Well, let me tell ya, pickin’ a floor for your basketball court, it ain’t just anythin’ ya know. It’s gotta be tough, real tough, like my old boots, but also gotta be a bit springy, ya know, so those young’uns don’t break their ankles when they jump around like crazy chickens.

Now, I’ve heard folks talkin’ ’bout all sorts of stuff. Some say PVC or vinyl is the way to go. They say it’s cheap and lasts a good while. And I guess that’s true, seen plenty of it around. It’s kinda like that plastic stuff they make raincoats out of, but thicker, ya know? Good for keepin’ things dry too, if ya got a leaky roof, which, thank the lord, I don’t have anymore since Johnny fixed it last summer.

• Vinyl is popular, they say. Cheap and sturdy, like a good ol’ mule.
• But some fancy folks, they like the wood floors. Says it’s the real deal, like what them professional fellas play on.

Then there’s this “rubber tree” wood. They call it somethin’ fancy, “Hevea” or somethin’. Sounds like a sneeze to me! But they say it’s good for the environment, which is nice, I guess. Don’t want to be messin’ with Mother Nature, she’s got a temper, ya know. Reminds me of that big storm we had back in ’85…trees down everywhere. Anyway, this rubber tree wood, it’s kinda like, ya take the trees that ain’t makin’ rubber no more and ya make floors out of ’em. Sensible, ain’t it? Wastin’ nothin’. That’s how we was raised, ya know. Use everythin’, waste nothin’.

But now, if you’re gonna be movin’ your court around, like they do in them big city arenas, well, then you need one of them portable floors. Heard tell of these things called “Quicklock.” Sounds fancy, but it just means ya can put ’em together and take ’em apart real quick. Like them puzzle pieces my grandbaby plays with, except way bigger and heavier, I reckon. Some of these portable floors are made of that fancy maple wood. Hard maple, they call it. That’s the good stuff, they say. Strong and lasts a long time. Like a good marriage, ya know, gotta be built to last.

Some of these portable floors, they’re used in big games, like them “NCAA Final Four” and even the Olympics! Imagine that, my floor could be the same kind them fancy athletes runnin’ and jumpin’ on. Makes ya feel kinda proud, even if it ain’t my floor, ya know? These portable ones, some are thick, like seven-eighths of an inch, they say. That’s a good chunk of wood, I tell ya. And they come in all sorts of sizes, for basketball, volleyball, even badminton. Badminton? That’s that game where they hit that little feathery thing, right? Seems kinda sissy to me, but to each their own, I always say.

Now, I’ve also seen some floors they say are made for indoor use. They can be made from all sorts of things. Poly somethin’-or-other, timber, that vinyl stuff again, linoleum, and even rubber. I tell you what, that’s a lot of choices! Makes my head spin just thinkin’ about it. They say ya gotta think about how bouncy the floor is, ya know, so them young’uns don’t get hurt. And how much it costs, of course. Money don’t grow on trees, though I wish it did, then I could buy me a new porch swing.

they’re talkin’ about. Says it’s approved by some fancy group, FIBA or somethin’. For indoor courts, you know, where the weather don’t bother ya. And they got all sorts of ways to put them floors together, zippers, pins, no pins…Sounds complicated to me. But them smart fellas figured it all out. They even worked with the NBA and NCAA, those big basketball leagues. So, I guess they know what they’re doin’.

Laminate basketball flooring… now that’s just a fancy way of sayin’ layers, I reckon. Like a good cake, gotta have layers. And this “portable wooden flooring,” well, that just means ya can move it around, like I said before. Good for folks who ain’t got a permanent place for their court, or maybe they wanna share it with the neighbors, which is neighborly, ya know. We always shared our sugar and flour back in the day.

So, if you’re lookin’ for a good basketball floor, ya gotta think about what ya need. Is it gonna stay put, or do ya need to move it? How much money ya got to spend? And how rough are them players gonna be on it? Just remember, a good floor is like a good foundation, it’s gotta be strong and reliable. And if it looks purdy too, well, that’s just a bonus, ain’t it?