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We got plenty of reviews and requests on shoes, so I thought I'd take a different angle and open up some discussion on what actual basketballs people likeand dislike. Maybe we can get this stickied. It's something easily overlooked, but I think the quality of basketball does make a difference. There'sa similar thread on that "other" forum, but if you've seen it, it's mostly people boosting their post count. I had some spare time, so Ithought I'd put together a short review on my favorite basketball.
Anyway, if you are going to post, try to list the brand name and model, for instance, Nike 3005.
Here's one of my favorites with pics:
Nike 4005 Tournament Ball
Retail $60 (I certainly didn't pay that)
I haven't seen this ball being used by colleges or high schools very much, maybe only once if I think about it. It probably has to do with thenon-traditional, but very effective "Wrap-Around" panel design (patent pending according to Nike).
Now, non-traditional look aside, the first thing that drew me to this ball was the feel of the surface. To me, the only ball that is superior in terms of feelis a broken-in official NBA Game Ball. Well, the Molten International Game Balls are nice too, but I haven't seen one in stores here. Both of those arein the high price range, where the 4005 falls closer to what I think is the standard, the Spalding TF-1000. I like the Spalding TF-1000 and TF-1500, which areprobably the most popular overall basketballs available, but I think the 4005 tops those.
Like the TF-1000, it's good to go right away, no break-in required. I won't quote Nike's tech. specs on it, I'll just keep it simple and saythat it has a grippy surface, with just the right amount of softness blended with texture. This is where I think it is superior to the TF-1000, which to mefeels almost sticky. That's not necessarily bad, but to me, the 4005 feels more natural, almost as if the TF-1000 has a glazed sort of look and feel toit, while the 4005 really closely emulates that feeling of a broken-in NBA Game Ball. By the way, if you haven't seen a brand new NBA Game Ball, thosethings can feel like a big rock (no pun intended) at first. Another important quality are the seams, you can tell whether a ball is kind of cheap by the feelof the seams. This ball is seamless, the rubber dividers are all very smooth, leading to just a great, unbroken overall feel.
So, how does it affect handling, shooting and passing?
First, like I stated before, the quality of the ball does matter to me. I think a ball would have to be really badfor it to detrimentally affect my game though. I'm talking about a $5 ball from Walmart that's lopsided from the get-go. We've all seen peopleplay poorly and say "It's that damn ball". But the thing is, playing ball requires adjustments, and everybody will be playing with the sameball. I also think that when it gets to a certain price point, the differences between basketballs become minute. For instance, the difference between aTF-1000 vs. a generic Target bball would be great, but the difference between a TF-1000 and the Nike 4005, not so much. But there are slight differencesnonetheless.
From my perspective, the 4005 really shines through in shooting. Obviously, the feel of the ball will affect dribbling and passing, and this one is a joy tohandle. But I think the whole reason for the new panel, which is very similar to the short lived "updated" NBA ball (which has since been retired,nice try Stern), is to put the ball into a comfortable shooting position at a more efficient rate. Hopefully, those panels are more environmentally friendly,seeing as how they look like they reduce waste because of the symmetrical design. Anyway, I like my fingertips to line up at one of the rubber dividers asmuch as possible. The design makes it easier for me to do so, and eliminates that area on both sides of the ball where all of those rubber dividers converge. I'm no Ray Allen and I probably couldn't even hack it in a rec. league, but I do play enough to notice and appreciate this overall design.
The ball certainly isn't perfect, I don't have any complaints, but I know people who didn't like it because of the panels. They were the exceptionrather than the rule. I also have the Nike 3005 ball, which is essentially the same ball with the regular, traditional design (no wrap-around panel). It's also got the same great feel and surface, to be accurate, the 3005 is probably the Nike equivalent of the TF-1000 in terms of price and quality. Butif you can find the 4005 for a good price, don't be reluctant to give it a shot.
Anyway, if you are going to post, try to list the brand name and model, for instance, Nike 3005.
Here's one of my favorites with pics:
Nike 4005 Tournament Ball
Retail $60 (I certainly didn't pay that)
I haven't seen this ball being used by colleges or high schools very much, maybe only once if I think about it. It probably has to do with thenon-traditional, but very effective "Wrap-Around" panel design (patent pending according to Nike).
Now, non-traditional look aside, the first thing that drew me to this ball was the feel of the surface. To me, the only ball that is superior in terms of feelis a broken-in official NBA Game Ball. Well, the Molten International Game Balls are nice too, but I haven't seen one in stores here. Both of those arein the high price range, where the 4005 falls closer to what I think is the standard, the Spalding TF-1000. I like the Spalding TF-1000 and TF-1500, which areprobably the most popular overall basketballs available, but I think the 4005 tops those.
Like the TF-1000, it's good to go right away, no break-in required. I won't quote Nike's tech. specs on it, I'll just keep it simple and saythat it has a grippy surface, with just the right amount of softness blended with texture. This is where I think it is superior to the TF-1000, which to mefeels almost sticky. That's not necessarily bad, but to me, the 4005 feels more natural, almost as if the TF-1000 has a glazed sort of look and feel toit, while the 4005 really closely emulates that feeling of a broken-in NBA Game Ball. By the way, if you haven't seen a brand new NBA Game Ball, thosethings can feel like a big rock (no pun intended) at first. Another important quality are the seams, you can tell whether a ball is kind of cheap by the feelof the seams. This ball is seamless, the rubber dividers are all very smooth, leading to just a great, unbroken overall feel.
So, how does it affect handling, shooting and passing?
First, like I stated before, the quality of the ball does matter to me. I think a ball would have to be really badfor it to detrimentally affect my game though. I'm talking about a $5 ball from Walmart that's lopsided from the get-go. We've all seen peopleplay poorly and say "It's that damn ball". But the thing is, playing ball requires adjustments, and everybody will be playing with the sameball. I also think that when it gets to a certain price point, the differences between basketballs become minute. For instance, the difference between aTF-1000 vs. a generic Target bball would be great, but the difference between a TF-1000 and the Nike 4005, not so much. But there are slight differencesnonetheless.
From my perspective, the 4005 really shines through in shooting. Obviously, the feel of the ball will affect dribbling and passing, and this one is a joy tohandle. But I think the whole reason for the new panel, which is very similar to the short lived "updated" NBA ball (which has since been retired,nice try Stern), is to put the ball into a comfortable shooting position at a more efficient rate. Hopefully, those panels are more environmentally friendly,seeing as how they look like they reduce waste because of the symmetrical design. Anyway, I like my fingertips to line up at one of the rubber dividers asmuch as possible. The design makes it easier for me to do so, and eliminates that area on both sides of the ball where all of those rubber dividers converge. I'm no Ray Allen and I probably couldn't even hack it in a rec. league, but I do play enough to notice and appreciate this overall design.
The ball certainly isn't perfect, I don't have any complaints, but I know people who didn't like it because of the panels. They were the exceptionrather than the rule. I also have the Nike 3005 ball, which is essentially the same ball with the regular, traditional design (no wrap-around panel). It's also got the same great feel and surface, to be accurate, the 3005 is probably the Nike equivalent of the TF-1000 in terms of price and quality. Butif you can find the 4005 for a good price, don't be reluctant to give it a shot.
