Although children are not miniature adults, they are often treated as such when participating in many youth sport activities. Young athletes, for example, are generally expected to participate in sporting events with equipment that has been designed for adults. What effect might scaling down such equipment have on the young child's performance? The purpose of this paper is to examine that question specifically as it relates to basketball. A review of the literature on the effects of modified basketball size and goal height on children's performance yields the following conclusions: (1) a decrease in the basketball size and weight appears to benefit young children with less absolute body size and strength by requiring less force to be applied when shooting or passing and improved ball control skills; and (2) a decrease in the goal height appears to benefit children's shooting accuracy. (Author/JD)