How old do you think you can carry on playing basketball til?

[QUOTE=Rake2204]Guy, that sucks. How old are you again? Surgery forthcoming? How did it happen? Very painful?[/QUOTE]
Turned 27 in April. Injury happened end of June. Surgery is end of this month.

[URL="http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=344877"]I think I tore my meniscus[/URL]

I think people get the wrong idea about age and sports when they always hear about pro athletes in their 'prime.' Their prime is not the same as a normal person because of what they put their body through on a nightly basis. While an NBA player may start to become 'old' in their early 30's for a regular person who takes care of themselves that can be your very best years. Certainly while you're younger you can be quicker, faster, stronger with less effort, as you get older you develop your real man body and can be at your very best in your 30's and 40's if you just take care of your body properly

tl;dr version (weird to put this up top)... Change your game. Can't play the same way you did when you had your athleticism. Now for the long winded story.

I'm 29, and the only difference I see in my play, of any sport (mostly volleyball), is that it takes me longer to recover. I can still out-jump and run most 16-25 year olds (college town I live in). When I do play basketball, my shot is still acceptable. My defense even more so. But again, it takes me longer to recover. My girlfriend picks on me because for the next two days I whine about how sore I am.

That being said, I'm pretty fit for my age. Daily lifting and running, work on my feet, etc.

Anyway, to more fully answer your question, when I do play pickup, I play with a collection of faculty and staff at the local college. Smattering of students, too. But a few of the guys that play are 50-70. No joke. One guy had heart surgery a couple years back. He's still got his head, and an automatic jumper, but he obviously can't create or anything. Has the occasional baseline drive for a reverse layup.

One of the younger old guys, though, is probably 55. He's the best player there after myself. Lefty with a high release, tall (for the competition) and mobile. Not a great handle, but good enough to not have it swiped by college kids, much less older guys. Really crafty. Similar game to Paul Pierce I would say, in that you know where he's going, he's slower than you, but you still can't stop it.

In the 11 years I've played with these guys, the transformation in the games is remarkable.
The heart-surgery guy used to be a pick and roll MASTER. But now he can't move quickly enough to do that, so just sets picks, hits open jumpers, keeps his hands up on D... just finds a way to be useful. Changed his game nearly 100% in the last 11 years.
The lefty still plays the same way, but added a running hook to his repertoire (nearly unstoppable) and a much better post game (again, tall for the competition.. maybe 6'1), with more distance on his jumper. Used to cap out at 15-18 feet, now he's money from 20-22.
And a third guy started playing, for the first time in his life, my first year with them.. so 2003. Good athlete, deceptively quick and fast. The first year I legit blocked every. single. shot. of his for an entire day. I was a cocky kid, just wanting to show that I belonged, win at all costs (even if it embarrasses them) etc. He's since added so many hesitation moves and wacky layup finishes that I can't block him with any consistency. Still can guard him no problem in a one-on-one setting, but in a team game, he's a difficult guard. Second best player behind Lefty.

[QUOTE=dkmwise]I think people get the wrong idea about age and sports when they always hear about pro athletes in their 'prime.' Their prime is not the same as a normal person because of what they put their body through on a nightly basis. While an NBA player may start to become 'old' in their early 30's for a regular person who takes care of themselves that can be your very best years. Certainly while you're younger you can be quicker, faster, stronger with less effort, as you get older you develop your real man body and can be at your very best in your 30's and 40's if you just take care of your body properly[/QUOTE]

yea, i think this is very true. nba players have 82 games a season with practices.

Man I am hooping until I am 55 years old ( I am 45 now). Just as long as I play at the YMCA. I can't do the outdoor basketball anymore. That concrete puts a pounding on your knees as you get older.

Hopefully I can still waddle out and stand in a corner in my 50's and hit set shots or something.

I'm hoping over time my tendinitis doesn't worsen, because it does keep me from playing as much as I'd like sometimes, but the great thing is the shooting motion doesn't cause pain, it's passing and dribbling and afterward that I'm not happy. So I'll just be a selfish old dude who only shoots. Shooty McGee they'll call me.