Center of Power

• During the offseason, power training for basketball should include exercises that build core body or "center of power" strength. A person's core body strength includes muscles in the abs, lower back, hips and obliques, muscles on each side of the waist. These muscles take a pounding during basketball as a person twists, turns, jumps and runs up and down the court. Exercises such as sit-ups, stretching forward, back and to each side can help strengthen these muscles.
  
  

Endurance

• Every basketball player's power training should include endurance exercises, such as running steps, doing sprints up and down the court. Endurance training not only builds a person's aerobic endurance, it also increases muscular endurance. Muscular endurance allows the body to "perform repeated, high-intensity movements" without tiring, according to and article at sport-fitness-advisor.com.
  
  

Jumping

• Power training for basketball should always include jumping exercises, a movement that is used continuously in the sport. Basketball players should always be striving to jump higher when shooting, rebounding or going in for a layup. The standard gauge for a measuring a person's jumping ability is the vertical jump. Exercises for improving a person's vertical jump include jumping Jacks, doing knee bends then jumping or jumping on and off a platform or bench.
  
  

Squats

• In addition to being able to leap or jump, basketball players need to have raw, physical strength in their legs as well. Running primarily works the red muscle fibers, which require more blood, according to learner.org. Red muscle fibers are used for longer distance running. White muscle fibers provide the extra thrust that basketball players use. While jumping exercises can help build joints, there is no better exercise than squats for building powerful legs. All basketball players should incorporate squats and other weightlifting leg exercises into their power training.
  
  

Upper Body Training

• Grappling with other players for a rebound or making three-point shots over defenders takes upper body strength. A player's power training should include exercises such as push-ups, bench press and the military press for building shoulder and arm strength. Players that build triceps and shoulder strength may find themselves hitting longer jump shots that may previously been out of their range.