For a while, people with flat feet were not encouraged from pursuing various sports including basketball. Flat feet may cause many problems, especially for athletes who compete at a high level. Everyone knows of the term flat-feet but do not have a clear concept about it. In simple terms, lack of a defined arch makes one flat footed.
Everyone is born with flat feet. Most of us develop arches with time and some of the unlucky ones do not.
Not developing arches may have many reasons. It might be a genetic in nature. Muscle weakening is one of the problems that causes flat feet. Injuries in the muscles of the feet and tendon may also cause flat feet. Basketball is especially tricky for people with flat feet. The sport involves a lot of jumping and sprinting and it can have adverse effects on the athlete if they’re not wearing specialized flatfeet basketball shoes to compensate for the lack of arches.
Basketball players with flat feet:
Nowadays, understanding of flat feet has increased thanks to internet resources. The younger generation are blessed in many ways to have dedicated coaches and therapist on standby especially at the college level. Their love for basketball inspires them to overcome this problem and they do just that regardless of their foot conditions.
The biggest Basketball league, aka the NBA, in the US contracts almost 12% of the players who have a flat foot. The players include NBA champions Pau Gasol, Dwayne Wade, Tony Parker, and Andre Iguodala. Some players are NBA hall fame legends playing with their flat feet including Tim Duncan, Patrick Ewing, and even the late Kobe Brant.
Some of the present and past world-class athletes also have flat feet like Alan Webb, the American long-distance runner. And also Said Aouita, a Moroccan athlete is an excellent distance runner. Another star athlete is Usain Bolt who is said to have a moderate flat-feet and wear specialized running shoes made by Puma.
Kobe Bryant is one of the top five greatest NBA players who has made his mark. If he can do it, any other aspiring young professional can as well and flat-feet should not be something holding you back. So many express their opinion that flat feet may cause horrible pain. This is the reason it’s always recommended to wear proper shoes that have arch support, as these shoes will help alleviate the pain and correct your posture.
Some athletes do foot exercises and some of them get physical therapy to make their feet stronger and tackle the problem of being . Alan Webb was one of them. He reduced his flat feet problem through several exercises. He also reduced the size of his feet from 12 to 10. His coordination and balance helped him do that.
Conclusion:
So far we’re talked aboutflat feet basketball shoesand professional players with flat feet. For overcoming this problem, other it’s important to put in extra work and to maintain proper balance. They also do this to overcome injury to the knees and ankles. Being aware of these problems and continued exercise will help to reduce this problem.
Thanks for reading.