What are basketballs and basketball hoop made of

If you know something about basketball then you should also know that basketball and basketball hoop are the two most important equipment needed to play this sport. You can’t think of playing basketball game without a basketball and hoop that are used to score points.

While playing basketball or shooting the balls into the hoops, such questions may have arisen in your mind like what are used to make a basketball and basketball hoops. This is the article that will give both the answers, and you will know about the materials used to make the two most important equipment of the game.

Basketball: Typically, basketballs are covered with a surface of leather. But sometimes in case of leather, rubber or a synthetic composite is used to cover the ball. In the inner part of the ball there is inflatable inner rubber bladder, which is generally wrapped in layers of fiber. And at last the ball is covered with leather or rubber or a synthetic composite.

what are basketballs made of

What are basketballs made of

Well I have already mentioned that to make the basketball you have to go through three steps. These are, the ball’s inner bladder, shaping the ball’s insides and then covering the ball.

Inner bladder part: The inner bladder of a basketball is made from black butyl rubber. It retains air inside the ball and allows the ball to bounce. Before passing the ball to the initial testing stage the butyl rubber is melted into flat panels and a 1-inch hole is made in the bladder to install the air filler tube.

Shaping the ball: Then you have to shape the inside part of the ball and provide it a round shape. You should do this with a help of a machine, which will wrap the polyester or nylon threads around the inner bladder. Street balls are made of using polyester threads, whereas the professional level basketballs are made of using nylon thread.

Covering the ball: Then after all the works that are mentioned above is done, you need to cover up the ball. High-quality balls are covered by using high-quality leather. Except leather, some balls are also covered using synthetic rubber, rubber, or composite materials. The material which is going to be used as the cover is first cut into six separate panels that are used together to wrap the ball. If the material is leather, then you have to stitch it together around the ball. However, in the case of other materials, you can use glue to cover the ball with it.

Different basketball sizes

 Do you know how many sizes of basketball there are? There are mainly four sizes of basketballs, which distinguish which kind of player would be able to use which sizes of balls or which sizes of balls are appropriate for depending on the gender or level. Now let’s briefly discuss about the four sizes.

• Size no – 3: The smallest size in the list. The dimension of this ball is only 570 mm. This tiny sized basketball is suitable for little children, who actually don’t know very much about the basketball game and learning day by day with fun. Though this is categorized in the list of basketballs, but it has become a souvenir.
• Size no – 5: The mostly used basketball for kids. The dimension of this ball is 700 mm. This size of balls is typically known as children’s basketball. Kids up to 16 years can use this size of balls to learn to play basketball and go further with this game.
• Size no – 6: The last two size numbers will distinguish the balls used for male and female players. However, this size of balls is used for female basketball players. The dimension of this ball is 730 mm. This ball is known as female basketball. But any player over 16 years can use this ball in their basketball court. Although they can use this ball, I would recommend this size of balls for the female players.
• Size no – 7: The largest basketball size is no 7. The dimension of the ball is 760 mm, which is more than the other three sizes of balls that I have mentioned above. Well, that’s the reason this size of ball is known as adult basketball. Adult male basketball players use this size of balls in their games. So this ball is specially designed for the male players and also for those who are adults.

Differences between college and professional level balls

Are there any differences between the basketballs used in the college levels and in NBA? Well, there are differences but also similarities in those balls. In men’s basketball, the balls used in college-level are made of composite material, whereas the NBA basketballs are made of leather. But there is no difference in case of women’s basketball materials. Both in college and higher-level, the balls are made of using leather.

Basketball Manufactured company

The manufacturer company of NBA and WNBA basketballs is Spalding and for NCCA, Wilson manufactures the balls. Spalding is the first company that produced basketball for official use. That’s why they are the official manufacturer company of NBA basketballs.

What is basketball hoops made of

 Basketball hoops are typically made of using high tensile carbon steel. It is made from 5/8 inches of diameter solid steel rod. The rod then is formed into a ring that measures 18 inches around the inside part. The backplate of the hoop is typically made from 3/16 inches thick steel and attached to the front face of the backboard. Having a thicker backplate is always helpful for the basketball hoops as there are going to be many dunk shots. Also basketball hoop height is 10 feet.