RectanglePainted above the rim. It helps a shooter aim a bank shot.
Backboard paddingPadding fitted to the edge of the backboard.
From the side 5
PoleHolds the goal up. It comes in three sections.
Backboard bracketsHold the backboard out from the pole.
Pole capCloses the open top of the pole.
Ground sleeveSet in concrete. The bottom of the pole slides into it.
SpringLets a breakaway rim bend down and snap back.
How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30 and kept only where at least two of these use it. (1) Wikipedia, Backboard (basketball), Breakaway rim and Basket (basketball), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backboard_(basketball) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakaway_rim : backboard, rim or hoop, net, the inner rectangle that helps a shooter aim, the hinge and spring of a breakaway rim. (2) A maker's parts list for an in-ground basketball system, full text at https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-7012845 : top, middle and bottom pole, backboard brackets, backboard, pole cap, net, rim, springs, ground sleeve. (3) A second maker's parts lists, full texts at https://archive.org/details/manualsbase-id-644654 and https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-6799036 (one maker, counted once): pole sections, board bracket, pole cap, rim, net, spring, ground sleeve. (4) For rectangle and backboard padding: search-result passages of two rule books on archive.org, https://archive.org/details/1988ncaaillustra0000edwa (a rectangle shall be centered behind the ring) and https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781582082943 (backboard padding). Licence: own work
The drawing: Own drawing from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work
How it works
A basketball goal is a backboard with a rim and a net, held up on a pole. The first drawing shows it from the front. The second shows the side, down to the sleeve in the ground.
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The parts of a basketball rim
The rim is a metal ring fixed to the bottom of the backboard, with the net hanging from it. A breakaway rim has a spring where it meets the board, so it can bend down and snap back.
What holds it up
The pole comes in sections that fit together, with a cap on top. Brackets hold the backboard out from it. On an in-ground goal the bottom of the pole slides into a ground sleeve set in concrete.
Questions and answers
What are the parts of a basketball goal called?
The backboard, the rim and the net make the basket. A pole holds them up, with brackets between the pole and the backboard. An in-ground goal also has a ground sleeve, and a breakaway rim has a spring.
What is the square on a basketball backboard for?
It is a rectangle painted on the backboard just above the rim. It helps a shooter judge the aim for a shot that banks in off the board.
What is a breakaway rim?
A rim with a hinge and a spring where it joins the backboard. It can bend down when a player dunks the ball, then snaps back into place.
Is it a basketball goal, hoop or basket?
All three are used. Rule books say basket, for the ring and its net, and call the rim a ring. Makers sell the whole thing, pole and all, as a basketball system or goal.