In basketball game jumping high as much as you can isn’t similar to an Olympic event, like the 100-meter sprint, there is not any world championship that pits the world’s best jumper against each other. As a result, there is not any official record or evidence from any sports committee or federations. But if we check the NBA draft, we can get an estimated figure. After all, in the history of the NBA, there have been many talented athletes out there. In this article, we will compare the records for the standing vertical jump from a standstill, the platform jump and running jump.
1. Standing vertical: 46″ (NFL) 38″ (NBA)
Table of Contents
This is the most important jumping statistical record that has used by the NBA and NFL. If you work hard on improving your jump, then this is what you should measure to track your progress. In simple terms, this where you stand in a spot and reach as high as possible. Afterward, you can compare the figure with your standing reach.
Bryon Jones is considered as the best jumper in NFL combine history, because of his 147″ broad jump, not the vertical jump.
NFL combined record
Gerald Sensabaugh (2005) - All-time: 46.0″
NBA draft record
Dwayne Mitchell (2012), Justin Anderson (2015) - All-time: 38.0″
Why do NFL Players Jump Higher?
So why do the NFL players jump high? Surprise? Basketball and dunking are all about those crazy jumps and movements. Isn’t it? There are two reasons:
Basketball players don’t require to jump that higher. The height of the rim is 10 feet. You can dunk from a standstill at 6 foot tall with a 33-34 inch standing vert. Most of the dunks have a run-up that means you jump higher anyway. Lastly, the tall players (there are many in the NBA) don’t stand to obtain as much from an incredible jump.
Football players are trained for explosiveness. On the other hand, basketball players endure four quarters with 12 minutes each. So they are trained for endurance and resolution. So for the football players, the focus is on bursts of explosive activities. For NFL players, explosive statistics like – vert jump, 40-yard dash, and 20-yard shuttle are vital.
2. Running Vertical: 44.5″ (NBA) 50+” (NFL)
Where explosiveness is the yardstick of standing jump, running jump is more important in actual basketball or football games. A run-up is required for a running jump before the jump, and that adds energy to produce a greater leap. During the approach, the better you have the running jump technique, the more strength you can add to your jump.
NBA draft record
Kenny Gregory (2001) - All-time: 44.5″
Be informed that the run-up is limited to a few steps. The players can jump higher if they perform a half-court run-up like the crazy dunks that we can see on television.
NLF
If you look at the NBA combine, you will find that a player’s running vert is typically between 4 to 9 inches higher compared to their standing vert. In contrast, the best NFL players have a standing vertical of 46″, 50-54″ that is within the realms of possibility.
Platform Vertical Jump: 63.5″ (Evan Ungar)
In this type of jump, a person has to make a jump onto a platform from a standing position. The objective here is not to get a hand as high up in the air as possible, but to maximize the distance between the feet and the surface. The reason this figure is always high compare to any running or standing vertical jump is that you tuck your legs in when you jump.
Evan Ungar, who is from Canada, set the highest vertical jump In 2016, which is the Guinness World Record at 63.5 inches. Justin Bethel had the previous Guinness world record of 60 inches.
The Guinness book of records doesn’t always have the original or actual record because they need to go out to check and see it for themselves. Some other people have set a higher unofficial record as well.
What about Kadour Ziani?
Many people believe that Kadour Ziani (5’11 Slam Nation dunker) has the highest jump in the world at 60 inches. But this record has not been verified officially. So it is sensible to give Evan Ungar the ‘official’ record and Kevin Bania the ‘unofficial’ record at 65″.
Summary
There are three different types of vertical jumps that are typically tested, and these are running, standing, and platform.
It is quite difficult to identify the world record holder for running and standing since there is no official competition, like – Olympics, where the athletes compete in different events.
In contrast to popular belief, NBA players are not the best in the vertical jump. NFL players can jump much higher compare to them because of the explosive nature of the training.
Final thought
Let’s not get too much concerned about who has the world record on vertical jumping. From all the information and data, we can get an estimated idea of what is possible by a human.
Standing vertical
The NFL players are inherently gifted in this universe, but they don’t get exclusive training for their vertical leap. So a standing vert of 47-48″ is very much realistic.
Running Vertical
If we look at the NBA combine, we can find players running vert is somewhere between 4-9 inches higher than their standing vert. And the best NFL players standing vertical of 45-46″, so with a run-up we can easily see them getting around 50-52″.
Platform Jump
We have noticed people jump 60-65″, and these people are serious about jumping, and that is very close to the theoretical limit.
I hope you enjoy reading the article, and now you know some of the highest vertical jumps ever recorded. Even though it is difficult to say who holds the record of highest vertical jump, but, understandably, many people on this planet share this remarkable leaping ability. Some people’s talent is gifted genetically, and some others choose to follow several vertical jumps training programs to achieve their massive hops. You need to work hard if you are not genetically gifted, like the people we featured in this article.
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