All-Star Basketball Game

The All-Star Basketball Game, produced by the Gotham Pressed Steel Corporation in 1947 under model number G-650, is a pure mechanical bagatelle-style machine built around a basketball theme — one of the earlier known examples of a sports-themed pinball game.

Its standout feature is a vertical backboard fitted with a basketball hoop, mounted above the playfield to reinforce the theme (a companion variant swaps the hoop for a bell). As a Pure Mechanical (PM) single-player game, gameplay relied on a plunger-launched ball navigating pins and scoring pockets on the playfield, rather than the flippers or electronic scoring found in later pinball designs.

The designer behind the All-Star Basketball Game is not documented, but the machine's basketball theme and distinctive backboard hoop have helped it remain a notable and recognizable piece for collectors interested in early sports-themed pinball and bagatelle games.