olympiacos Coaching stuff(Euroleague, HEBA)