The Origination and Rise of American Basketball

Many people follow the sport of basketball without understanding of its rich history. Basketball, like all other sports, has a unique story of origination. James Naismith created this lively and active sport to provide adults and children with something to play inside during the cold winter season. James was working as a teacher in a Christian Association training school. While there, he was asked to create an indoor game that may be used for both entertainment and sport. He started his job in the winter of 1891 by comparing sports he played as a child. One game in particular became a major influence on what would later be called basketball. This game was called “Duck on a Rock” also it was made up of an individual guarding his “duck” from others. Naismith also took ideas from previous religious traditions created by the Mayans and Aztecs. These cultures used a rubber ball and a ring for just one of the inside games. The ring resided on a pole and shots were made vertically. After extensive studying, he formulated the new game of basketball.
Basketball originally had thirteen rules which were easy to understand and follow. The ball itself could be thrown multiple directions, batted, and was required to be held using the player’s hands. Players could not run around using the ball. It needed to be thrown from player to player. Dirty tricks for example tripping, pushing, and holding were not allowed. Fouls were understood to be violations of the above rules by using your fist to hit the ball from a player’s hand. Three fouls received consecutively by a team awarded the opponents one point. Baskets could be made by throwing the ball or by batting it from the player’s hand. An out of bounds ball would be thrown back to play and belonged to the first player to have connection with it. Umpires would observe fouls and judge the entire play of the whole game. Referees decided if the ball is in play, out of bounds, kept track of time, and determined which team had possession of the ball. Naismith organized time keeping as two halves lasting fifteen minutes a piece. A five minute break was allowed between halves. Whoever scored the most goals during this time periods was the winner of the whole game. Basketball still follows most of these same fundamental rules today.
The first game occured on December 29, 1891. A soccer ball and peach baskets were used for the game. Basketball spread in popularity throughout the world largely with the help of the US Army and schools. While Americans were fighting in Europe throughout the First World War, they picked up on the sport and started to play the game wherever they went. Sports and physical eduction teachers also started implementing basketball in their class courses and slowly the game became a common sport. The National Basketball Association wasn’t established until June of 1946. Many small championships and leagues were formed before this time, but most disbanded rapidly. Racial integration with the league began in 1942. Afterwards the sport became what we now see today.
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