Below is some basic information about basketballs to give you an idea of what's out there and why.

There are four basic materials used for basketballs. 

Leather, Composite leather, Synthetic leather, and Rubber.

 Leather is the best and most expensive, it is what the NBA uses for their game ball.  They tried switching to the composite leather but they just didn't like the feel so they switched back to leather.

Composite leather is the most common ball found in High School play.  It is more durable and less expensive than leather. 

Synthetic leather is similar to the composite leather and is also less expensive than regular leather.

Rubber is the cheapest and very durable.  Rubber is the best material to be used outdoors.

There are five basketball sizes:

Official/Men's size 29.5" - 30"

Women's size 28.5" -29"

Intermediate 27.75"- 28.5"

Youth/Junior size 27.25" - 27.75"

Mini size 22" - 22.5"

There are two channel types:

Narrow Channel

Wide Channel

Most basketball manufacturers have moved away from the narrow channel and are solely making the wide channel basketballs.  Wide channel balls offer a better grip but there are still some people who prefer the narrow channel.

There are also training basketballs:

The training basketballs can have sizes that range from 33 1/2- 36" or weights from 2 lbs to 4 lbs.  These help with shooting, rebounding, and muscle memory.

Basketballs can differ on price depending on what they are made out of, their size, their manufacturer, and where they are purchased.  Now that you know what kind of basketballs are out there, choosing the one for you should be pretty simple.

To purchase the ball you require or for more basketball products go to www.morleyathletic.com