Relationship between V-cut Agility Performance and Sprint, Vertical Jump and Change of Direction in Preadolescent Male Basketball Players

Basketball is a dynamic sport that involves frequent directional changes, high-intensity sprints, and vertical actions such as jumping and rebounding. Agility is a fundamental component of basketball performance, especially during preadolescence, a period marked by rapid neuromuscular and morphological development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between V-cut agility performance and three key physical abilities: linear sprint speed, vertical jump, and change of direction (COD) in young male basketball players. Forty-one young male basketball players (age: 11.02 ± 0.79 years, height: 152.72 ± 7.40 cm, weight: 42.61 ± 7.38 kg, training experience: 2.3 ± 0.4 years) from regional basketball academies participated in this cross-sectional study. All participants were actively involved in basketball training programs at least three times per week for the last year. Before data collection, players completed a 10-minute standardized warm-up, consisting of easy jogging, dynamic stretching, and movements. Each participant completed the V-cut agility test, a 25-meter sprint, a countermovement jump (CMJ), and a Hexagon COD. All tests were conducted indoors, on a hardwood basketball court, over two non-consecutive days to minimize fatigue-related effects and ensure consistent environmental conditions. Pearson correlation and regression analyses were used to investigate the relationships between variables. Correlation coefficient values were evaluated as 0.00-0.25 very weak, 0.26–0.49 weak, 0.50–0.69 moderate, 0.70–0.89 high, 0.90-1.00 very high correlation. A simple linear regression test was conducted to evaluate whether V-cut performance could predict Sprint, Jump, and Change of Direction (COD). The regression coefficient (β), coefficient of determination (R²), and p-values were reported for each model. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. A high positive correlation was found between V-cut and 25-m sprint performance (r=0.795, R²=0.633, F (1,39)=67.42, p