Design of Basketball Specific Anaerobic Capacity Test (BSACT) based on the 30-Second Lower-Body Wingate Test

Background and Purpose: Anaerobic capacity and power play a significant role in executing sport-specific movement patterns and meeting the physiological demands of basketball players during competition. Numerous laboratory tests are available to assess these capabilities, but field tests seem to have greater practical applicability. The aim of this study was to design and evaluate the validity, reliability, and objectivity of the Basketball-Specific Anaerobic Capacity Test (BSACT) based on the 30-second Lower-Body Wingate test.
Materials and Methods: In this applied study with a correlational design, the participants consisted of 30 young semi-professional basketball players (age: 17.17 ± 1.00 years, BMI: 22.61 ± 2.10 kg/m²). After designing the new test based on previous research and the opinions of experienced and expert basketball coaches, incorporating the physiological demands and basketball-specific movement patterns, including forward, backward, and lateral movements, shooting, lay-ups, dribbling, direction changes, and accelerations, aligned with the frequency and intensity of their occurrence in actual games, the test was piloted multiple times. Following the pilot implementations, the participants completed the 30-second Wingate test (criterion measure) and the BSACT (predictive measure) over four days with a 72-hour interval between sessions. On the first day, the criterion test was administered; on the second and third days, the predictive test was performed by the first tester; and on the fourth day, the predictive test was conducted by the second tester. Peak, Average, and minimum power and fatigue index for the Wingate test measured using the Monark ergometer software, while in the new test, these parameters were measured using a stopwatch for timing and the anaerobic power formulas of the RAST. Post-exercise heart rate in both tests was recorded using a Polar heart rate monitor. After confirming the normality of data distribution using the Shapiro-Wilk test, Pearson's correlation coefficient was employed to assess validity, while ICC and Bland-Altman plots were used to determine reliability and objectivity. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 27 and GraphPad version 10, with a significance level set at P ≤ 0.05.
Results: The results demonstrated a very strong significant correlation for validity between the two tests in peak power (r=0.811), average power (r=0.828), and minimum power (r=0.758), as well as a strong significant correlation in heart rate (r=0.623, P≥0.001). However, a moderate significant correlation was observed in the fatigue index (r=0.469, P=0.009). Regarding reliability, significant correlations were found between two repetitions of the BSACT conducted by the same tester for peak power (ICC=0.960), Average power (ICC=0.981), minimum power (ICC=0.984), fatigue index (ICC=0.799), and heart rate (ICC=0.937, P≥0/05). Similarly, significant correlations were observed for objectivity between the results of two testers in peak power (ICC=0.957), mean power (ICC=0.970), minimum power (ICC=0.964), fatigue index (ICC=0.801), and heart rate (ICC=0.616, P≥0/05). Moreover, the Bland-Altman plot for evaluating the reliability and objectivity of the BSACT test demonstrated that, for all variables, the mean bias (mean of the differences) was close to zero. The distribution of data points was centered around the line representing the mean of the differences, with most points falling within the 95% confidence limits, indicating acceptable agreement between measurements.
 
Conclusion: The findings suggest that the BSACT is a valid and reliable field test for measuring anaerobic capacity in young semi-professional basketball players. Therefore, basketball and strength coaches can utilize BSACT for initial assessment and continuous monitoring of players' anaerobic capacity, as well as for identifying well-prepared and elite individuals.