What to Consider When Purchasing a Basketball Hoop

What to consider when purchasing a basketball hoop

Basketball systems have many different features and specs to choose from. Some of these features are more important than others. When purchasing a basketball system for your home, considering your needs and budget will help ensure that you get the right goal for your needs. Here are some of these things to consider.

Who will be using the system?

Aggressive basketball players are going to need a much more substantial system than younger or casual players. For instance, aggressive play might include dunking the basketball and shooting more complicated shots. To this end, aggressive players might benefit from features like breakaway rim - to hold up better to dunking - and a glass backboard to provide better rebound for bank shots. Younger or casual players will likely not need these sort of features. However, if even the younger or casual players intend on dunking the basketball, having a breakaway rim would still be beneficial. Breakaway rims are normally marked clearly on a product listing. This type of rim is sometimes confused as a rim that actually detaches from the backboard when it is pulled on; this is not the case. A breakaway rim refers to the rim having a flexing mechanism that allows the rim to bend away from the backboard, and then snap back into place when it is released. By so doing, the player ends up pulling on the rim instead of the rim pulling on the backboard, thus preserving the backboard.

What type of area will the system be installed in?

When considering this question, what needs to be noted is how protected the area is, how accessible the system is to people, and what sort of people might be close enough to the system to interact with it. Concerning how protected the area where the basketball hoop will be located, are there trees or other objects that could cause damage to the system? For instance, a fruit tree, or a tree with hard produce, could cause damage to a basketball goal if the fruit were to blow off and hit the backboard. In this case, a non-glass backboard will typically hold up better than a system with a glass backboard. Concerning how accessible the system is to people, how likely is it that you will have neighbors or friends stop by and want to use your basketball goal? Are you considering how aggressive, or non-aggressive, these players are? Lastly, in your desired installation area, how likely is that someone, for no other reason than curiosity, might pick up a rock and throw it at your backboard. A common problem that basketball hoop owners report when their glass backboards shatter is that a child on their way home from school threw a rock at the backboard and broke it. Or, in other cases they report that a neighbor accidentally shot out the backboard with a BB gun. In either of these scenarios, an acrylic or polycarbonate backboard would have been a better selection. Neither of these scenarios are necessarily common overall; you will likely already know if these types of issues would apply to your neighborhood.

What is your desired budget for a basketball system?

This question will really help you get at what features on a basketball system you can afford. For instance, finding a basketball hoop with glass backboard for under $500 dollars would be very difficult. Finding a basketball system with a square-shaped pole for under $350 would be very difficult. Knowing your price range for purchasing a basketball hoop will help you focus in on available features in your price range.

Consider these things before ordering your next basketball system to help you get the most out of your purchase.