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How tall is the nba basketball court


The NBA Basketball Hoop: The Official Height and NBA Rim Size

From high school to the NBA and the NCAA, the basketball hoop and attached basketball rim are vital to the gameplay of the sport of basketball. Originally designed by James Naismith, the Basketball hoop is the very foundation of the game and has undergone a few changes since it was made from peach baskets. Here are the important facts about the basketball hoop and some NBA basketball rules that it follows.

How tall is the Rim?

In a regulation game of basketball, the rim is required to be ten feet off the ground in all levels of play. This was one of the original 13 rules of the game at the time of its invention by James Naismith in 1891, and it still holds true to this day. While court dimensions and ball types have changed, the height of the Rim is one rule that has gone completely untouched for the whole history of the game. When Naismith hung the original peach baskets on the first basketball court near the running track at Springfield Teachers' College in Massachusetts, the railing happened to be 10 feet in height. The 10-foot rim standard was coincidental but became an integral part of the game.

Will rim height change?

With the average height of NBA players reaching around 6 foot 7 inches, those in favor of raising the rim height seem to have more support than ever. The 2008 NBA All Star Slam Dunk Competition became a battlefield for the rim-height debate when 6 foot 11 player Dwight Howard challenged NBA officials to consider raising the rim to 12 feet high for his dunk, as an attempt to address contentions by shorter players that his height accounted for his dunking ability. Howard was not alone in his favor towards raising the rim, as players like Rudy Gay and Gerald Green also voiced their liking to his ideas, with Green even going as far as to suggest 13 foot rims.

The NBA isn’t the only basketball league with some rim height controversy, many women’s basketball players have contended that the regulation basketball rim in the WNBA should be lowered. This is because women’s players are nearly half a foot shorter and other sports have easier boundaries for women, like tee boxes in golf, field dimensions in baseball etc. Some WNBA players, however, have come out against this saying that the WNBA’s product, and in turn regulation height, should be identical to that of men’s professional leagues like the NBA and FIBA.

What are some Rim related terms?

double rim​: A double rim is a rim that is layered two times to be thicker and act almost as a basketball net replacement. It has better durability than the average single rim so it is often used in places where non-professional basketball is played.

outdoor courts​: Outdoor courts are courts placed outdoors which are usually made of blacktop, concrete, or more. Outside of the surface not being hardwood, there is no difference between an outdoor and indoor court.

Airball​: An airball is a shot ball that misses both the basketball backboard and the rim as well. Airballs usually go out of bounds and result in a turnover for the offense.

Backboard:​ The backboard is the area behind the rim that the ball bounces off of when shot. It usually is made of glass or metal and allows for bank shots to get into the rim. All NBA basketball hoops are required to have tempered glass but many hoops have metal or a form of plastic.

Adjustable rim​: An adjustable rim is a mechanism that lets you set the height of a basketball hoop to any height that isn’t the standard height.

3 second violation​: A three second violation is a foul in basketball that occurs when an offensive player is in the paint for more than three seconds at one time. This is to prevent the player from camping underneath the basketball for an entire possession. Failure to adhere to this rule results in a turnover

What is the top of the key?​ The top of the key is the part of the court that is furthest from the basket but inside of the three point line. It exists as just above the free throw line at the top of the inner circle.

This Is How Tall NBA Hoops Are and Why It's the Official Height

While a lot has changed in basketball — the jerseys, balls, courts, rules, and overall aesthetic of the game — one thing remains remarkably the same. The basket is 10 feet off the ground. This tradition goes back nearly 130 years to when Dr. James Naismith first invented the sport. Why are hoops still 10-feet tall? The answer is comically simple.

The beginnings of basketball

In 1891, Dr. Naismith was working at a Springfield, Massachusetts YMCA when he hung the first peach basket on the railing of the running track. This rail was 10 feet off the ground, according to Britannica. In the grand scheme of things, this is probably the only similarity the first basketball game has with its modern counterpart.

The first game involved nine people playing on each side, a soccer ball, and a strict ban on dribbling or moving with the ball in hand. Stories of the first basketball game show a violent, disjointed, and bloodthirsty group of incorrigible men who were fed up with the kids’ games and calisthenics of Naismith’s normal classes.

The evolution of NBA hoops

By nailing a peach basket to the rail, however, Naismith birthed a fast-growing international phenomenon that was remarkably easy to play. Those first “hoops” were not without flaws, however. Being peach baskets, there was a bottom meant to hold peaches. As such, the first games required a ladder in order to retrieve any made points. 

Fortunately, although not as quickly as one may expect, the bottoms were eventually cut out and later replaced with nets. The makeup of the baskets, however, continued to change into the modern era. 

The NBA’s breakaway rim

While many may not know the specific name, the breakaway rim is now the standard across the world. Before the breakaway rim, hoops were firmly mounted into place. During an era where most players were barely 6-feet-tall, this was not an issue. But by the ’60s and early ’70s, dunking was growing more common. With it, rims were getting bent out of shape and falling off the hoop. 

In 1976, a breakaway rim — with hinges that allow it to bend upward and downward with less injury risk to both the player and hoop itself — was first introduced by Arthur Ehrat. The breakaway got its big-stage debut at the 1978 Final Four in St. Louis. Over the next few years, it became the standard. 

However, even this rim was meant for the athletes of the era. While the 250 pounds of pressure the breakaway rim could handle may have worked in 1976, Shaquille O’Neal entered the league in 1992 and changed everything. 

Shaquille O’Neal’s effect on NBA hoops

It did not take long for the 7-foot-1, 300-pound athlete to prove that NBA hoops were not built to withstand his force. During a game against the Suns, O’Neal dunked so hard that the hydraulic system meant to hold up the basket imploded, causing the entire hoop to fold down into itself. 

In a later game, O’Neal dunked so hard the rim didn’t just come down, but the backboard and the shot clock as well. This caused the league to install a steel brace that increases the backboard’s stability. Just to be safe, the NBA also introduced a rule that prohibits players from hanging on the rim too long after a dunk. 

While a lot has changed with basketball, the height of the rim, even if it was built that way by chance, appears to be perfect. Sure, it changes based on age groups and leagues, but the 10-foot height remains the standard for professional and college leagues. It just so happens that decades later, it’s now the perfect height for players to dunk on, too. 

Basketball court dimensions in meters (FIBA and NBA standard)

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    The size of the basketball court depends on the level of the competition, the governing organization, and the age of the students. Often, for training sessions or fights in amateur tournaments, different sizes of the playing court are used, but also in basketball there are officially established standard sizes of the field.

    FIBA ​​and NBA Basketball Court Dimensions

    According to International Basketball Federation (FIBA) rules, the court must be rectangular and measure 28 by 15 meters (91.9 by 49.2 feet). However, in the overseas version of basketball, where the ruling organization of this sport is the National Basketball Association (NBA), the dimensions of the field for professional competitions are slightly different - 28.7 and 15.24 meters (94 by 50 feet).

    As for amateur basketball, the size of the fields there can be completely different:

    • For schools and universities: 21-28 m long, 12-15 m wide
    • Mini basketball (for children under 12) - 17×12 meters

    Basketball court markings

    All lines of the field must be 5cm wide in white. The playing area is limited by the side and front lines. The middle line divides the court in half into equal parts. In the center of the middle line there is a circle with a diameter of 3.6 m (r - 1.8 m), where a dropped ball is played before the start of each period.

    How many periods in basketball: the difference between FIBA ​​and NBA

    There is an arc near each ring at a distance of 6.75 m from the baseline. Balls thrown into the basket outside it bring 3 points, everything inside the arc - 2 points.

    Basketball's free throw zone is marked by a 3.6m line 5.8m from the endline and 4.6m from the hoop.

    See picture of a basketball court with all lines and dimensions.

    Differences in the rules for the size and layout of the court in the NBA and FIBA ​​

    Playground FIBA ​​size NBA size
    Length (meters) 28 28. 65
    Width (meters) 15 15.24
    Ring height (m) 3.05 3.05
    Center circle diameter (m) 3.60 3.60
    3 points line (distance from the basket in meters) 6.75 7.24
    Distance from the basket to the free throw line (m) 4.60 4.67
    Court line width (cm) 5 5

    The First Basketball Court Dimensions: A Brief History

    The first basketball court was limited to the size of the college gym it was located in. That hall measured 54 by 35 feet (16.45 × 10.66 meters).

    In 1891, James Naismith, a physical education teacher at Springsfield College in Massachusetts, invented a new game he later called basketball. At the first stages of the formation of the newly-fledged sport, peach baskets were used instead of rings, and in its first 13 rules, the creator did not indicate the size of the site. As basketball grew in popularity, it became necessary to standardize the size of the field. In 1924, the rules established the maximum size of the site - 28.65 by 15.24 m and the minimum - 18 by 9meters. The NBA still has such rules for the size of the court (28.65 by 15.24 meters), and FIBA ​​eventually set its own standard - 28 × 15 meters.

    Basketball rules concise and clear point by point

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    Basketball court markings: standards and norms

    Author of the article

    Khvatkov Dmitry

    Consultant in the production of rubber coatings

    Basketball field marking requirements are approved by the FIBA ​​standard. The site must be flat with a hard surface, free of bends, cracks and other obstacles. The accepted dimensions of the field are 28 m long and 16 m wide. By NBA standards, the field is slightly larger: 28.7 m (94' ft) long and 15.3 m (50' ft) wide.

    Areas not intended for international competitions may differ from accepted standards (for public use, in schools or universities, etc.) and usually vary from 20 to 28 m in length and from 12 to 16 m in width.

    Basketball court marking standards

    Basketball court markings are conditionally divided into 5 components:

    • Boundary lines. They are located along the perimeter of the site and set its size. The lines that run along the field are called side lines, and those that are behind the baskets are called front lines.
    • Central line. Divides the court in half parallel to the front lines.
    • Central zone. It is a circle and is placed in the middle of the center line, and, accordingly, in the center of the entire field.
    • Three-point line. It is a semi-ellipse and is located around the shields on both sides of the field. It limits the close range.
    • Free throw line. It is located in front of the boards parallel to the front line and is limited on the sides by paint lines.

    The standard line width is 5 cm. All outlines and lines must be of the same color (usually white) and be clearly visible from anywhere on the court.

    Common lines

    Common lines are used to limit the playing area of ​​the court. The side lines (along the field) according to FIBA ​​standards should be 28 m long, and the front lines - 16 m. For public areas, deviations from the accepted standards are allowed. Typically, basketball courts in schools or gyms are made from 20 m long and 12 m wide.

    Central lines

    The center line is parallel to the front and divides the field exactly in half. According to the standards - it should extend beyond the side lines by 15 cm on both sides.

    In the middle of the center line there is a circle with a diameter of 3.6 m, which limits the central zone of the field. In this zone, the ball is played at the beginning of the game.

    Three-Point Line

    Three-Point Lines are located around the backboards on both sides of the field and consist of two straight lines 2.9 long9 m and a semicircle. Straight lines run perpendicular to the front at a distance of 0.9 m from the side lines. Despite the fact that visually the distance from the ring to the side of the three-point line seems to be less than to its central part, the distance from the backboard to any point is 6.75 m.

    Penalty lines

    Penalty lines limit the nearest area at the backboard. They consist of a trapezoid and a free throw zone.

    Despite the name, the "trapezium" is a rectangle (until 2009year it really was a trapezoid), which is located under the shield. Its dimensions are 5.8 meters long and 4.9 meters wide. The shield is located at a distance of 1.575 m from the end line in the middle of the site. In front of the backboard, at a distance of 1.25 m, there is a semicircle that limits the area for picking up the ball.

    At a distance of 4.225 meters from the backboard, the trapeze zone ends and the free throw zone begins. It is a semicircle with a diameter of 3.6 m (like the central circle).

    Paint zone lines

    These lines are serifs on both sides of the trapezoid (parallel to the side lines). They limit the areas for players who are fighting for the ball during a free throw.

    Zones on the basketball field

    The basketball court is divided into zones using markings. Each zone has its own specific rules.

    Center circle

    The center circle is used as a separate kick-off area at the start of the game. One representative from each team stand in a circle from their side and fight for the ball in a jump, after it is dropped by the referee. All players are exclusively on their side of the field, except for one who rebounds on the opponent's side.

    Neutral zone

    The peculiarity of this zone is that as soon as the player of the attacking team with the ball crosses the center line and is on the side of the opponent, he cannot pass the ball to the player of his team who is on the other side of the field (i. e. behind center line on your side).

    Three-point zone

    The three-point line limits the near zone of the shot. Hitting the basket from outside the basket brings the team three points. If the throw was made inside the zone, then it brings two points.

    Three second zone

    This is the zone in close proximity to the ring. It is called three-second, since the player of the attacking team cannot be in it for more than three seconds. Most balls are thrown in this zone, so when attacking, it provides maximum protection.

    Free throw zone

    In controversial situations, a free throw is provided from this zone. The player of the attacking team must score the ball without stepping over the line of the trapezoid. At the same time, the players of both teams are not in the three-second zone. They take up positions along the paint lines on the sides of the trapezoid and may not step outside the lines until the free throw shooter has shot the ball.

    How to mark a basketball field?

    Basketball field markings, whether it is an international competition court or an open-air amateur field, are best applied using special equipment.


    Learn more