what type of basketball is used in the nba
Basketball (ball) Spalding was the first company to produce a basketball for official use. Company founder A.G. Spalding made the first dedicated basketball in the last years of the 19th century at the behest of James Naismith. It has produced basketballs since that time and has produced the NBAâ€™s official game ball since 1983. They also produce the balls for the Women's National Basketball Association and NBA Development League. The company also produces a wide variety of balls for the consumer market.
Basketball court The key, free throw lane or shaded lane refers to the usually painted area beneath the basket; for the NBA it is 16 feet (4.9 m) wide, for the NCAA it is 12 feet (3.7 m) wide; for both instances it extends 15 feet (4.6 m) from the backboard. At the top of the rectangle is the free throw line, behind which players shoot uncontested shots when they're fouled. A circle is drawn around the free-throw line with a 6 feet (1.8 m) radius; this is used for jump ball instances, as is done at the center circle. Two 6-inch hash lines, 3 ft from the free throw lane line and 5 ft 8 in from the free throw line, show the lower defensive box linked to the restricted area.