Customer Reviews

Lifetime 1221 Pro Court Height-Adjustable Portable Basketball System with 44-Inch Backboard

5 star:		(77)
4 star:		(45)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Length:: 2:50 Mins

Read all the reviews on this. Mind you, I was a bit skeptical at the price, but in the end, I locked and loaded on this one and am very happy. Below is my written review and I've also attached some video. Read the review first.

As for it being complicated to put together, I really did not find this to be an issue. Sure, there were a couple of vague areas, but I found if I just paused, thought about it for a while, the answer came to me. Aside from putting one bolt in backwards (kids could have bonked their head on it so just turned it around) it all worked out nicely. One adult can do most of the work, but you must have two for the mounting of the back board and hoop.

As for quality. It's just fine.
For little kids, I think this is perfect. If I was buying it for older kids, I might get one of the other models with a bigger back board and where the board is extended off the pole. I recorded a couple of videos which shows you how the back board sits right on the pole. As one reviews stated, if you were running and slamming, you'd run right into the pole. Sometimes the ball hits the pole and kicks it back out. So this hoop system is really more for "goofing" around than serious play.

If you have a limited budget and / or you just want something for goofing around, or for little kids who have an interest in Bball, really I can't find any faults. The price can't be beat. The system is very stable and sound.

This backboard works perfectly for our purpose. It is portable, but I recommend sand for weighting so you don't have to worry about water freezing. Also, changing the height of the pole is a two-person task. We have a nine-year-old daughter for whom it was purchased, and she can't put enough power into her shots to do any damage, but if you have kids who want to hang on the rim or shoot from a long distance, this probably isn't the right set for you.

I ordered this from Amazon, and it came very quickly. It wasn't the most difficult or complicated product to assemble but it wasn't a walk in the park either. There was one missing bolt, but I happened to have one laying around.
If you will not be changing height often, this is an awesome set up. If you have multiple children with dramatic differences in skills and height, you may want to consider something else. Mainly something with an easier adjustment feature.
my two boys (2nd grade and Kindergarten) love this 'hoop'. To change the height you have to tip it over( using physics its not that hard). But, you will need one person to pull the backboard out, and hold it steady so you can re-insert the removable bolt.
There are some who will 'poo-poo' any portable system. if you want professional quality backboard feel and quality, then....get a professional quality system...but if you have kids under 12, and want something to play with, then this is a great system.

The Lifetime 1221 Pro Court basketball system is a reasonable choice for the budget conscious family. It is a free-standing basketball hoop that is great for light, family oriented play. Given the price, I think you will get more than you expected and your kids will be more than satisfied with the new source of summer fun.

But remember, this is not a professional set up. The backboard is made out of molded plastic. This is somewhat softer than plexiglass or wood and dampens the characteristic bounce that you might get with a harder surface. The fact that the base is weighted, rather than fixed to the ground, also increases the give on the backboard. Even so, the backboard perfroms competently. So unless your kids are budding NBA stars, the effect on play is minimal and the backboard is more than adequate.

You can fill the base with water or sand. Water has the advantage of being easier to remove whereas sand weighs more and would make the base more stable. However, even with water the hoop is far more stable than I would have imagined. It stays firmly planted even when the ball is thrown at the backboard with force.

Although portable, the structure is not easily collapsible. The hoop only reduces down easily to a minimum of 7 1/2 feet. So if you want to store it for the winter you will need to have enough room to store such a long structure, actually disassemble the hoop, or simply let it stay outside and brave the elements. It is not difficult to raise and lower the height in six inch increments, but this requires removing a screw and extending the pole assembly. Not too difficult, but more challenging than lever operated systems. The whole assembly is much lighter than you would expect, given the hollow, metal construction and molded plastic backboard, so it is actually easy to move around. Even with the base full of water, my 13 year old can tip the assembly back on its wheels and move the hoop easily on a blacktop surface.

In terms of assembly, things weren't too bad. Minimum equipment is required--a hex ratchet set and Phillip's head screwdriver are all you really need. The skill level needed is minimal (hey, I was able to put this together). Set aside an hour or so to put the thing together and make sure you have another adult (or large child) to help with the last steps. The directions are about average for this kind of do-it-yourself variety of product. The steps are multilingual, but really the most important aspect of them is the pictures. The drawings are clear enough to distinguish like pieces from each other, but certainly could have been clearer. On the bright side, Lifetime included life-size pictures of the hardware used for each step at the top of the page, so there is little ambiguity as to which screw or nut should be used. If you can put together the more simple Ikea furniture, you can certainly put this thing together without a problem.

The major difficulty in the design here is the hoop-backboard assembly. This is the part that requires two adults. 4 screws attach the hoop through the backboard to the pole in the last steps of the assembly. The pairs are, of course, going in opposite directions and it requires two adults and a lot of balance to hold the three parts in place while the nuts are being secured. The position of the bottom two screws is also somewhat awkward as there is barely enough room to fit the hex wrench around the head of the screw. Lifetime could simply have placed a groove on the end of the hex screw allowing you to use a screwdriver instead of a hex wrench.) Apart from this step, however, the assembly is simple and straight forward. Lifetime could have made it a tad simpler if all their hex nuts and screws were the same size, but this is a minor issue.

Given the price of this no-frills item, I think you definitely get your money's worth on this one. Once again, this is not a hoop made to withstand high levels of punishment, but it is a great choice for a backyard one-on-one with your elementary or high school aged child.

I didn't expect this to perform like a more expensive glass backboard, but it performs fine for my kids. The assembly was simple, although the part to install the backboard and hoop requires two people. After filling the base with water (you can also use sand), I can easily tilt the pole forward to move it around given that I'm only 5'6" and weighs 150 pounds.

I set the height of the hoop at the lowest setting of 7.5 feet, and it can be set at 6-inch increments up to 10 feet. The backboad is sturdy although it needs a better backboard support system. Since this is a portable system, the backboard is not as stable as a permanent one and the backboard does not provide as good of a bounce to the ball. I think the backboard will be more stable if I fill the base with sand instead of water.

For $100, I'm happy with the purchase. It's durable and serves the purpose for me and my kids.

This is the cheapest stand-alone, portable basketball goal that went up to full height on amazon.

Its also the one with the lowest price. <rimshot>

We were missing one bolt from the instructions. It was kinda important (kept the backboard on the pole). Luckily, I found another one in my can of spares I keep around the garage.

The instructions at one point indicate that two adults are required. This should have been modified for one small caveat: each of the two adults need four arms each. My buddy and I needed the help of a bicycle to hold up the pole while I held the rim and backboard against the pole while he was underneath the backboard blindly turning screws. We both have two arms (only).

The instructions are not the greatest, but at least the parts you need are bagged together per step. That's really handy.

The backboard is thick but hollow plastic.

Finally got it up and noticed right away it was leaning forward about 20 degrees. Solved that problem by putting a pair of 2x4 planks of wood under the front of it. Pole is straight now. I filled mine with water, it is more than heavy enough to stay up.

This arrived quickly from Amazon and the directions were good. I'm a 41-year old mom and I put this together by myself. I needed our wheelbarrow to prop it up. It took me about 90 minutes. I tried to put sand in the base, but the hole is so small that it was taking forever so I finally filled it up with water (I'll remember to dump it in the winter before it freezes).

This is for my 5 year-old. He is autistic; he had a Little Tykes basket and would just make 10-20 baskets in a row, it was amazing, but it was already on the highest setting. So I upgraded him to this one. After it was up, he took 4 shots and they all missed; I was a little worried that it was too tall even at the lowest setting. But then he just stood there, starring at the backboard for the longest time - and then his fifth shot went in. Now he loves it!! And it will grow with him! I love that!

I highly recommend!

This is absolutely the best [...] I ever spent on exercise equipment. The package arrived in impeccable condition. It took myself about two hours to assemble the whole thing. It is a ONE person job (I did use a lawn chair to prop it up at the last steps). Pouring 300lb of sand into the tiny whole takes me another 90 minutes, but man, the post is solid as a rock. The bounce of the backboard is ok for a backyard game. You can't expect the NBA stuff for [...]. The frame and rim are very well made. All in all, very satisfied with the product.
One tip: I padded the post with a [...] pipe insulation foam from Lowes. Now I don't need to worry about my kids running into the post.

This is an inexpensive portable basketball hoop that is a great deal for the money. It could be better, but still worth the money. Not hard to put together / took about an hour. My son is 12 and he and his friends use it all the time. I would buy it again.

Amazon had the lowest price protable basketball system I could find. I am a happy Amazon shopper! Free shipping was an added bonus.

Pretty reasonable price ($99) and I would say you get what you pay for. It isn't as nice as the $200 models, but it didn't cost $200, so I don't think that is a fair comparison. I read all of the reviews on this site and others before setting up the hoop. By taking the advice of the reviews (ex. leave bolts in backboard loose until in place, use dry sand, make sure you know which pole you are using), it wasn't bad. I couldn't agree more about using dry sand. Overall, I am happy with the hoop, especially for little kids, since it is about as basic as they come. The only negative comment that I have is that the pole is connected pretty much directly to the backboard (versus separate poles separating the two), so it has the potential for injury if you you aren't careful when going for a layup. Overall, good value and I'm happy with the purchase