My Nephew recently started playing Basketball, and I enjoy watching him play.  As I sit here in the middle of cold winter, I have notebook in hand and have decided to dream of warmer happier times of the coming summer. One of those is being able to enjoy our outdoor pool, and to incorporate some fun activities to keep all of that collected energy SPENT.

Since Basketball is something that our whole family enjoys, I decided to take some time to research swimming pool basketball hoops, and find the right one for my family.  RecreationAndSportsWorld.com has a great website, and has listed the top brands of swimming pool basketball hoops – so I figured I would research those listed brands.

Let’s start with the “Lifetime 1301 Pool Side Basketball System with Backboard,” which was listed as #1!  First and foremost, the product is made in the USA which is good because that means buying this product keeps American jobs!  Awesome!  The other features are:   44″ rectangular white granite backboard, which is good for the overall look and feel of my swimming pool as well as the right size!  It has a Nylon net with welded steel hooks, is completely rust resistant (very important being that it will be …. wet most of the summer!  It also carries what I feel is the most amazing feature of them all, which is a 5 Year warranty!   Talk about peace of mind for your investment, this Lifetime hoop really does win the game…. but there were others, and I wanted to make a rational decision.  After all, we can’t always jump on the first product we see without checking out the others, right?

Up next is the “Poolmaster Pro-Rebounder Poolside Basketball System,” which does not sport the “Made in USA” label.  It’s features seemed a bit more for a starter kit, using the following:  It has a smaller, 34″ W x 25.5 H backboard, which includes a 14″ PVC hoop.  While I appreciate the concept of keeping metal objects away from the water (due to rust), PVC can break easily during a game of basketball, especially when you have kids who like to dunk.  On the other hand, PVC is safer and more flexible, which makes more sense being near a swimming pool. The basketball set has a Polyform™ game base that can can be filled with water or sand and needs 18″ x 21″ of deck space for support.  A tape measure in hand, and a few minutes later, and I determined I had more than enough space for this model next to my pool.  I guess I should also mention it comes with a Pro™ game ball with inflating needle included, which means you’ll have an extra basketball to use if something happens to your old one.  OR… if you don’t have one, there you go! LOL!

Oooooohhhh…. then I checked out the “Spalding NBA Team Logo Portable Swimming Pool Basketball Hoop,” and fell madly madly in love!  The board was a bit more expensive, but so what – check out this bad boy!  You get  a 44″ steel framed polycarbonate clear backboard, which looks SWEET!   It comes with a solid steel Slam Jam breakaway basketball rim, which supports my earlier claim that sometimes slam dunks get aggressive, and the rim should break away or be sturdy enough to support such aggression.  A 31 gallon base with built in wheels, which means – I have room and I can easily move it out of the way for more formal pool party events. A 6″ extension arm can be mounted to pole, which was an added feature that was great, although I would have no need that is always a good thing to keep in mind - flexibility.  The hoop also has an adjustable height between 4′ – 6.5′, which is perfect for my pool time basketballs players!  This is the hoop that my heart got set on, almost immediately, and quite simply the best specifications so far.  However there was one left, and I wanted to make sure I checked out all of them.

The final model was a “Sting-Ray Portable Pool Basketball Game by Huffy,” which was really nice.  It was also the most expensive, but only had one additional feature that I could find.  The Acrylic backboard is 42″, which is good but not as big as the one I really like.  It has heavy-duty solid steel Slam Jam break-away rim, just like the model I like.  So (again) slam dunks don’t break your board.  Then this board has a feature called “Smart Clip” safety net release system, which I gather is to hold the net in a way where it can break away if necessary.  This is where we get into pool safety, would a break away net really be important?  If you are really safety conscious  and perhaps a little OVER precautions, then this may be a dealbreaker for some.  For me, I Googled it and didn’t really find much reason, so I felt it to be a feature that – unless proven or told otherwise – is just an added bonus. The system has a steady base that can be filled with sand or water, and of course is built on wheels to get it out of the way for more formal pool functions.

Which one am I buying?  My final decision was the “Spalding NBA Team Logo Portable Swimming Pool Basketball Hoop,” based on it’s design, look and feel, and features.  Plus did I mention the design?  LOL!  It’s the most amazing one, in my opinion, and I just cannot WAIT for summer!

Check the pool basketball systems for yourself, and hopefully you will find one that suits your needs!  Until then, I am going to be dreaming of summer ….. and of course waiting on my new system to arrive, which yes… I have already ordered!

FIVE MONTHS UNTIL SUMMER,
Jake A. Wheat