The Best Seats
In The House

The Woodstock Collegiate Institute (WCI) was erected in 1881 before moving to its present location in 1939, where it resides today in Woodstock, Ontario. Home of the Red Devils, WCI prides itself on developing contributing members of society upon graduating from their school and proudly supports numerous community initiatives such as the United Way, Oxford CAS and many others.

WCI approached us with the idea of upgrading their wall-mounted basketball backstops. The existing backstops had been serving their students well for a number of years, but it was time to explore the possibility of enhancing their existing wooden backboards with professionally-sized glass backboards for their basketball program.

Most installations are either ceiling-suspended or directly mounted to the walls in a variety of available configurations, depending on the architectural layout and specific needs of each facility. After assessing the existing installation however, our team discovered that these basketball backboards were not traditionally mounted.

The role of facility managers and operators has become increasingly complex over the years. With advancements in both the design and technology of many athletic centres and multi-use facilities, new options and accommodation for obstacles are increasingly common considerations.

Selecting a basketball system for your indoor gymnasium or basketball court was once a simpler task; select the backboard, rim and mounting hardware, find a flat wall and mount it. As aforementioned, today’s facilities are being upgraded, redesigned, retrofitted, or are moving to serve a wide array of sports, rather than simply functioning as a basketball court.

Given these unique circumstances and to aid both our installation team and our customers, we carry a variety of single-post ceiling-suspended basketball systems to address most needs on the market today. In addition, we receive many other complex requests for unique basketball mounting positions, for which, we can design customized solutions.

Wall-mounted basketball systems, which includes backboards, rims and nets, is one of the most popular configurations of basketball goals we sell, service and install. With a variety of designs, these basketball goals are a favourite for indoor and outdoor facilities that often serve as multi-sport or multi-use locations, serving a number of different needs.

This is a department that certainly has evolved over the years as we have been faced with some interesting mounting challenges from many different customers. As no two facilities are exactly alike, we often turn to our in-house design team to creatively draft innovative configurations as needed.

Today we offer four main configurations which seem to cover most of the needs of our diverse clientele, but we are proud to customize any project when the need arises.

Here are our four basic configurations for wall-mounted basketball systems:

A common problem facing educational and community based facilities is the usability of their basketball systems by players of all ages. With the regulation height of basketball systems hanging at 10’, this can eliminate a number of users depending on their age and size. Organizing basketball games and exercises across all ages has been a problem faced by many for years, but with the addition of our newest basketball system designed specifically for youth, it is bound to level the playing field...or court!

The newest addition to our basketball line is our Junior Jammer. This innovative product easily and quickly attaches to any previously installed basketball hoop and backboard and brings the basketball goal into play for younger age groups.

We see a variety of facilities, each with their own unique designs and configurations. Over our 35 years in the athletic infrastructure business, we have seen a number of jobs that have called upon our strength as a custom designer and installer across many of our product lines. Our custom padding department’s products are used in educational, athletic and health facilities of all shapes and sizes. Our bleachers department is no different, as we continue to build innovative structures to seat fans and spectators.

Basketball systems can appear to be quite cut and dry with regards to installation and product specifications, but with the development and renovation of so many facilities, we are continually challenged to design new solutions for our ceiling-suspended basketball nets.

When it comes to the installation of ceiling-suspended basketball systems, no two installations are alike. The wide variety of facilities and gymnasiums today can sometimes present challenges to both the design and installation of these types of basketball systems. Aside from a strong support structure, other factors like noise and vibration often come into play, particularly when usable space is located above the basketball playing area.

The situation at the Michener Institute in Toronto, Ontario was no different than the above and they promptly contacted us to design and install a lasting solution to their problem. The existing basketball backstops were hung from the ceiling slab and located underneath an acoustical ceiling as illustrated in the photo below:

Basketball is what started everything for us here at Sport Systems.  Back in 1978 we began supplying the best basketball hoops and equipment in Canada and never looked back.

Today our product line is vast and our business has grown exponentially since we first started out at Canada Hoop Ltd, but through all the years we have never forgotten our roots.  We continue to supply and manufacture the industry's best basketball equipment for our customers and will continue to innovate and expand on our basketball hoops, backboards and nets as we grow over time.

This spring we were approached by the Islamic Institute of Toronto, and tasked with making some great improvements to the gymnasium in their beautiful facility located in Scarborough.

The Islamic Institute of Toronto (IIT) was established back in 1996 and has grown into one of the premier Islamic Educational Institutions in Canada.  Today the educational center offers courses in Arabic Language, Islamic Jurisprudence, Ethics, Spirituality and much more in their Toronto location.  The institute now resides on an 8 acre piece of property and contains a school, bookstore, administrative offices and obviously, a gymnasium.

The good people at the IIT opted for six new ceiling suspended basketball systems for their gymnasium, and ended up going with the popular 3103 Forward Folding / Rear Braced System from us.  This system is a perfect fit as it is designed for areas allowing sufficient space behind the backboard for a rear brace and unobstructed room to the front to fold up. 

As with all athletic facilities, the safety of participants, staff and spectators is always priority number one. When it comes to ceiling or wall mounted basketball equipment like backboards and backstops, the Aut-O-Loc system is the industry leader, providing a new standard in gymnasium equipment safety.

This safety strap is engineered with safety in mind; this basketball backstop strap operates much like a seatbelt in your vehicle.

The patented inertia plate in all systems can automatically sense a centrifugal force of fall. When sensed, the Aut-O-Loc instantly stops the backstop from falling with help of its steel paws and locking teeth located in the housing. This system prevents both damage to the basketball system, as well as any inherent danger to participants and spectators below.