Spending on equipment and gear on basketball is similar to other popular indoor team sports, such as volleyball or futsal. All you need are a pair of shoes, athletic shorts and tank tops, and a basketball.
Then, you need to find a full-length basketball court with standard rim dimensions.
The standard size of a basketball court is 94 feet long and 50 feet wide. Meanwhile, the standard height of a basketball rim is 10 feet high off the ground.
A high-quality basketball net will increase the joy of playing but isn’t necessary to make the game work.
Is basketball an expensive sport?
Compared to other sports, basketball is relatively affordable. You can play basketball at a local park with just a basketball. Indoors basketball requires a pair of basketball shoes, some clothes, and a ball to get started.
Unless you’re a sneakerhead, an average full basketball gear would cost less than playing football or hockey.
You can also purchase economy-friendly basketball apparel at thrift stores around the country.
The most important piece of gear is the shoes. Playing basketball indoors requires shoes made for the plastic/vinyl flooring. Otherwise, you’ll slip, get injured, and possibly damage the flooring.
How much does it cost to play basketball?
Most American schools include their sports activities in the tuition paid to attend the institution. However, in Europe, it’s common to pay a monthly fee for practicing basketball at an independent club.
Here, the fees are in the ballpark of $100-200 per month. The price increases with the number of trainings and matches included.
The average basketball gear costs $100. The only way it becomes expensive is if you choose to wear collector’s item sneakers. Some sneakers would cost as much as $250 just for one pair alone. (1)
In addition, a standard average basketball would cost only $30. If you’re a group of five, you can pitch in $6 each. You don’t need to wear cleats, pads, or helmets, like in football or hockey.
The extra gear you see on the NBA stars is optional. The sweat-bands and the knee supporters are individual choices made by the player or their coach.
These extra pieces of gear is something you can add into your stack of gear along the way if it gets necessary.
Although, to start out, you only the most basic; a ball, shoes and clothes that works for sports.
How much does it cost to play basketball in high school?
There’s rarely a fee for attending basketball in high-school, as it’s prepaid through the overall tuition fee for the school.
If you are a basketball talent, you might even get a scholarship that covers the tuition for the school.
This requires you to do well academically as well as athletically. To keep your scholarship, you have to pass your exams while maintaining your basketball levels.
Some schools may ask for an extra fee for attending basketball practice, but it’s rarely a cost that keeps interested teens away from attending.
Most parents will support their kids in their pursuit of a healthy activity like basketball. And some of them might even end up playing varsity in college.
What gear do you need for basketball?
The most basic basketball gear you need is a pair of basketball shoes, athletic shorts, tank top jerseys, socks, and undergarments.
Accessories such as wristbands and headbands are optional. They serve as wiping off sweat, or they make you look better on the court.
For older players, injury protective gear such as knee pads and arm sleeves are required, depending on the coach’s and doctor’s advice.
The most common protective gear worn in basketball is knee and patella braces and ankle wraps.
Leg, wrist and foot injuries are the most common occurrences in basketball.
What is the most expensive basketball?
The most expensive basketball depends on whether the ball is commercially sold or if it is considered a collector’s item.
Commercially, Spalding is the most expensive brand of basketball.
After all, Spalding is the official basketball of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Spalding recently released the Black Mamba Ball, a special edition ball in commemoration of Kobe Bryant.
The ball is being sold in the market for $175, and it comes with a custom display box. (2)
What is the most expensive basketball shoe?
Thanks to the sneakerhead culture, the prices of basketball sneakers have gone up drastically over the years.
Michael Jordan is one of the main personalities responsible for people going crazy over sneaker collectibles.
His main shoe line, aptly called the “Jordans,” is the main symbol of sneakerhead culture.
In fact, seven of the most expensive basketball shoes ever were worn by Jordan in an official NBA game.
Here are the nine most expensively documented basketball shoes so far. (3)
1. Jordan 1 (Last Dance) – $560,000 (4)
Worn by Jordan in his final game at Madison Square Garden as a Chicago Bull in 1998. It was the same sneaker he wore back in his rookie year. As a result, his feet bled terribly after the game. The shoe was featured on the sports documentary “The Last Dance” which made its value increase even higher.
2. Converse Fast Breaks – $190,375
Worn by Jordan during the gold medal game vs. Spain in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, California. It was the most famous non-Nike shoe associated with Jordan.
3. Air Jordan 12 (Flu Game) – $104,765
Worn by Jordan during game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals between Jordan’s Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz. It was called such, because apparently, Jordan was suffering from the flu (which later was revealed to be food poisoning), but still scored 45 points to lead the Bulls to victory.
4. Nike Air Ships – $71,555
Worn by Jordan in his rookie season against the Los Angeles Lakers in 1984. It was eventually known as the “Banned” shoe, because the sneaker was not predominantly white, which was the norm back then.
5. Nike C’s Olympic – $52,560
Worn by Jordan during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. That same Olympiad was known as the event that made basketball a global game, as the original USA Dream Team was formed that time.
6. Air Jordan 1 – $39,600
Worn by Jordan during his rookie season. It was the sneaker line that started the sneakerhead craze. Many people consider the Air Jordan 1 the beginning of the multimillion-dollar shoe deals between athletes and companies like Nike and Adidas.
7. Nike Hyperdunks – $37,750
Worn by Kobe Bryant during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The USA basketball team was known as the Redeem Team, as the United States last won an international basketball game in 2000. Bryant was the catalyst behind the USA reclaiming its throne in the basketball world.
8. Air Jordan 11 (Bred) – $34,160
Worn by Jordan in Game 3 of the 1996 NBA Finals between the Bulls and the Seattle Supersonics. Bred is short for Black and Red, which are the primary colors of the Bulls.
9. Under Armour Curry 3 (Oakland Strong) – $30,101
Worn by Stephen Curry on December 15, 2016. The shoe was auctioned to fund the Oakland Fire Department. It was made as a tribute to the victims of an unfortunate fire incident that claimed the lives of 36 people in Oakland, California. This pair is also the most expensive sneaker by an active NBA player.
Basketball in popular culture
Speaking of sneakerheads, thanks to the boosting popularity of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the impact of basketball around the world has been highly evident these past few years.
In fact, a lot of international players have fared successfully against their American counterparts.
One of the most prominent influences of basketball in popular culture is in fashion. Young people dress like their NBA idols and emulate their looks.
From NBA merchandise to the way the players’ swagger on and off the court, fans have started to mimic their every move.
In the early 2000s, Allen Iverson merged basketball and hip-hop culture around the world. He made tattoos and wearing jerseys and bling-bling in malls look good.
Even on the basketball court, Iverson pioneered the arm sleeve and the loose shorts as fashionable.
NBA players associated with their basketball gear
While Iverson is most known for being responsible as the innovator of the arm sleeve, there are other NBA players who are directly associated with certain basketball accessories.
For example, basketball goggles are mostly connected with either Kareem Abdul Jabbar or Horace Grant.
Even before face masks were a thing because of the pandemic, some basketball players were known for playing with a protective face mask.
The most notable is Rip Hamilton, who became an All-Star after being prescribed to wear a protective mask.
The headband was already a thing before the new millennium ushered in.
Players such as Clifford Robinson and Slick Watts initiated the headband craze in the NBA.
Also, when it comes to knee pads, the centers of the ‘90s were most known for it. Specifically, tall players like Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O’Neal.
References:
1. Amazon basketball apparel and equipment: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=basketball+gear&ref=nb_sb_noss
2. Kobe Bryant Spalding special Black Mamba Edition: https://uncrate.com/spalding-x-kobe-bryant-black-mamba-basketball/
3. Most expensive game-worn basketball shoes ever auctioned: https://theundefeated.com/features/the-most-expensive-game-worn-basketball-shoes-ever-auctioned-nike-michael-jordan/
4. Michael Jordan’s Air Jordan 1 from The Last Dance: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/18/michael-jordans-air-jordan-1s-sell-for-record-setting-560000.html#:~:text=Sotheby’s%20recently%20sold%20a%20pair,legend%20Michael%20Jordan%20and%20autographed.
What do you think?