About Goldenball
Goldenball Youth Basketball League Mission
The purpose of Portland Parks & Recreation’s (PP&R) Goldenball youth basketball program is to encourage our youth, regardless of ability, to learn the fundamentals of the game. Develop a sense of fair play and good sportsmanship. Experience the satisfaction of team play and individual cooperation. To have fun and enjoy playing the game of Basketball. Goldenball is a recreation program based on good sportsmanship and the development of basketball fundamentals.
Goldenball is a team registration-based program for 3rd-6th grade. We rely on volunteer coaches to register a team, select players, and manage the details of their squad. We take a limited number of teams for each grade, and a waitlist is formed once we meet the capacity the league can accommodate.
Team Registration
On behalf of the entire Citywide Sports Department team—Jennifer, Blaine, and myself—we want to share our sincere gratitude for your incredible advocacy throughout the City of Portland’s recent budget process.
We are thrilled to share the great news: Mayor Keith Wilson has fully funded youth sports in the upcoming budget! Your efforts—writing letters of support, engaging with your networks, and helping educate public officials—were instrumental in making this outcome possible. Your voice helped send a clear, unified message: that affordable, inclusive, and developmentally focused youth sports are essential for the health, growth, and empowerment of our city's young people.
We hope to have league registration information posted in late September for the 25-26 Goldenball season. The Goldenball program is team registration-based program and we do not have to capacity to register individuals. Please talk to parents to form your team and decide on a volunteer parent/coaches. We also recommend checking with your Sun School Coordinator or PTA at your school to see if they are able to help form teams.
Coaching
Volunteer coaching is a big task, and our program could not run smoothly without your efforts. Here are some tips for keeping your team organized. For more detailed information see the attached guidelines and league rules.
- Have a parent meeting prior to the start of the season. Assign designated parents to help keep score during games as well as be the home book when scheduled as the home team/visiting team.
- When you obtain your score sheets from either the coaches’ packet or online, fill it out with your players’ names and make 8-10 copies, so that you have them filled out prior to the start of each game.
- Team roster, which is included in your coaches’ packet, must be filled out and submitted by email to the Sports Office prior to the start of the first game.
NOTE: If you plan on coaching more than one team, you are required to have an assistant coach for each team. The assistant coach must attend one of the coaches’ meetings. We will continue to try and work with scheduling issues, however, with the rising number of teams, it has become more difficult to accommodate requests. Coaching three or more teams is not permitted.
League Play and Practice
Seven games played on Saturdays, January 18 through March 1, 2025. The league is divided into two halves, the first 3 weeks, followed by a realignment if necessary, and no break between halves. Games are played at various Portland Public Schools and Parks Community Centers. Game sites may vary from the first half to the second half. (Look under practice description for practice location list).
Jerseys: Our program does not supply jerseys as part of your team fee. We do require a minimum of matching t-shirts with 6” numbers on the back (please no 3-digit numbers on jerseys). If looking to purchase jerseys, we provide a flyer in the coach’s packet of a local company to go through. Please have your players obtain shorts without pockets to comply with the National Federation of State High School Associations rules and for the safety of all players.
Ball Sizes: for the '24-'25 season we have made some changes to the ball sizes per age group. Please see the updated chart below.
| Grade | Gender | Ball size |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Boys and girls | 27.5 |
| 4th | Boys and girls | 27.5 |
| 5th | Boys and girls | 28.5 |
| 6th | Boys and girls | 28.5 (updated 9/30) |
- Once your team is registered, you may inquire for a practice permit by contacting the PP&R Sports Office: jennifer.rounseville@portlandor… or blaine.rethmeier@portlandoregon.gov. We guarantee one 55-minute practice time slot per week, per registered team. We have limited sites at Portland Public Schools. A gym list will be included in your coach’s packet.
- Practice times are available Monday-Friday: 6:00-6:55pm, 7:00-7:55pm, and 8:00-8:55pm. Practice permits at most locations will begin on November 1, 2024. Contact the sports office at 503-823-5124 or 503-5126 to book a practice time.
- Once you obtain a practice permit from the PP&R Sports Office, please contact the school office pertaining to the permit to inquire about any special gym/school entry instructions.
- There is no practice if the school is closed for any reason.
- No spectators are allowed at practice.
- Practice times will not be issued to teams that are not registered in the 2023-2024 Golden Ball season.