Nothing provides greater relief when you’re sweating profusely than the warm and dry feeling you get after wiping yourself with a soft towel you can easily carry around with you. And if you’re an avid basketball player, you understand the need to wrap a towel around your head.
With the basketball season around the corner, you need a good towel sturdy enough to last the season’s grind.
But with so many towels on the market, choosing the right towel can be daunting.
We understand, and to make it easier for you, we curated a list of the best basketball towels available in the market today, plus a buying guide outlining the qualities that make for a good basketball towel.
- Best Warm Cotton Towel
- Natural and free from chemicals
- Highly absorbent
- Most Absorbent
- Microfiber + Terry Texture = Super Absorbent (3x)
- Easy to clean
- Softest Towel
- Super soft, smooth, and less abrasive
- Durable overlock-stitched edges
- Best Sturdy Towel
- Quality stitching
- Has dimensions suitable for draping over your shoulder
Best Basketball Towels 2021
After conducting research, we came up with this selection of basketball towels, including why each of them made it to our list of top picks.
The Gatorade towel is made from 100% cotton, making it highly absorbent, which is great for the profuse sweating involved when playing basketball as it will quickly absorb what you sweat out and keep you warm.
It's also soft, with one side having an almost microfiber feel.
And because cotton is a natural product, this towel made from 100% cotton is free from chemicals, unlike towels made from other synthetic fibers.
Another great feature is that it’s lightweight, which makes it comfortable and easy to carry around. It also has dimensions that are perfect for wrapping around the neck or head and draping over the shoulder.
What’s more, it looks good (very professional-looking), which is great because it’ll boost your confidence and make you feel like a pro basketball player.
Pros
- Made from 100% cotton
- Keeps you warm
- Lightweight
- Very absorbent
Cons
- The distributors provide a quality that’s not as good as the original Gatorade towels
- Tends to arrive in not so great condition – marred or scuffed
The Sinland microfiber towel is made from premium microfiber. Also, it’s designed with a unique terry texture.
The microfiber technology combined with the terry texture design makes this towel a most absorbent towel. It actually absorbs up to three times more than regular towels, a unique feature that makes it easy to use it like a towel should be used – by patting it on your face rather than rubbing.
Another great feature of this towel is that it’s soft. It’s also lightweight and compact, which makes it comfortable and easy to carry around.
What’s more, this towel dries faster than most towels.
The Sinland towel is also durable enough to serve you throughout the basketball season. It’s also easy to clean and safe for machine wash.
Pros
- Super absorbent (up to three times more)
- Lightweight
- Durable
- Easy to clean
Cons
- Must be washed separately, especially the darker colored ones, at least for the first few washes
- Have a strong chemical odor that takes a few washes to get rid of
The KinHwa microfiber sports towel is made of 80% polyester and 20% polyamide, making it a towel that dries extremely fast.
It’s also a high-quality towel that’s sturdy and built for exceptional performance, which is great because it’ll serve you well throughout the basketball season.
In addition, it’s a microfiber towel with a terry texture, making it not only soft but also more absorbent than your ordinary towel. This is great because it makes it easier for you to wipe yourself by patting instead of rubbing, which is the ideal way to use a towel.
Another great feature is that it’s lightweight and compact, meaning it won’t take up much space in your bag, plus it’s easy to carry around. It’s also easy to wash and maintain as you’ll clean it just like regular laundry.
Pros
- Dries super-fast
- Absorbent but feels dry
- Lightweight and compact
- Very soft
Cons
- Needs to be washed separately before the first use, especially for the dark colors
- Final seam where the sewed thread comes together can scratch skin
This towel is a microfiber towel with over 300,000 fibers per square inch in a premium 365gsm weight, making it super-soft and comfortable on your skin and super absorbent. It actually absorbs 8 to 10 times its weight so that just a swipe is enough to dry yourself; no rubbing necessary.
Another great feature is the edges are overlock-stitched, making it durable enough to serve you well through the basketball season grind.
It also does well under wash (up to 500 washes with proper care), actually getting softer with each use.
Pros
- Super soft, smooth, and less abrasive
- Made with microfiber
- Durable overlock-stitched edges
- Does well under wash
Cons
- Tends to collect fuzz from other clothes easily
- Thinner (less fluffy) than other towels
The S&T Inc. microfiber towels are of premium quality with proper stitching, making them stand out in terms of durability.
These towels are made of microfiber, making them soft and gentle on the skin and absorbent.
Another great feature is that they’re 85% polyester and 15% polyamide, so they dry super-fast, making them ideal for keeping you dry as they don’t remain soggy after you wipe off sweat repeatedly.
The towels are also easy to clean and machine washable.
In addition, they’re lightweight and perfectly sized to carry around draped over your shoulder or wrapped around your neck.
Pros
- Quality stitching
- Very durable
- Favorable price
- Has dimensions suitable for draping over your shoulder
Cons
- Synthetic material can feel a little odd
- Tend to pick up lint that’s hard to remove
FlexOne towels are premium-quality designed in the USA by fitness fanatics who ensure they meet players' need to keep themselves dry during the most intense workout.
What’s more, they’re made from 100% natural cotton, making them super soft and highly absorbent. This is great because it means you can wipe off sweat with just a pat or a simple swipe, which, interestingly, is the recommended way to wipe your body – by patting it dry instead of rubbing.
These towels are durable and will serve you well throughout the basketball season grind.
So assured is the quality of these towels that they come with a full money-back guarantee if, for any reason, they don't meet your expectations.
Pros
- Excellent quality
- Come with full money-back guarantee
- Designed in the USA
- Soft and absorbent
Cons
- Tend to fray easily
- Not long enough to comfortably drape over your shoulder
Buyers Guide for the Best Basketball Towels
There are some factors you should consider when choosing a basketball towel. These include:
Size and Weight
You don't need a thick, long towel as you do after a shower or swim. Instead, you want a light, moderately-sized towel that's thick enough to absorb sweat and keep you warm, yet thin enough to be breathable.
It should be 3 to 4 feet long and shaped like a long rectangle, enabling you to comfortably wrap it around your neck or drape over your shoulders.
Such a towel is not bulky; hence it's easy to carry around, plus it won't look ridiculous when you pull it out in the court.
Fabric
Basketball is a high-impact sport during which you sweat a lot. Therefore, you want a fabric that not only absorbs the sweat but also doesn’t retain it and is easy to dry, ensuring it doesn't get soggy easily.
You also certainly don't want to towel your face dry with a towel that feels like sandpaper. The fabric should be soft.
Remember, as mentioned earlier, you also need it to be warm and absorbent, so try to find a towel that ties in all these factors. This is vital when it comes to choosing a good basketball towel.
Durability
Basketball seasons are long with a never-ending grind, so invest in a towel with quality stitching and material to avoid having to keep buying towels.
Besides, once the games begin, you don’t have the time to keep shopping for towels, plus you have more important things you should be focusing on – the game.
So, carefully inspect the fabric to ensure it’s stitched well. Also, ensure the material is strong and durable enough to withstand harsh and frequent use.
Cooling
Ideally, a sports towel shouldn't cool your body because it’s crucial that you maintain a consistent body temperature while you play to keep your muscles warm.
Cool your temperatures, and you run the risk of suffering muscle injuries, especially cramps. It's why NBA players wear sweat pants and cover themselves up with a towel.
Keeping warm is recommended medically because, after vigorous exercise (such as playing basketball), muscles warm-up, and instantly cooling them causes cramping.
Conclusion: On the Best Towels for Basketball
A good basketball towel ensures you’re comfortable while you play, with no sweat dripping down your face. It’s also soft on your skin, highly absorbent yet dry, and durable enough to last the season without you having to keep replacing it.
Such a towel will boost your confidence and enable you to focus on what you love doing – playing basketball.
Whether you're a professional player or on your high school basketball team, you can't go wrong with the towels mentioned above.
