Basketball Primer

Basketball gets its heritage from Springfield, Massachusetts. It is a game that was invented to be played indoors and in relatively little space. The original baskets that were used in basketball were peach baskets that were hung ten feet in the air. Although Basketball originated in the United States, the invention of the sport is attributed to Dr. James Naismith who was a physical education professor from Canada. He wrote some rules for the game and then nailed the peach basket to the wall. Back in the day, the balls had to be taken from the basket when a shot was made as the peach basket still had a bottom.

The game borrowed some of the rules from the game “Duck On A Rock,” which was a popular children’s game in 1891 when Naismith invented basketball. Women’s basketball started at Smith College by Senda Berenson. Surprisingly, the first college basketball team was not made up of men, but of women. Smith started the first team in 1893. Basketball soon gained popularity, especially in YMCAs and high schools across the United States and in Canada. College leagues were formed prior to WWI, but soon disbanded. But by the 1950s, college basketball was a major sport on campus. The Hall of Fame for basketball was founded in 1959. Today, the NBA basketball games are among the most watched sporting events in the world. The NBA, as we know it today, was formed in 1976 when it combined the American Basketball Association which was the National Basketball Association formed in 1949.