How Do You Make A Mini Basketball Hoop?

Basketball is a game that attracts most of the population from across the world. People have started making hoops for their kids to play inside their homes or in their open garden. You don’t really need to spend a lot of money on this game anymore when you have decided to make a hoop all on your own. 

Get rid of all your plastic suction cups used as basketball hoops as things like these do not serve the purpose. They make the game look sick and unattractive as the ball does not pass through it but bounces back. There are many videos on social platforms such as YouTube that demonstrate videos teaching you to make a hoop out of the waste. 

1. Buy the O-Ring

Take a silicon o-ring (you can order one from online shopping sites such as Amazon or FlipCart); preferably orange-red in color. 

2. Number 21 Eight White Nylon Strings

Cut these eight strings measuring 45 centimetres each. Melt the tip quickly after sticking the ends of the string with glue. The reason why one needs to be quick with the sealing process is later it will be difficult to tie the knots due to which the strings will get unravelled. Section the hoop into eight parts. Start from the northern direction of the hoop; the string should be folded into half and a knot tied on to the hoop. You just need to ensure that the strings are of the same length after tying. Repeat this process for all the clockwise directions of the hoop and then the remaining 1/8 locations too. 

Ensure to check that all the strings are tied at the same distance from each other on to the hoop before you seal the knots. Use sugar glue to dap the knots in order to maintain their tightness. To get the exact idea of how to do the knots and stuff so far, it is advisable to watch hoop making videos on channels like YouTube. Grab two tied points of two strings together and tie a knot for about an inch at an equal distance, making a triangle. Repeat this act for all the rest of the seven knots, regularly checking the locations of the knots to ensure they all are equidistant. 

Tie the neighbour strings to make a diamond pattern for the second row. The length should be the same – an inch from each other.       

3. The Hoop Connector 

For making a hoop connector, you need a cardboard. Cut a strip of say about 0.75 inches x 2.5 inches. Ensure that the strip fits well between the string points that are glued. A connector helps you connect the hoop to the mount. The net has to be oriented down. To ensure the cardboard wraps the hoop tightly, you must fold the cardboard surrounding the hoop and push it down. The mounting strip can be adjusted a little lower than the hoop. 

 Remember, the strip’s bottom has to be flat and the top has to be indented a bit. This will assist the hoop to get fixed a little higher than the hoop mount support when glued to it. Stick all the strips together. 

4. The Hoop Mount Support Piece 

Cut a piece of a cardboard by taking the pattern of the hoop mount support. The thicker the better it is. Place the hoop on the top support’s edge. Use the X-acto knife to cut the arch opening. Make scores inside the cardboard paper to make cleaner folds. Glue it using super glues as it dries too quickly. 

After you are done with the glue thing, paint the support using matching colours. Tint the colour using the red and yellow blend. Be very careful with the painting as the net should not get coloured. The hoop can be wiped off easily if the colour spills on it as it is made of silicon. Paint the whole hoop mount support except for these two places – back square and its underside. This is the attachment place of the hoop connector. You can complete your painting work after you glue the hoop connector to its support. 

5. Attaching the Hoop to Its Mount Support Piece

Glue the hoop connector to the mount support’s underside using super glue. Ensure that the hoop is at the centre and it is tightly touching the arch opening. Dab the super glue around the opening of the arch, so that the nylon ring and the o-ring can be affixed or glued to the cardboard. Now, there are four points of contact for the nylon string on the opening of the arch and it was enough to hold the ring in place over the mount support piece. 

6. The Backboard

Place the (backboard) cardboard in the centre of a white paper and glue the edges of the paper to the cardboard to its back. Glue orange strips to its edges and another four strips slightly below the centre of the cardboard over the paper. 

7. Backboard and the Mount Basketball Hoop

Glue the hoop on the backboard using super glue. Hold it for a while so that it sets firmly. Once the glue is dried, affix the hoop to the cardboard using staples. You can either use a staple gun or a regular stapler to do the stapling work. Don’t forget to cover the staples or tape them to make sure nobody gets hurt or poked. 

8. The Mount on the Back

Use a duct tape to secure the paper clip on the back. You can change this as and when required. This will enable the backboard to slide over a box when in use. 

Lastly, find a good spot to hang this mini basketball hoop for your kids at home, so they can make the best use of their time and energy. There is no compromise on either side when it comes to sports. All you need to do now is tell your kids to shoot the hoops and become basketball stars. Have Fun!