Quick Answer: The Little Tikes TotSports Easy Score Basketball Set ($34.99 on littletikes.com) is the best Little Tikes basketball hoop for most families. It adjusts from 2.5 to 4 feet in six steps, has an oversized rim, and is rated for 18 months to 5 years. For kids 3 and up, the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro ($59.99) goes from 4 to 6 feet and adds a breakaway rim. Skip the $29.99 fixed-height TotSports set: Little Tikes’ own spec says “This unit does Not adjust.” Every Little Tikes hoop needs 40 to 50 lbs of sand in the base, and that sand is not included.
Published October 28, 2026. Prices, heights, sand-fill amounts and product weights come from littletikes.com’s own product listings, checked the same day. Recall figures come from CPSC recall notice 99-036.
Search “Little Tikes basketball hoop” and you’ll find about six products that look nearly the same. They aren’t. Three are the same Easy Score hoop in different colors or ball bundles. One looks the same but doesn’t adjust. One is a baby activity center. Only one goes taller than 4 feet. Here’s how the current lineup sorts out. If your child is under 2, read our best basketball hoop for a toddler guide as well, since it compares the Easy Score with Step2’s competing set.
Little Tikes basketball hoops at a glance
| Set | Age (Little Tikes rating) | Rim height | Sand in base | Empty weight | List price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TotSports Easy Score | 18 months - 5 years | 2.5 - 4 ft (6 settings) | 40 lbs | 9 lbs | $34.99 |
| Adjust 'n Jam Pro | 2 years + | 4 - 6 ft (5 settings), breakaway rim | 50 lbs | 16 lbs | $59.99 |
| Easy Score with 3 Basketballs (Amazon exclusive) | 18 months - 5 years | 2.5 - 4 ft | 40 lbs | 9 lbs | $39.99 |
| Cloud Collection Easy Score, white, 3 balls (Amazon exclusive) | 18 months - 5 years | 2.5 - 4 ft | 40 lbs | 9 lbs | $49.99 |
| Learn & Play 3-in-1 Sports Zone | 12 - 36 months | Adjustable (range not published) | None (3 AA batteries) | 7 lbs | $48.99 |
| TotSports Basketball Set | 18 months - 5 years | Fixed, does not adjust | 40 lbs | 8 lbs | $29.99 |
1. TotSports Easy Score Basketball Set: Best Overall
Little Tikes TotSports Easy Score Basketball Set
- Six height settings from 2.5 to 4 feet. A child can start scoring before age 2 and keep using the same hoop through preschool.
- The oversized rim is easier to score on than a standard kids' rim, which matters at an age where a run of misses ends the game.
- Little Tikes lists it as made in the USA. Its spec sheet lists 9 lbs empty and 61 inches overall height.
- The base takes 40 lbs of sand, sold separately. Fill it before the first game.
Replacement nets, backboard pads, and a fresh outdoor ball shipped free in two days — try Amazon Prime free for 30 days. The Easy Score is the set most of Little Tikes’ color and bundle variants are built around, and $34.99 is the list price for both the standard red/blue version and the pink one on littletikes.com. A purple/green version is also listed at $34.99 but was sold out when we checked.
2. Adjust ‘n Jam Pro Basketball Set: Best for Ages 3 to 6
Little Tikes Adjust 'n Jam Pro Basketball Set
- Five height settings from 4 to 6 feet. This is the only current Little Tikes hoop that goes above 4 feet.
- A breakaway rim, so a kid who hangs on it after a dunk doesn't snap the rim or tip the set as easily as with a rigid rim.
- Weighs 16 lbs empty with a 90-inch listed overall height, and the base needs 50 lbs of sand (not included). Little Tikes says it needs adult assembly.
- Comes with one soft, junior-size ball. Little Tikes lists it as made in the USA.
The Easy Score tops out at exactly the height where the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro starts, 4 feet. So this is the second hoop, not an alternative to the first. Buy it outright for a 3-year-old, or when a preschooler is dunking on the Easy Score at its top setting. Little Tikes lists it at $59.99. Walmart has shown it at $49.99 against a $59.99 “was” price, so it is worth comparing before you buy.
3. Easy Score with 3 Basketballs: Best Value Bundle
Little Tikes TotSports Easy Score Basketball Set with 3 Basketballs
- The same 2.5-4 ft Easy Score hoop, bundled with three junior-size balls instead of one.
- Little Tikes tags this bundle "Exclusive: Amazon". Its littletikes.com page lists $39.99 but can't be bought there.
- A pink 3-ball version and a new white "Cloud Collection" 3-ball version ($49.99 list, added September 2026) are also sold only through Amazon.
The bundle math is simple. On littletikes.com, the Easy Score costs $34.99 and Little Tikes’ own replacement Basketball 4 Pack costs $12.99, which adds up to $47.98. The 3-ball bundle is $39.99, so you get two spare balls for $5. The white Cloud Collection version costs $10 more than the standard bundle for the same hoop in a neutral color.
4. Learn & Play 3-in-1 Sports Zone: Best for Babies Under 2
Little Tikes Learn & Play 3-in-1 Sports Zone
- Rated 12 to 36 months, the youngest age rating of any Little Tikes basketball product.
- The backboard lights up and plays more than 75 sounds and phrases. It runs on 3 AA batteries (not included).
- No sand base. It's a 7-lb, battery-powered activity center that folds up for storage, with a soccer goal and bowling pins built in.
This is a baby activity toy with a hoop on it, not a basketball hoop for a toddler. Little Tikes doesn’t publish its height range. It suits a 1-year-old in the living room, but most kids will want the Easy Score by about age 2.
Skip This One: TotSports Basketball Set (Fixed Height)
Little Tikes TotSports Basketball Set
- Looks almost the same as the Easy Score and costs $5 less.
- The marketing blurb on littletikes.com says "Adjustable height accommodates kids from 18 months to 5 years." The Features section on the same page says "This unit does Not adjust."
- Its listed overall height is 52 inches, and it still needs the same 40 lbs of sand as the Easy Score.
We trust the spec line over the blurb: the fixed set’s listing doesn’t give a height range at all, while the Easy Score’s lists six settings. When two Little Tikes hoops are $5 apart and only one adjusts, the adjustable one is the better buy for an 18-month-old who will still be playing at age 5.
Also sold under the Little Tikes name
- Super Slam ‘n Dunk ($307.99): an inflatable bounce house with a height-adjustable hoop, rated ages 3-8. It’s a party piece, not a hoop you leave out all year.
- 10ft. Sports Trampoline ($479.99): a 10-foot enclosed trampoline with a built-in hoop. The product page says ages 5 and up, but its age tag says 6+. For hoops you add to a trampoline you already own, see our best basketball hoop for trampoline guide.
The sand is not optional
Little Tikes hoops are light. The Easy Score weighs 9 lbs empty and the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro weighs 16 lbs. Little Tikes’ spec sheets require 40 lbs of sand in the Easy Score’s base and 50 lbs in the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro’s, which makes the finished set roughly five times heavier than the empty hoop (49 lbs and 66 lbs). That weight is what keeps the hoop upright when a child pulls on the rim. Play sand usually comes in bags of about 50 lbs, so one bag covers either set. Our basketball hoop tip-over safety guide explains why the base, not the backboard, is what goes wrong on freestanding hoops.
The 1998 net recall, and why it matters for used sets
On December 22, 1998, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a recall of 10.1 million toy basketball sets (recall 99-036). That included 3 million Little Tikes sets sold from 1993 to 1998. The problem was nets that come unhooked from the rim, or that have sliding knots, which can loop around a small child’s neck. According to the CPSC notice, there were 20 reports since 1988 of children under 5 caught in these nets, and an 18-month-old died in 1992. The fix was a replacement net that attaches firmly to the rim and has no sliding knots.
We found no newer recall of a Little Tikes basketball hoop. Little Tikes sets last for years and turn up often at garage sales, so if you buy one used, check the net before a toddler plays with it. It should stay clipped to the rim all the way around and have no knots that slide. If it doesn’t, take it off and use a replacement net or no net. Our used basketball hoop buying guide covers what else to check on a secondhand hoop.
Who makes Little Tikes now
Little Tikes started in Hudson, Ohio, around 1970. Newell Rubbermaid sold it to MGA Entertainment (the company behind Bratz and L.O.L. Surprise!) in 2006. Its main factory is still in Hudson. On littletikes.com, the Easy Score, the fixed TotSports set and the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro are all tagged “Made in the USA”. The battery-powered Sports Zone is not. The 1998 recall happened while Little Tikes was still part of Rubbermaid, before MGA owned it.
Buy from Little Tikes or a major retailer
When we searched for these sets, the results included lookalike domains with names like “littletikestoy.it.com”. They advertise Little Tikes sets for $8 to $18, against list prices of $29.99 to $59.99. Little Tikes’ own store is littletikes.com. Buy from that site, Amazon, or another major retailer. A price far below list on a domain that only resembles the brand’s is a warning sign.
When to move past Little Tikes
The tallest Little Tikes hoop stops at 6 feet. USA Basketball and the NBA’s youth standard puts the rim at 8 feet for ages 7-8 and 9 feet for ages 9-11 (see our basketball hoop height guide). A kid heading for a league team needs a real youth or adjustable system before then. The usual next step is a freestanding youth hoop like the Lifetime Youth Portable (about $120), covered in our best mini basketball hoop guide. Another option is to buy one full-size adjustable driveway hoop that goes down to 7 feet, from our best adjustable basketball hoop guide, so the same hoop works from age 6 to adulthood.
The bottom line
The TotSports Easy Score ($34.99) is the Little Tikes hoop to buy for a child aged 18 months to about 3. If you’re buying through Amazon, the 3-ball bundle ($39.99 list) is the better deal. Move up to the Adjust ‘n Jam Pro ($59.99) once the Easy Score’s 4-foot top setting is too easy. It goes up to 6 feet and has a breakaway rim. Under 2 and mostly indoors? The 3-in-1 Sports Zone is the toy-first choice. Skip the $29.99 TotSports set, because it doesn’t adjust whatever its blurb says. Fill every base with the 40 to 50 lbs of sand Little Tikes specifies. Buying for a birthday or the holidays? Our basketball gift ideas guide has picks by age and budget.