Under 12s use a size 5 ball, Under 14 boys and all girls from Under 14 use a size 6, and Under 16 and Under 18 boys use a size 7. The ring stays at the standard 3.05 metres for almost every junior grade. What changes instead is the ball, the free throw line and where the three point arc sits.
Written by Cameron James, founder and head coach at Liddicoat Basketball. Over a decade coaching junior basketball in Melbourne, including at Big V level, and rep teams from Under 12s through to Under 18s.
Last updated September 2026.
Basketball Victoria's National Junior Classic playing conditions set it out plainly. Under 8 and Under 10 groups almost always use a size 5 as well, though the exact bracket is set by your association. Under 12 boys and girls use a size 5 ball. Under 14 boys use a size 6. All girls from Under 14 through Under 18 use a size 6. Under 16 and Under 18 boys use a size 7. Those are the rules for Basketball Victoria's junior tournaments rather than for your Saturday game. Your association writes its own by laws for domestic basketball and they're often different, so check yours for the rules that actually govern your child.
So the step that catches families out isn't the first one, it's the second. A boy moving from Under 14 to Under 16 goes from a size 6 to a size 7, and that's a real jump in both weight and circumference. A girl stays on a size 6 from Under 14 all the way through, which is a much gentler run.
Those sizes apply to the competition they're published for. Domestic competitions are run by individual associations under their own by laws, and their age brackets are often different numbers again, so the table your association publishes is the one that governs your child's Saturday.
A size 7 ball is heavy in a ten year old's hand, and a child who can't get it to the ring with good technique will find a way to get it there with bad technique. That usually means starting the shot from the hip, throwing with two hands, or flinging it with the whole body. Those habits are quick to build and slow to remove.
The smaller ball exists so a young player can shoot with the hand under the ball, the elbow roughly under the wrist, and the legs doing the work. It's a technique decision, not a difficulty setting.
If your child is practising at home on a size 7 because that's what's in the shed, you're quietly working against what the competition is trying to protect. Match the ball at home to the ball they play with.
Parents often assume the ring is lowered for young kids. In most Victorian junior competition it's not. The standard ring is 3.05 metres, or ten feet, and it's used across the great majority of junior grades, and the modifications happen elsewhere on the court instead.
Some associations do lower the ring for their very youngest domestic brackets, typically Under 8, and some venues have adjustable rings that make it possible. That's an association decision published in local by laws rather than a statewide rule, so check yours rather than assuming.
The practical effect is that a small child is shooting at a full height ring with a smaller ball. That's why so many Under 10 shots come from the chest. It's not bad coaching, it's physics, and it resolves as they grow.
This is the part most parents never hear about. Under those same Junior Classic conditions, the free throw line for Under 12 is advanced by one metre, so young players shoot their free throws from closer in. Under 12 and Under 14 use the junior three point line at 6.25 metres, while Under 16 and Under 18 use the extended line at 6.75 metres.
That means a player moving from Under 14 to Under 16 gets a bigger ball and a three point line half a metre further out in the same year. Expect the shooting percentage to drop for a season. It's not a decline, it's a changed court.
The shot clock arrives earlier than either of those. There's no shot clock at Under 12 at all, and from Under 14 it applies, which changes how long a team can hold the ball before something has to happen.
Buy the ball your child actually plays with, not the one that will last. If they're in an Under 12 group, buy a size 5 even though you know a size 6 is coming, because two years of good shooting technique is worth more than twenty dollars.
Indoor and outdoor balls are genuinely different. A composite indoor ball used on a concrete driveway will be scuffed and slick within a season. If practice is happening outside, buy a rubber outdoor ball in the right size and keep the good one for the stadium.
Check the size printed on the ball rather than trusting the packaging colour. Size 5 is roughly 70 centimetres around, size 6 is roughly 72 and size 7 is roughly 75, and they're all marked.
Find your association's junior by laws or playing conditions rather than a general article, because the age brackets differ between competitions even within Victoria. Some competitions run even numbered groups, some run odd numbered ones, and the ball size table follows the brackets.
If you can't find it, ask the coach at training. Every junior coach in the state knows the ball size for their own age group without having to look it up.
One rule of thumb that will keep you out of trouble: if your child is under twelve, buy a size 5 and you'll almost certainly be right.
A size 5. Basketball Victoria's National Junior Classic playing conditions specify a size 5 ball for Under 12 boys and Under 12 girls, with a size 6 from Under 14 for boys and for all girls, and a size 7 for Under 16 and Under 18 boys.
Usually not. The standard ring height is used across most Victorian junior grades. Some associations lower it for their youngest domestic bracket, often Under 8, but that's a local by law rather than a statewide rule.
Because the line moves. Those Junior Classic conditions advance the free throw line by one metre for Under 12, and set the three point line at 6.25 metres for Under 12 and Under 14 against 6.75 metres for Under 16 and Under 18.
Yes. Practising with a heavier ball than the one they compete with builds a shooting action they'll have to unlearn. Match the ball at home to the one the competition uses.
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Facts on this page were compiled from the official sources below and written up in our own words. Dates, fees and venues change every season, so confirm anything you are relying on with the association directly.
This page was last updated September 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Tryout windows, grading, key dates and what each level actually costs. Written for Victorian basketball parents, sent when something matters, not every week.