<P> While several men claim to have created the breakaway rim , Arthur Ehrat is recognized as the inventor by the Smithsonian Institution 's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention & Innovation . A resident of Lowder , Illinois , Ehrat worked at a grain elevator for most of his life and barely knew anything about basketball . In 1975 , his nephew , an assistant basketball coach at Saint Louis University , asked him to help design a rim that could support slam dunks . Using a spring from a John Deere cultivator , Ehrat designed a rim that could bend and spring back after 125 pounds of force were applied to it . He called his device `` The Rebounder '' . In 1982 , he was awarded a patent for his invention , which was officially called a `` deformation - preventing swingable mount for basketball goals '' . </P>
<P> While several men claim to have created the breakaway rim , Arthur Ehrat is recognized as the inventor by the Smithsonian Institution 's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention & Innovation . A resident of Lowder , Illinois , Ehrat worked at a grain elevator for most of his life and barely knew anything about basketball . In 1975 , his nephew , an assistant basketball coach at Saint Louis University , asked him to help design a rim that could support slam dunks . Using a spring from a John Deere cultivator , Ehrat designed a rim that could bend and spring back after 125 pounds of force were applied to it . He called his device `` The Rebounder '' . In 1982 , he was awarded a patent for his invention , which was officially called a `` deformation - preventing swingable mount for basketball goals '' . </P>
how much weight can a nba rim hold
how much weight can a nba rim hold
125 pounds
125 pounds