How To Install An Inground Basketball Hoop In Your Driveway

To Tutorial

Do you love the idea of your kids playing basketball in your driveway, but want something a little more sturdy than a portable hoop? We used the materials and detailed installation process below to install our own inground basketball hoop and have helped others, too. Our DIY basketball goal installation even withstood a tornado this year, so you know it works!

*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Read our full privacy policy.

This post is for educational purposes and it is meant to provide a real-life example of how you can install a basketball system yourself. After reading this post, if you are in doubt, we recommend contacting professional installers.

Where you purchase the ground basketball hoops will be able to help you answer questions about the price and timeframe of using a local contractor for assembly services.

Table of Contents

Tools Needed To Pour Base

A Vehicle with a Hitch: if renting an auger from Home Depot
Towable Auger: you can rent one to make digging the hole pretty easy
Shovel (spade and flat)
Post Hole Digger
2’ or 4′ level
Tape measure
Wheelbarrow
Garden Rake
Barrel or Drum Mixer (can be rented or you can mix the bagged concrete by hand in your wheelbarrow but it takes a lot of effort)
Sledge Hammer
Claw hammer (Framing hammer)
Garden hose
Garden hose nozzle
Extension cord with access to electricity or generator
Concrete Float
Broom

What if you don’t have the tools?

All of the tools listed above can be rented for a day or weekend from a large box store, hardware store or rental place that specializes in rental equipment such as Sunbelt Rentals or United Rentals.

Materials Needed

Basketball Hoop: We ordered the Goalrilla 60″ In-Ground Hoop
Rebar (comes with hoop)
Bagged Concrete Mix (ready mix) – appx. 18 (each) 80-pound fast-setting concrete bags
Spray Paint (to mark areas)
2x4s for top-side form
Grass seed
24″ Nail Stakes or Wooden Wedges
Screws or Nails
Expansion Joint: used for the edge of the driveway at the new concrete pad
Access to water (hose bib)
Concrete Curing Agent

Basketball Hoop Installation Guide

For your reference, this tutorial will show you how to install a 60″ In-Ground Goalrilla Hoop with a breakaway rim. You will need to modify these instructions based on your city’s code, location, and manufacturer’s instructions.

Before You Can Install

Step 1: Purchase Basketball Hoop

You can find various deals on in-ground basketball hoops at different times of the year. Two years in a row, we purchased these hoops during Memorial Day sales. One hoop was for our home and one was installed the next year at my brother’s house.

basketball hoop boxes in the back of the truck. — Note: This is how the hope came in three different boxes.

Step 2: Pick A Location For The New Basketball Hoop

Decide where to install the ground basketball system. The perfect location for ours was centered on our driveway due to the flat playing surface.

Step 3: Call Utility Protection Service

Call statewide utility protection service to mark underground utilities. Ohio’s is called OUPS. Different states or locations will have different services that should be free to homeowners.

This is important because it will hopefully prevent you from drilling into utility lines such as your waterline, gas line, cable, etc.

oups with white spray painted on grass with small orange pole in the grond.

Few Tips About Utility Locators

Municipal or State utility locators will not mark private property that is too far off the street or sidewalk.
Watch out for your residential sprinkler lines, water lines, electrical service, and/or sewer lines.
If you are worried you can call and pay for private services that will identify where your privately owned lines are.
You will also want to mark sprinklers or electrical dog fences.
In our area, you have to mark the area to be “excavated” in white paint at the excavation and at the curb on the street.

Step 4: Dig The Hole For The Concrete Foundation

Read the manufacturer’s instructions for your specific hoop. Our hoop calls for a 42″ deep x 16” diameter foundation. The biggest auger you could rent from our local store was 18″. We used this size to ensure our base was bigger than the minimum requirement.

Mark Out Location Of Form

Use spray paint to mark out the area where the concrete pad will go. You can cut your wood form now or later to help with this measurement.

Make sure that you remove grass and topsoil in this square area to match your form dimensions.

top soil and grass removed from rectangle next to concrete.

You may also want to save the grass and topsoil for after your pad is poured to fill in around the form.

Begin Using Auger

Find the center of your dugout area. Using a rented auger makes the digging easier than using shovels and a posthole digger. Use an auger to bore (which means to dig) a 42″ deep hole.

towable auger digging hole for basketball hoop.

Step 6: Check Hole

When checking if your hole is deep enough, measure from the top of the driveway to the bottom of the hole. Our hole was 48″ deep due to being below the frost line for our area.

man holding 2 x 4 with tape measure in hole in the ground.

Step 7: Remove Extra Soil Produced

This will produce appx. ½ cubic yard of soil. Use a wheelbarrow to move accordingly. You will want to save some topsoil to spread out around the edges before planting grass seed after goal installation.

Pouring The Pad

Step 8: Make and Secure The Form

To make the form you will need to cut 2 x 4s or 2 x 6s and screw them together.

hand using an impact driver to attach wood together.

Set the form the in hole. Use a 4′ level to level each side. Secure forms to nail stakes once level.

4 foot level on wood frame in ground next to driveway. — Nail stakes are used to hold the wood form in place when pouring concrete.

Step 9: Mark Anchor Plate

Assemble the anchor bolt template and mark the centerlines (in each direction) on the top of the steel template. The anchor bolt template should be included in your hoop.

Wrap electrical tape or any tape around the top of the exposed bolt threads.

Step 10: Mix Concrete And Pour

Mix bags of Quickcrete concrete. Mix one bag at a time in a barrel mixer and pour directly into the hole.

man spraying water into barrel concrete mixer.

If you do not have a barrel mixer you can mix the concrete in a wheelbarrow. I typically pour the first bag of concrete into the hole un-mixed. This will help to take care of any groundwater.

Step 12: Consolidate The Concrete

As you pour the concrete in the hole you need to consolidate it by vibrating it or plunging it with a shovel.

Step 13: Insert Rebar

When you get ¾”s of the way up, you need to insert rebar (circular reinforcing steel) per directions. Read your installation manual to find out when you should install your rebar. Our rebar was included with our hoop.

hole in ground with rebarb sticking out.

Step 14: Continue Filling With Concrete

Fill the hole to the top of the forms.

concrete barrel mixer pouring in concrete.

Step 15: Strike Off The Top

Use an old 2×4 or another straight edge to “strike off” the top of the concrete flush with the top of the forms.

man using 2 x 4 to strike off top of concrete.

Step 16: Set Anchor Bolts

Use the same 2×4 to lightly mark the center of your concrete pad.

man marking on wood form the center and using a 2x4 on concrete.

Line up the center of the marked bolt template over the marked center pad. Begin to evenly push down.

Once you have pushed the anchor bolts down, you want to check that the plate is level.

man holding level on top of black metal plate in concrete.

Step 17: Finish Concrete

As the concrete sets up “finish it” with a float. The idea is to “rub it” smooth with a cement trowel.

man using concrete float to smooth concrete pad.

Once smooth, you can “pull” a broom across it to give it some traction. This is called creating a “broom” finish.

Step 18: Spray Concrete Curing Agent

Once the concrete is set up spray or a broom a concrete curing agent or sealer.

Step 19: Wait One Week

cured concrete pad with basketball anchor bolt template in concrete.

Step 20: Pull The Concrete Forms

Once you take off the 2 x 4s, fill around the edges with saved topsoil & seed.

Step 21: Install Hoop

Your instruction manual will tell you the tools you need to continue with installation. Here is what we needed.

Proceed with directions for basketball hoop installation (pole and backboard).

The best way to install the backboard is to rent a lift to assist after you get the basketball pole in place. This will make it easier than trying to hold up to install the whole backboard.

Using The Lift

When we installed our hoop, we had a few guys lift and hold the backboard. While we were able to do it, we don’t necessarily recommend it. For the second installation for my brother, a lift was used to assist in attaching the backboard with the assistance of a lift that was rented from a tool rental place for the afternoon.

two images of using a lift to attach the basketball backboard to pole.

Attaching The Board

lift holding basketball backboard on a lift.

Expert Tips

When renting a towable auger, you will need a vehicle with a hitch to get it to your home. You could also rent a truck as well if needed. You may be able to find a company that will deliver one to you for your use.
Take all safety precautions when working with the variety of tools and the weight of basketball systems during installation.
Instead of spraying a curing agent, you could also wet cure it by placing an old damp towel (with water) and a piece of plastic over the concrete for a week.
When building the forms, you can use 2 x 4s or 2 x 6s. If using 2 x 4s your pad will be 3 1/2″ deep. If using 2 x 6s, your concrete will be 5 1/2″ thick. The thicker your concrete is, the less chance it will have to crack.

Concrete Pad FAQs

Do you have to use a barrel mixer?

If you don’t want to use a barrel mixer, you can mix the bags of concrete by hand in a wheelbarrow. This is time-consuming and harder, but doable.

Why do you have to use a curing agent?

Using a curing agent increases the certainty of the concrete reaching design strength. If you do not cure the concrete, you will have increased chances of cracking and lower PSI.

What level of difficulty is this DIY?

A medium level of difficulty in the processes used to install and hoop, but a very physically demanding DIY project.

While it does take a lot of time and energy to install a basketball hoop, once it is done properly your family can practice their basketball skills for years to come. Say goodbye to those portable hoops as your family can make endless memories with your in-ground basketball goal.