New sports technologies have highlighted the importance of perceptual – cognitive training in order to optimize performance in sports e.g., dynamic team sport such as basketball. Augmented motor reality AMR is a new training model based on realistic movement combined with interactive virtual cues that may be useful to enhance spatial orientation and decision making. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of an AMR-based training program on spatial awareness and skill-based decision making in youth basketball players. Twenty-four male young basketball players aged 15.2±0.8 years were randomized to the experimental group n=12, receiving AMR training, and control group n=12, performing conventional practice. The intervention was delivered over 8 weeks at three sessions per week. The participants’ spatial awareness and decision-making were tested pre- and post-intervention. Data were analyzed using paired and unpaired t-tests and effect sizes estimated. The experimental group demonstrated substantial improvements in spatial awareness and decision-making performance, with high effect sizes, as compared to small-effects changes of the control group. Post-test results demonstrated a statistically significant superiority of the experimental group in all significant test P <.001. AMR-based training is an effective strategy for boosting perceptual–cognitive and decision-making abilities among young basketball players and can be a useful tool for contemporary athlete development programs.
