How many dots are on the surface of a basketball?

Answer:

According to the Spalding website, (http://www.spalding.com/contact/contact.html#Q6), there are 122 dots per square inch on a Spalding basketball which makes approximately 35,000 dots total. Some basketballs have different designs, though, and will have a different number of total dots.

but the dots are grips so the ball wont slip out of your hand