While this is the first topic we will cover in the basketball hoop purchasing guide series, this is not necessarily the place you need to start with your shopping. The maker of the basketball hoop you are interested in just makes for a great logical sequence to proceed through to discuss the ins and outs of buying an appropriate basketball system for your home or organization. Each basketball hoop manufacturer, if successful, tends to target a particular market segment to fit the needs of a market segment better than anyone else. Thus, if you are wanting a high-end hoop, do not expect to find great options from low-end producers, and vise versa. The following list of common basketball hoop makers will help you sort who caters to your particular needs.

Lifetime Products

Lifetime Products is possibly the largest manufacturer for consumer-end basketball systems in the world. They have accomplished this status through perfecting the basketball hoop features catered to a low-end budget. Do you own, or have you seen, a basketball hoop that can be raised and lowered? Chances are you are looking at a system made by Lifetime Products. Lifetime is who made raising and lower the backboard common place in a residential basketball goal. Lifetime Products has the most extensive product selection in the low end compared to just about any other maker. Their systems can be seen priced as low as $100. Due to their success at the low end, Lifetime has also dabbled in the high end. Their high-end basketball goals are called Mammoth basketball goals. These types of goals are typically priced in the $1000 to $1500 range. Mammoth basketball goals are very comparable to most any other manufacturer of basketball system in the high end of products.

Spalding / Huffy

If you ever see Spalding or Huffy basketball systems, first thing to know is that websites frequently use these names interchangably because they are both owned by Russel Athletics. In general, you will likely see Huffy label on low-end basketball hoops and Spalding on higher-end hoops. However, Spalding goals can be priced anywhere from $250 to $2400. Huffy and low-end Spalding basketball goals typically have a plastic, acrylic, or polycarbonate backboard materials. On Spalding’s high-end basketball systems, the backboards are either tempered glass or acrylic. To know when you have reached the high-end basketball line, you will typically see the brand product name Arena View. The Arena View basketball systems have very comparable specs to the Mammoth basketball line from Lifetime, but also include several models that have larger poles, thicker backboards, and stronger rims.

Goalsetter

Goalsetter is unique among most any high-end basketball hoop manufacturer in that they are one of very few that manufacture their hoops in the United States. Based in Iowa, Goalsetter makes a very unique basketball hoop product. Their poles, which they term as off-set in design, have a portion of the pole that is vertical and an upper portion that angles back. At this part that agnles back and returns to a vertical position, the mounting arms for the backboard come forward back in front of the pole. This type of design is unique to Goalsetter and easily identified when looking for a basketball hoop. One other thing of note with Goalsetter basketball hoops is that each of their systems is available in tempered glass and acrylic.

Goalrilla

Goalrilla makes high-end basketball system with 54, 60, and 72-inch backboard models. Goalrilla also makes a few mid-range systems under the brand name Silverback. Their pole sizes are comparable to Mammoth; however, they differ considerably in their lift mechanisms. All Goalrilla systems will have a bolt-down anchor pole. The 60-inch glass Silverback system will also have a bolt-down anchor kit. All other Silverback systems will have an in-ground pole

Just as a note, there are other basketball hoop manufacturers out there. We have simply covered the major ones. Until next one.

When shopping for an inground basketball hoop, monitoring variations of the same, or similar, feature is important to make sure you are getting the best basketball goal for your money. We will compare several manufacturers of basketball systems in this post and hopefully help differentiate between basketball system features before you purchase.

Basketball backboard material comparison

Perhaps the best place to start in comparing basketball systems is the backboard material. Backboards today are essentially made of one of four materials: glass, acrylic, polycarbonate, and plastic. When looking at a basketball system, if the backboard is made of glass, they typically are referring to tempered glass. This glass is the same type as that on your windshield of your car. Acrylic backboards are also almost always frequently referred to as acrylic by the manufacturer, though you might see EM5 listed as the backboard material of basketball systems made by Lifetime Products. If you see EM5, that means acrylic. Polycarbonate backboards are also almost always referred to as polycarbonate; however, you might also see makrolon and shatter guard for backboards on certain systems made by Lifetime Products. If you see this type of wording, or similar, they are referring to polycarbonate. Lastly, plastic backboards are rarely referred to as plastic in product descriptions. For instance, Lifetime Products will normally refer to their plastic backboards as polyethylene. Spalding and Huffy call their plastic backboards eco-composite. Both manufacturers have slightly different plastic construction. For instance, eco-composite from Spalding and Huffy means that the plastic is made from recycled materials.

Height adjustment mechanisms

Nearly every basketball hoop manufacturer any more has some component on their basketball goals that allows the user to raise and lower the backboard. Of these different options, Lifetime Products is the most unique in their approach, though they do share one mechanism design with some Spalding and Huffy basketball systems. This mechanism is probably the oldest mechanism still available on some in ground basketball systems. The mechanism uses some sort of stick, such as a broomstick pole, to engage the mechanism. Lifetime Products refers to this mechanism as the Quick Adjust, while Spalding and Huffy call it a Ratchet Adjustment Bracket. These are the same mechanism with the same functionality and adjustable range. Lifetime Products then goes off on their own with several different handle height adjusters. Their mechanisms include the Speed Shift, Action Grip, Power Lift, and Rapid Cam. These mechanism engage in the same way, using a handle with a trigger; when the trigger is engaged, you either push up or pull down on the handle to raise and lower the backboard. Each of these mechanism are listed in order of increasing strength and stability. Each step up provides added design features to help provide added strength, and sometimes ease, of using the mechanism. No other manufacturer uses any similar design as of now, so these will not have any direct comparisons from other manufacturers. Spalding and Huffy, Goalsetter, and Goalrilla all share a similar mechanism on many of their inground basketball systems. The mechanism is a crank that you operate using a rotating lever. On Spalding and Huffy basketball goals, this mechanism is referred to as U-Turn. Goalsetter and Goalrilla did not name their mechanism by itself and simply refer to the mechanism as a turn crank in most instances. The only comparison that can be made between the cranking mechanism and Lifetime Products Power Lift and Rapid Cam is that these mechanisms all allow infinite height settings between the lowest and highest setting so you can engage and disengage the mechanisms at any time in the movable range. Of all of these height adjustment mechanisms, Goalsetter’s turning crank allows the lowest height setting at 6 feet.

Basketball pole size and structure

Lastly, we will look at pole size and structure. Lifetime Products and Spalding and Huffy attempt to cater to a cheaper basketball system to a high-end system. As such, their poles can get particularly small. Lifetime Products has some systems with poles as small as 2.75-inches in diameter. Lifetime and Spalding then start to overlap in pole sizes at 3.5-inches in diameter. Both of these manufacturers, along with Goalrilla’s Silverback line, then move to a 4-inch square pole. In structure, Lifetime and Spalding follow similar designs in their low-end goals by segmenting their poles into 3 sections. The design allows the packaging to be very compact, thus allowing cheaper shipping costs to move the product around. Silverback basketball systems use a 2-piece pole design. Spalding and Huffy also have a couple of intermediate-quality in ground basketball systems with a 2-piece pole. From here all the way to the top basketball systems from these manufacturers, the systems will have a 5×5 square pole or larger with a 1-piece structure. Lifetime’s high-end basketball systems is the Mammoth basketball line. The Mammoth systems will share the same pole sizes as many Goalsetter and Spalding basketball systems as well as 1 Goalrilla basketball goal. Of all of these manufacturers, Spalding makes the largest pole size at 8×8 on 2 of their high-end Arena View basketball goals.

That headline sounds cliche I know, but it is true. Every basketball system manufacturer on the planet wants to 1, have you buy their product; and 2, buy their replacement parts for their product. Thus, Lifetime Products, Spalding, Huffy, Goalrilla, Goalsetter, Mammoth, and every other maker you can think of has their very own design and specification for their rims. Not only that, these manufacturers also have various forms of rims inside their product line as well that are, you guessed it, not always compatible. Now, this is not necessarily a diabolical scheme to drive sales in increments of $50 for a rim; rather, these differences are often related to the level of basketball hoop you purchased. For instance, the rim found on a $200 system is not, and frankly should not, be the same rim on a $2000 system. So, here are a few rules of thumb to help you select the correct rim.

Match manufacturer with manufacturer

Always pay attention to what you are ordering. If you have a Lifetime basketball hoop, you should not be looking and Spalding or Goalrilla basketball rims. In some rare instances, the bolt patterns mentioned in a product listing give the hint that maybe they are the same as the bolt pattern you have. Don’t get tripped up on this. Even if your Lifetime basketball rim has the same bolt pattern as the Spalding rim you want to replace it with, do not buy it. It will not work.

Match bolt pattern with bolt pattern

After you have determined the manufacturer of your system and found replacement rims by that same manufacturer, now is the time to investigate bolt patterns. Bolt patterns refer to the distance up and down and side to side of the mounting bolts for the basketball rim. In most cases, manufacturers have a large variety of basketball system products and will likely have different bolt patterns for different qualities of rims.

Match model with model

Potentially, this rule could have been your first step. If you find a rim that is the exact same rim model as the one you have, you are good to go. However, that is not always possible. Sometimes, for instance, manufacturers have a range of rims that a basketball hoop owner might be able to use to upgrade their current system. This type of design describes Spalding’s line of basketball hoops. On most of their systems priced $400 and cheaper, the rims are entirely interchangeable allowing you to upgrade as you see fit. Back to the point of this step though, if you match model with model, you are sure to suceed. For instance, if you have a Lifetime Slam It Pro basketball rim, then purchasing a Lifetime Slam It Pro basketball rim will always be compatible.

Sometimes the choice of basketball hoops for your home basketball court can be overwhelming. To assist you in navigating the many choices available, the list below will provide you some steps to differentiate different manufacturers of basketball systems and different features available within those manufacturers.

Lifetime Basketball, Spalding Basketball, Huffy Basketball, Mammoth Basketball, Goalsetter, and Goalrilla:

The best way to navigate the earliest part of choosing a basketball hoop outdoor system is to recognize what manufacturer will best fit your buget. Outdoor basketball systems can start out as cheap as $150, but can also go as expensive as several thousand dollars. So, knowing your budget is the best place to start out as that will direct you the appropriate manufacterer(s) within your budget. For instance, if your budget is less that $800, then your target makers will be Lifetime basketball and Spalding basketball. Note that Spalding basketball and Huffy basketball are the same company. If your budget is over $800, you will be looking at Mammoth basketball, Goalsetter basketball, Goalrilla basketball, and Spalding basketball – in particular, their Arena View basketball line. Within each manufacturer, you will also have budgets for different features.

Basketball Backboard Type Selection

For lower-end bugets – those cheaper than $800 – you will have several options for backboard material: glass, acrylic, polycarbonate, and plastic. For those basketball hoops outdoor systems more expensive than $800 have either glass or acrylic options. Makers of basketball hoops for the lower end budget are Huffy, Spalding, and Lifetime. Those for the higher-end budgets include Goalrilla, Goalsetter, Arena View, and Mammoth basketball options. Diving a little deeper, you will want to take note of different basketball goal system feature within each backboard type and budget.

Other Basketball Goal Features

In the lower end of basketball systems, you will see several different basketball hoop design options. For instance, most every basketball system in the lower end is able to adjust the backboard up and down in height. Those lift mechanisms differ between manufacturers. For instance, Lifetime Products has several lift options, most of which use a squeeze handle to adjust the height. Many consider the squeeze handle option a much easier design to use than any other design. Inside the squeeze-handle design from Lifetime Products, Lifetime make two options: the Power Lift and the Action Grip. The Power Lift uses a pneumatic design to raise and lower the backboard, and is typically found on their basketball systems that have a glass, acrylic, or polycarbonate backboard. The Action Grip system uses counter balance springs to raise and lower the backboard. Spalding and Huffy also have different height adjusters in their basketball line. To simplify this, the only one that truly differs from Lifetime’s options is the U-turn mechanism. The U-turn mechanism uses a turn crank to raise and lower the backboard. This lift mechanism can be found on their low-end and high-end basketball systems. For the higher end systems, Goalrilla, Goalsetter, and Arena View basketball hoops use the same or similar lift mechanism, a turn crank. The Mammoth basketball line uses a slightly different lift than, but very similar to, the Power Lift called the Rapid Cam. They are similar in that they both are pneumatic devices and use a squeeze handle to raiser and lower the backboard. The difference lies in the size and strength of the two systems. The Rapid Cam is used on the Mammoth basketball line mostly because the backboards are much heavier than Lifetime’s lower-end systems. However, Lifetime also warranties the Mammoth basketball Rapid Cam for much longer than the Power Lift; thus, implying a possible better and stronger design.

We hope that these checklist will help you in sorting through the available options for your basketball hoop purchase. Call us at 1-866-308-5484 with any questions about your basketball hoop purchase.

The first thing to know when searching for a replacement backboard is to know who manufactures your current system. This is important because you will need to match up manufacturers when you get a new backboard system; i.e., Lifetime Products basketball systems with Lifetime Basketball Backboards, and Spalding / Huffy basketball backboards with Spalding / Huffy basketball systems. If you do this, you have fought half the battle.

The next thing to consider is the size of the pole of your current system. We usually are asked why that matters when we tell customers they need to know that spec before they shop for a backboard. The answer is that the replacement basketball backboards mount to your pole based on the mounting arms, which are specific to the size of the pole. In other words, the mounting arms on a system are sized based on the size of the pole; and, the basketball backboards available are mountable only to certain sized poles. In the case of Lifetime Products, if you have a pole that measures 3.5″ in diameter (about 11″ in circumfrence”), any of the available Lifetime backboards should be adaptable to that system. In the case of Spalding / Huffy, it is a little more tricky. The concern is still to figure out what size pole you have, but from there you will almost always need some kind of reassurance from Huffy / Spalding. For these systems, either a 3.5″ diameter round pole or a 4″ square pole will typically work for their replacement backboards. If you have either of these, you should be fine with at least one of the models we carry. We typically then give you the model numbers that will work based on your pole size, and then we will have you call Huffy / Spalding just to verify if they will work with your system. Once you have their okay, you can feel free to order.

Last thing to consider is the age of your system. Typically, manufacturers do not change the configuration of their systems much as that will limit their sales in the future. However, over time certain designs are improved upon and other systems will go obsolete. If you system is 7 years or younger, you should be safe with just replacing the backboard. However, if you system is older you may need to replace the mounting brackets as well. Both Lifetime Products and Huffy / Spalding produce mounting brackets for their systems that will mount to an existing pole.