Comparing the career longevity of basketball players across three continents: A preliminary exploratory study

Abstract

The objective of this research is to compare the career longevity of basketball players on three continents through a preliminary exploratory study. The method consisted of a preliminary exploratory study, in which some sources were consulted for the retrospective collection of data about the careers of basketball players. The sources consulted were: Wikipedia, official and unofficial biographies, websites and a Google Forms questionnaire was also created and distributed to some groups on a social network (Facebook®) so that former players could voluntarily respond. The total sample consisted of 96 basketball players of both sexes, from three different continents, namely: South America (Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, n= 38), North America (United States of America - USA , Mexico, Canada, n= 31) and Europe (Portugal, Spain, Italy, n= 27), that practiced the modality until 2019. In the results, the retirement age and career time of the studied basketball players differ according to the analyzed gender and continent. When comparing the three continents, male basketball players tend to have higher average values than female basketball players in terms of career length. At retirement age, this trend is repeated in South America and Europe, except in North America, where female players have higher average values compared to male players. Psychological and physical aspects directly influence career longevity in basketball. A balance in the players' overall health status could bring positive benefits that would impact their career longevity. Coaches must pay attention to factors that can shorten or prolong the career longevity of basketball players.