How to Set Up a Basketball League (Recommended Settings)

By the TrackMyElo team · Published June 23, 2026 · Updated July 1, 2026 · 5 min read

Pickup basketball is team-based, score-driven, and stat-rich, so its recommended setup uses more of TrackMyElo’s features than a simple 1-on-1 game. Here’s how to configure a league that tracks both team standings and individual performance.

Recommended settings

• Template: Basketball
• Starting rating: 1000
• K-factor: 32
• Allow teams: On
• Team matches affect individual ELO: On
• Score margin affects ELO: On
• Target score: 21
• Stats: Points, rebounds, assists, FG%, and more (built in)

Why team + individual ELO

Basketball is played in teams, but the players are what carry over from game to game as the sides reshuffle. Turning on Allow teams and Team matches affect individual ELO lets a team result update each player’s personal rating, so you can rank individuals fairly even when teams change every week — the same logic that makes a foosball ladder work.

Why score margin to 21

A 21–6 win is a different result from a 21–19 squeaker, and basketball’s point gap is a genuine measure of dominance. Turning score margin on with a target score of 21 (the classic pickup game) lets blowouts move more ELO, so the ratings reflect how convincingly teams win, not just whether they did.

Why track stats

ELO tells you who’s winning; stats tell you how. The Basketball template comes with points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and shooting percentages, with per-game averages (PPG, RPG, APG) and FG% calculated automatically. You’ll get individual leaderboards that turn a casual run into something that feels like a real season.

Quick setup

1. Create a league with the Basketball template — teams, score margin, and stats come pre-configured.
2. Add players.
3. For each game, pick the two sides, enter the final score, and optionally log individual stats.