Where Should you put a Basketball Hoop in the Driveway?

This article will give you helpful information to know exactly where you should put a basketball hoop in your driveway. The simple answer is to center a portable basketball hoop anywhere on the driveway that allows it to be evenly spaced on both sides. This will give you a more realistic basketball court environment to play pick up games.

I have personally faced the dilemma of trying to decide where to put a basketball hoop in the driveway over the past 20 years on two homes I purchased. Both homes had a driveway and I had to figure out where to put my portable basketball hoop. It was a tough decision and there were a bunch of things I had to consider so I decided to write this article to break down and share some of my thought process and where I ultimately decided to put my basketball hoop on the driveway.

Now this is a great answer but there are so many more factors you need to consider which I will cover in this article.

To really give you the best possible advice to answer the question “where do I put my basketball hoop on my driveway” is to break this article in to several different portions. First, I need to talk about the different shapes of driveways. This is important because all driveways have different sizes and shapes. Secondly, I will talk about the different surfaces. This might not have the biggest impact on where to put your basketball hoop on the driveway but I still think it’s important to discuss the different types of surfaces. Then I will talk about four different factors that I believe play an important role in selecting where you will place your basketball hoop on your driveway. Lastly, I will answer several frequently asked questions and most importantly I will display sample photos to give you ideas on where to place your basketball hoop in the driveway.

Driveways:

The first thing I want to talk about are the different driveways that are out there. After-all, the variety of driveway sizes and shapes and what other uses will have a pretty big impact on where you put a basketball hoop on your driveway. 

Average length of driveway:

The average length of a driveway is 18 to 22 feet according to Pacific Pavingstone. This is a standard sized driveway which may be shorter or longer than yours.

Driveway Width: 

According to Blacktop Concepts, driveways can be ten to 12 feet or more in width. Obviously driveways can be much wider especially if you have a larger home.

Driveway Shapes:

I think of the traditional driveway when I think about driveways but honestly, there are so many different shapes out there. Simply Driveways describes the five following driveways:

1. Straight driveways
2. Circular driveways
3. Semi-circular driveways
4. L-shaped driveways
5. S-shaped driveways

Straight driveways are probably the most common driveway we see today and likely the easiest one to use for a basketball hoop. My first house had a straight driveway so I installed the basketball hoop in the center of the garage. This gave my kids an equal amount of playing room distance on both sides of the hoop and a long driveway. 

This was a smaller driveway but it worked for me and the family. The setup did block the center of which made it harder to park my car in the garage.

Circular and semi-circular driveways are fairly conducive to basketball play. The basketball hoop can be placed on the edge of any portion of the driveway and have an almost even amount of space on either side of the backboard. Players will likely suffer length on most circular driveways.

I currently have a L-Shaped Driveway, which works out pretty well for a home basketball court. I placed my portable basketball hoop on the shorter edge of the L in my driveway. Although my driveway isn’t perfectly shaped like an L it closely resembles this shape. 

The placement of the basketball hoop on the shorter edge of the L allows my kids to have a decent amount of playing room but they don’t have equal space on both sides of the hoop unfortunately.

 The S-Shaped driveway has curves all over that you will need to work with but it is definitely doable. 

Now that we have talked about the different shapes or driveways let’s discuss the types of driveway material or playing surface.

Driveway Surfaces:

Pavers

Pavers give your driveway a beautiful aesthetic look but some might think it would be hard to play or even dribble a basketball on pavers. Initially, I thought the spaces between each paver would make it difficult to dribble a basketball but I have not experienced any issues.  

Concrete

Driveways made of concrete are probably the most common and certainly good for a home basketball court. Concrete makes it easy to bounce a basketball and not known to be a slippery surface.

Pavement

Pavement driveways will provide a hard surface for good basketball play. Might put a little more wear and tear on your basketball but overall it will work.

Factors for Basketball Hoop Placement:

Ok, so now that we have discussed the size, types and surfaces used on driveways let’s talk about the four factors you need to consider when deciding where to put your basketball hoop on the driveway.

1. Other uses for your driveway:

Your driveway will probably serve many purposes for you and your family other than to play basketball. 

You may need to use your driveway to park cars. I know this was a big factor for my family. We have a large family and a number of cars. I had to consider our parking situation to ensure the basketball hoop wouldn’t block the driveway. I found a good spot for our basketball hoop but it does require us to move cars around when hooping.

Your driveway is likely the path to park a car in the garage. If this is the case you may want to avoid placing a portable basketball hoop in front of the garage entrance. Doing so could block the entrance to the garage.

2. HOA or Community Restrictions

Some HOAs may have certain prohibitions related to basketball hoop placement. I hope this doesn’t affect you because it could restrict your from owning a basketball hoop.

3. Safety

The biggest factor is SAFETY. Driveways mean there is a street nearby and you don’t want your kid running into the street after a ball. This might mean you need to put a big cone or sign to warn oncoming traffic that kids are playing in the area.

Other issues I have experienced are obstacles that could injure players. Garden sprinkler heads that could be tripped over or structures (like an exterior wall) that can easily be in the way. Bushes adjacent to the basketball hoop can hurt or even poke someone in the eye if they are too close. Tree branches from tall trees may need to be trimmed to avoid becoming a hazard.

Know where your exterior light fixtures are located. My kids broke one of ours within the first year of moving to our new house. This is probably unavoidable though!

Exterior windows can become a victim to loose basketballs. Again, this is another permanent fixture that may be unavoidable.

4. Space to Play

You want to maximize your playing space. Here are three things to consider when   factoring in space to play. How much space do you need around a basketball hoop? I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer to this question. My recommendation is about 15 feet minimum but more if you have the space. 

• You want to have an equal playing area on both sides of the basketball hoop. This will give you plenty of room for fighting over the basketball during rebounding.
• No driveway basketball court is created equal. You will have to develop your own unique boundaries and these will be remembered for years to come! We are going on ten years in our house and when my adult aged kids play basketball outside they still refer to the same out of bounds and free throw shooting areas they did when we first set up our court.

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Are you looking for a portable basketball hoop to put in your driveway? If so, check out the one made by Lifetime. I have owned one for almost ten years and it has served my family very well.

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We have discussed a multitude of factors and provided information to help you make a decision about where to put your portable basketball hoop in your driveway. Now, I want to show you a few examples of where basketball hoops are placed on driveways. These are real photographs of various driveways with basketball hoops to give you a bunch of ideas to help you decide where to put your basketball hoop.

Conclusion

Where do you put a hoop in the driveway? My recommendation is carefully evaluate what you and your family will use your driveway before making the decision. Once you have this information, look for a spot that allows for enough space to move freely. This is commonly an area at the edge of the driveway in the middle to allow for more space. Wherever you decide to place your basketball hoop I am confident that it will give you and your family years of enjoyment and memories!