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Most of the sports today are either a combination of other sports or they have an untraceable origin. But same is not the case with the game of Basketball.
One of the most popular games around the world and being played by an estimated 300 million people around the globe, basketball has a well-defined origin, an inventor and a story behind the origin.
The game was invented by one Dr. James Naismith, teacher of Physical Education at the YMCA – Springfield, Massachusetts, USA.
Origins and Rules of the game
While at YMCA, Dr. Naismith was given a project by the Head of the Physical Education Department, Dr. L. Gulick, to come up with a new game which could be played indoors during the winter season so that the pupils could stay active and the track and field runners would stay fit.
At the end of two weeks, Dr. Naismith brought two peach baskets to the gymnasium (The baskets did not have their bottoms knocked out) and secured them high on the railings on the two ends of the gymnasium.
He thought keeping the baskets at a higher position will reduce the potential risks of injury to the players as the most aggressive game is always near the goal area. The first Basketball game was then played with a soccer ball which was again introduced with the mindset that it is light enough to cause any significant injuries.
A set of 13 rules were laid down for the game by Dr. James. Here are the rules, as cited on the Kansas Heritage website.
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, but 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 running at good speed.
4. The ball must be held in or between the hands. The arms or body must not be used for holding it.
5. No shouldering, holding, pushing, striking or tripping in any way of an opponent. The first infringement of this rule by any person 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 the game. No substitution shall be allowed.
6. Fouls are striking at the ball with the fist, violations of Rules 3 and 4 and such as described in Rule 5.
7. 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).
8. Goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the ground into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edge and the opponents move the basket, it shall count as a goal.
9. When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field and played by the first person 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 them.
10. The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have the power to disqualify men according to Rule 5.
11. The referee shall be the judge of the ball and decide when it 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.
12. The time shall be two 15-minute halves with five minutes’ rest between.
13. The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winners.
This first game of basketball was played on December 21, 1891. It was played with 9 players on each team and the final score was 1-0, with the sole basket of the game being scored by William R. Chase from 25 feet away from the basket.
Dr. Naismith claims that the game was inspired from the game of “Duck on a Rock”, a very old game in which a duck (a stone) kept on a huge rock or tree stump had to be knocked off by some players from a distance by throwing rocks and a defender had to keep the duck safe from getting knocked off.
The game soon spread and became popular in other YMCAs around the world and then spread all over the world. And we know the popularity and the crazy fans the game has earned today.
The most interesting part of the early basketball years was that the peach baskets did not have an open bottom so whenever someone would score a basket, the game would be temporarily stopped so that someone would retrieve the ball back using a ladder. Later on however, a small hole was cut out in the bottom so that the ball could be retrieved by poking it with a stick from beneath.
The rules began to be tweaked from the beginning of the game and the iron rims with netting were introduced as early as 1893. But even then, the bottoms were not open and someone had to climb to retrieve the ball or poke it out.
After a decade, someone came up with the bright idea of introducing open ended nets so that the ball may just fall through.
The Controversy
There is a conspiracy theory revolved around the question on who really invented the game. The question popped up in the 1950s claiming that the Director at YMCA New York, Lambert G. Will was the original inventor of the game.
The claim is supported with a picture of a basketball dated 1892, which is later than the first game being played but the ball in the picture has 91-92 written on it which states that the team was formed in 1891. However, Lambert G. Will has never claimed to be the founder of the game, though his grandson claims that he suggested most of the major rules of the game to Dr. Naismith while he was creating the game and asked for suggestions.
Conclusion
Basketball was thus invented in America, by a Canadian of British origin in 1891. Dr. Naismith later became the first basketball coach at the University of Kansas where he retired as the only coach in the history of the university with a losing record (55-60).
