How to choose the best outdoor basketball

Best Outdoor Ball

Check out our tips for choosing the right ball for your game!

Imagine this….. You’re outside on the basketball court, dribbling the ball up the side line on an outdoor court with your friends, when suddenly the your hand just loses grip and rolls out the sideline. That’s something that you definitely don’t want to happen when you’re on the basketball court.

But what exactly is important when buying an outdoor ball? We’ve put together? A list of important aspects that you should consider to make sure that you can find the best outdoor ball.

Material

Firstly, material is important, and by this we mean what is the ball actually made off because balls that are used inside generally have different properties to those that are better suited to outdoor use. There are some, however, that can do both indoor or outdoor settings.

The most important aspect about material is pretty much going to be whether or not it’s a synthetic or leather ball. And typically, leather balls are no good on outdoor surfaces, so we’d advise that you avoid using a leather ball. Generally you are going to be better off going for balls made especially for outdoor use.

Size

The next important category is size. Now size is important, however, most balls come in three sizes. But it’s important to know that the size of ball actually varies depending on whether or not it’s for a child, a teen or an adult. And then sometimes there’s differences to between men’s and women’s regulation size balls. So just make sure you check out the size of the outdoor ball before you buy to ensure that it’s suitable for you. We feel that generally most people at ten years of age or above but probably used the adult ball.

Durability

Probably the most important long term aspect related to buying a basketball for outdoor use is in relation to durability. How long will the ball last? What you find is that the outdoor courts are generally more abrasive. They’re rougher. They generally take a lot of the edge off the ball. What happens is the ball basically deteriorates over time with use, which relates back to the previous discussion on material. The material can have a big impact on the durability of the ball and is the durability that you’re really seeking when you go for an outdoor ball.

Grip

Without a doubt, one of the most important things to consider is the grip. Grip is important as the example in our intro alluded to because grip has an affect on your ability to control the ball. Outdoor courts typically are not clean. There’s often little bits of dust, and often this gets on the ball and can affect the grip. The grip is a really important aspect, and it’s important to look at reviews that you see for the basketballs to make sure that they’re going to be appropriate.

Brand

Another important aspect is the brand. The reality is the brand of basketball actually often does matter. Sure, the cheaper balls are fine, just to give you a feel for the sport. So for someone that’s not really interested in regularly playing the game or becoming better but is more interested in just having some fun with their mates - yeah, the cheaper balls, can work, Okay, but who those are actually interested in refining their game and who are actually going to play basketball, say more than once a month, they’re probably gonna want a good basketball. Luckily, these days, good brand basketballs are actually quite cheap. There’s several good brands and we’ll have a look at some of those below.

Go buy a ball!

So we hope that this has helped you to think about what’s important in buying the best outdoor ball. We’ve put together a table of products that are available currently on Amazon. Feel free to check them out, and we hope that you will find the best outdoor ball for your needs.