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Why were backboards added to basketball hoops?
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Basketball
Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls leaping into the air during the slam-dunk competition at NBA All-Star weekend in Chicago, February 6, 1988.
Backboards were originally introduced to basketball to prevent spectators from interfering with the game. In the sport's early years, baskets were frequently attached to balconies, which allowed fans to lean over the railings and deflect the ball to favor one team or hinder another.
To eliminate this interference, teams were urged in 1895 to provide a 4-by-6-foot screen. Soon after, wooden backboards were adopted as a more suitable solution. Beyond preventing spectator interference, backboards also serve to keep missed shots from going out-of-bounds and provide a surface from which the ball can rebound into the basket.12