Raptors Game 7 Loss to the Celtics: Could Better Visual Skills Have Helped?

Like most Raptor fans, I thought we had a huge opportunity to make it to the Finals, especially when the Milwaukee Bucks lost to the Miami Heat.  The Raptors played their hearts out without giving up and clawed their way back into the series after losing two games and possibly a third until OG’s amazing shot at the end of the game with 0.5 seconds left!

As an Optometrist who specializes in Sports Vision Training, I can’t help but wonder how the Raptor’s visual skills were during game 7.  Eye-hand (most will say hand-eye) coordination is something we talk about, but do we really know what it means?  It means that our eyes tell our bodies what to do, such as how to shoot the ball depending on your visual estimation of your shot.  All of those missed shots could have been improved with better vision.

Boston had really good defense, but what else causes miscommunication of plays which leads to a turnover?  Court sense is a combination of vision perception, visual memory and peripheral vision.  Any of these visual factors not properly working will result in poor play judgement or poor sports IQ. 

I know the players will be going home and spending their off-season training to be better for the next season.  Nutrition, strength training, reviewing game tapes and perfecting their shots/moves will take place.  However, will the players work on their visual skills to help them improve their shots and play-making decisions?  I hope sports vision training will be a part of their training program as I hope for another opportunity for a championship run!

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Written By: Dr. Fabian Tai

Image Credit: Joshua Chua on Unsplash

What Is Vision Therapy

When we think about vision, we usually picture the eye-chart at the doctor’s office, and whether or not we’re able to see that bottom line. But vision goes beyond your ability to see 20/20. Vision involves how you interpret and process the information that you see, as well as how effectively your eyes work together. There are a range of visual skills that we use to navigate through our daily lives. These include:

• Tracking - such as reading words on a page or following a moving ball

• Focusing strength - changing your focus between an object far away and then bringing it back to an object nearer to you

• Depth perception - the ability to accurately perceive where things are in space

• Maintaining attention - keeping attention focused on the task at hand, ignoring distractions or interfering information

• Binocularity - using both eyes together smoothly and effectively

These visual skills are not always as strong as they need to be, which can cause symptoms of visual stress and strain. You may experience headaches and fatigue, or you may notice you have trouble reading for sustained periods of time. You might be uncoordinated and clumsy, bumping into things, or you may have poor handwriting. All of these symptoms could be a reflection of an underlying visual issue.

A behavioural optometrist and vision therapist can work with you to identify if you may be struggling with a visual issue. Vision therapy can help to improve your visual skills and enhance your visual system. A vision therapist will guide you through different exercises through the course of your therapy program to strengthen these skills. If you or someone you know is struggling with any of these symptoms, vision therapy could be the solution. Contact our office for more information, or find a behavioral optometrist near you.

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Written by: Tali Main

Photo Credit: Stefan Cosma

Why Do I Get Carsick?

The trunk is packed, the music’s blasting, and the road trip snack bag is full! But road trips, or any length of time spent in the car, can bring on car sickness for many people, making car rides a stressful and unpleasant experience. But what many people don’t know about motion sickness is that it is highly connected to vision.

Motion sickness is brought on when a person’s visual system is not working together with their vestibular system. The vestibular system provides us with a sense of balance and gives us spatial awareness, or knowing where our body is in the environment. When we sit in a car, our body can sense subtle acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle. If our eyes don’t communicate that same information to the brain, we get nauseous. People who have visual problems, such as a lazy eye or post-concussion difficulties, may be more prone to motion sickness due to a mismatch between the visual and vestibular systems.

Some simple ways to reduce feelings of motion sickness are to try sitting in the front seat of the car or staring out the window. Your visual system will sense the movement, reducing feelings of sickness. You can also try sipping on ginger tea to help soothe an upset stomach. However, if there is a greater visual issue at play, vision therapy may be helpful. Our vision therapists, along with Dr. Tai, can help identify potential visual issues you may have, and will work alongside you to help improve and reduce your road trip dread!

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Written by: Tali Main

Photo Credit: Dan Gold

What Will It Take for the Raptors To Win?

What will it take for the Raptors to win? A lot of people would say it’s playing tough defense, making the 3-point shots, a great coach and a little bit of luck. But is it luck or the best hidden secret to the game? What’s the secret you may ask? Strong visual skills. Take Steph Curry, for example. He didn’t win three NBA championships for no reason. To be as good as he is, Steph Curry works hard to enhance every aspect of his game and that includes vision training. Here are 5 key skills that the Raptors need in order to be on their A-game and clutch their first ever championship title.   

1. Court Vision – Being able to multitask visually is crucial to being a successful basketball player. They always say to keep your eye on the ball, but does anyone ever talk about your peripheral vision? 90% of vision is peripheral and 10% is central. Your central vision is key for shooting, but having better peripheral vision is much more important.  Peripheral vision is about knowing where you and everyone else are on the court to give you better perspective.

2. Visual Endurance – Ever wonder why some players get off to a great start but miss every shot in the last quarter? It takes a lot of energy to focus, track and judge distances all the while making split-second decisions during a game.  Your visual stamina is important, just like keeping in good shape to be able keep up throughout the game (especially when you head into double overtime).

3. Visual Reaction Time – What does an athlete’s reaction time have to do with their vision? If you’re able to quickly process what you’re seeing, then you can react faster! Think of your vision as your high-speed internet, the faster the download speed the faster you’ll find your Google search! On the court this translates to having a quick offense, defense, creating turnovers, blocking a shot or rebounding a ball.

4. 3-D Vision – Being able to judge distances requires our two eyes to work together as a team. This is how Kawhi Leonard sunk that epic three point shot in game 7 against Philly. He knew exactly how far to shoot the ball in mid-air to win the game and take us to the next round!

5. Figure-Ground Vision – To be a successful player you must be able to easily differentiate between objects from background clutter. An example of this is the player’s ability to successfully score a free throw with the distraction of the rest of the crowd in the background waving, clapping and distracting the player.  Or making that critical pass to your teammate rather than having the other team steal it, leading to an easy basket.

Let’s hope that our Raptors team have been focusing on their vision along with their basketball drills to cap off a historic playoff run to bring home our first championship trophy!

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Written by: Stephanie Teixeira & Dr. Fabian Tai

Image Credit: Christian Mendoza