Origin of Basketball

Basketball, the third most popular viewing sport in the world, has 2.2 billion fans. Its history dates to 1891 when James Naismith had to keep a class of rowdy college students at the International YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts, constructively engaged in healthy physical activity. The cold Winter months forced students indoors. The students played football, lacrosse, soccer, and ran track during the warmer months, but there was a void when the weather changed and they couldn’t go outside. Naismith’s boss gave him 14 days to create a new game for his students. 

That’s when he invented basketball. The first basketball game had two peach baskets placed 10 feet high on a wall and a soccer ball. Scoring occurred when a team member threw the ball in the peach basket. The team that scored more baskets was the winner. The score of the first game was 1-0. One of the players called it boring but that turned out to be a minority opinion. Basketball was wildly popular immediately, and by 1898, a six-team professional basketball league was started.

The 13 Rules of Basketball

Naismith wrote down 13 rules for the first game. The game evolved from those rules. In the first game, there were 9 players on each team. Now, each team has 5 players. Below are some of the fundamentals Naismith addressed that are still essential to the game today.

1. The ball may be thrown in any direction with one or both hands.
2. The ball may be batted in any direction with one or both hands (never with the fist). 
3. A player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for a man who catches the ball running at a good speed if he tries to stop. The ball must be held in or between the hands; the arms or body must not be used for holding it.
4. No shouldering, holding, pushing, tripping, or striking in any way of an opponent shall be allowed; the first infringement of this rule by any player shall count as a foul, the second shall disqualify him until the next goal is made, or, if there was evident intent to injure the person, for the whole of game, no substitute allowed.
5. A foul is striking at the ball with the fist, violation of Rules, 3, 4, and such as described in Rule 5. 
6. If either side makes three consecutive fouls, it shall count as a goal for the opponents (consecutive means without the opponents in the meantime making a foul).
7. A goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the grounds into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edges, and the opponents move the basket, it shall count as a goal.
8. When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field of play by the person first touching it. In case of dispute, the umpire shall throw it straight into the field. The thrower-in is allowed five seconds; if he holds it longer, it shall go to the opponent. If any side persists in delaying the game, the umpire shall call a foul on that side.
9. The umpire shall be the judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have power to disqualify men according to Rule 5.
10. The referee shall be judge of the ball and shall decide when the ball is in play, in bounds, to which side it belongs, and shall keep the time. He shall decide when a goal has been made, and keep account of the goals with any other duties that are usually performed by a referee.
11. The time shall be two 15-minute halves, with five minutes’ rest between.
12. The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winner. In the case of a draw, the game may, by agreement of the captains, be continued until another goal is made.

Dribbling Takes Basketball to a New Level

In the early years, there was no concept of dribbling. Players moved the ball by passing it only. The introduction of dribbling in 1901 as a rule helped to modify physical play. Dribbling was first documented by Yale in 1897. The introduction of dribbling opened up the game and made it faster and more fluid. 

Naismith said in a radio interview in New York City in 1939 that the first game was so physical a boy was knocked unconscious, another had a black eye, and another had a dislocated shoulder. That’s because the first set of rules didn’t cover dribbling, only passing. 

As dribbling and passing became sophisticated, the pace of play quickened, and the scores of games rose. These new concepts made basketball even more popular.

The History of College Basketball Tournaments

The first big college basketball post-season tournament was the National Invitational Tournament but the one that matters the most today is the NCAA Tournament.” Both tournaments still exist but the NCAA is superior, and it crowns the National Champion. Sponsored by the Metropolitan Basketball Writers, the NIT started in 1938 as a 6-team tournament. All the games were played at Madison Square Garden in New York. Temple University won the first championship. A year later, the NCAA staged a dueling college tournament with 8 teams. 

The National Association of Basketball Coaches started the NCAA Tournament.  Oregon beat Ohio State in the first season. With the NCAA struggling to make money, the NIT was the dominant post-season destination for the best college teams for over a decade. 

In 1951, a point-shaving scandal that had gone on for years was discovered. Some players were taking money from gamblers to keep the scores within the spread line for bettors. The NIT’s credibility eroded over time and the NCAA gradually morphed into the premier tournament. The NCAA went to 16 teams in 1951, 32 in 1975, 64 in 1985, and 68 in 2011. The 3-week tournament generates about $1 billion in revenue per year and it showcases the best teams and players in the country. The NIT is still alive, but it selects its field after the NCAA has taken the best teams.

The History of the NBA

In 1949, the National Basketball Association was born. The NBA was the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL). The NBL was an upstart league that began competing against the BAA, which was formed in 1898. Early stars like George Mikan, who played for the BAA, the NBL, and the NBA, helped popularize the sport. Mikan, who was 6-foot-10, was one of the first dominant post players in the league. In 1967, the American Basketball Association was formed, posing a threat to the NBA. The ABA lasted for 9 years before it merged with the NBA. Today, the reach of the NBA, with dazzling stars like Stephen Curry, is global. There are currently 120 international players from 40 countries on NBA rosters. 

From its inauspicious start in a small gym in Springfield, Massachusetts, basketball has grown into a $10 billion global business that captivates fans’ interest all around the world. Part of the popularity of the sport is its simplicity. All you need to play is a basketball and two hoops. James Naismith had no idea of the unending reach the game would have when he created it for his gym class in 1891.