Objective: During their career, most players working in professional team sports move
fromclub to club. These transitions are not always completely successful and could highly
impact the route of the players’ development. However, there is a lack of knowledge on
the psychological processes involved when players encounter problems in adapting from
one club to another. Thus, it was the aim of this study to identify the most difficult aspects
of these transitions, as experienced by team sports players and the psychological skills
that contribute to successful outcomes.
Design and Method: The present study included twenty professional basketball players
(aged between 20 and 36 years old; Mean = 26.05, SD = 4.12), who had played under
different coaches (coach range 4–15; Mean = 8.65, SD = 2.92), and also played for
different clubs (range 3–10; Mean = 5.35, SD = 2.08). They took part in retrospective
interviews regarding their embedded experiences during club to club transitions. A
situated E-approach was used to identify their problematic experiences, the adaptability
skills and how they are applied during club mutations.
Results and Conclusions: The identification of problematic experiences revealed
seven components in relation to coaching (e.g., obeying orders, reduced play time), three
components with teammates (e.g., respect), two components with the club (e.g., lack
of support), and three components with family/friends (e.g., geographical constraints).
Additionally, results indicated that the adaptability skills used during mutation are related
to three groups namely mental skills, learning methods, and interpersonal skills. The
results provide coaches, players, sports psychologists, and national sport organizations
a set of issues for understanding the challenges players encounter when they move from
one club to another.