BASKETBALL

HISTORY
Where Basketball Originated

It was the winter of 1891-1892. Inside a gymnasium at Springfield College (then known as the

International YMCA Training School), located in Springfield, Mass., was a group of restless

college students. The young men had to be there; they were required to participate in indoor

activities to burn off the energy that had been building up since their football season ended. The

gymnasium class offered them activities such as marching, calisthenics, and apparatus work, but

these were pale substitutes for the more exciting games of football and lacrosse they played in

warmer seasons.

James Naismith, The Person Who Invented Basketball

The instructor of this class was James Naismith, a 31-year-old graduate student. After graduating

from Presbyterian College in Montreal with a theology degree, Naismith embraced his love of

athletics and headed to Springfield to study physical education—at that time, a relatively new

and unknown academic discipline—under Luther Halsey Gulick, superintendent of physical

education at the College and today renowned as the father of physical education and recreation in

the United States.

As Naismith, a second-year graduate student who had been named to the teaching faculty, looked

at his class, his mind flashed to the summer session of 1891, when Gulick introduced a new

course in the psychology of play. In class discussions, Gulick had stressed the need for a new

indoor game, one “that would be interesting, easy to learn, and easy to play in the winter and by

artificial light.” No one in the class had followed up on Gulick’s challenge to invent such a

game. But now, faced with the end of the fall sports season and students dreading the mandatory

and dull required gymnasium work, Naismith had a new motivation.

Two instructors had already tried and failed to devise activities that would interest the young

men. The faculty had met to discuss what was becoming a persistent problem with the class’s

unbridled energy and disinterest in required work.

not with the men, but with the system that we are using.” He felt that the kind of work needed to

motivate and inspire the young men he faced “should be of a recreative nature, something that

would appeal to their play instincts.”

Before the end of the faculty meeting, Gulick placed the problem squarely in Naismith’s lap.

“Naismith,” he said. “I want you to take that class and see what you can do with it.”

So Naismith went to work. His charge was to create a game that was easy to assimilate, yet

complex enough to be interesting. It had to be playable indoors or on any kind of ground, and by

a large number of players all at once. It should provide plenty of exercise, yet without the

roughness of football, soccer, or rugby since those would threaten bruises and broken bones if

played in a confined space.

Much time and thought went into this new creation. It became an adaptation of many games of

its time, including American rugby (passing), English rugby (the jump ball), lacrosse (use of a

goal), soccer (the shape and size of the ball), and something called duck on a rock, a game

Naismith had played with his childhood friends in Bennie’s Corners, Ontario. Duck on a rock

used a ball and a goal that could not be rushed. The goal could not be slammed through, thus

necessitating “a goal with a horizontal opening high enough so that the ball would have to be

tossed into it, rather than being thrown.”

Naismith approached the school janitor, hoping he could find two, 18-inch square boxes to use as

goals. The janitor came back with two peach baskets instead. Naismith then nailed them to the

lower rail of the gymnasium balcony, one at each end. The height of that lower balcony rail

happened to be ten feet. A man was stationed at each end of the balcony to pick the ball from the

basket and put it back into play. It wasn’t until a few years later that the bottoms of those peach

baskets were cut to let the ball fall loose.

Naismith then drew up the 13 original rules, which described, among other facets, the method of

moving the ball and what constituted a foul. A referee was appointed. The game would be

divided into two, 15-minute halves with a five-minute resting period in between. Naismith’s

secretary typed up the rules and tacked them on the bulletin board. A short time later, the gym

class met, and the teams were chosen with three centers, three forwards, and three guards per
side. Two of the centers met at mid-court, Naismith tossed the ball, and the game of “basket ball”

was born.

The Year Basketball was Invented

Word of the new game spread like wildfire. It was an instant success. A few weeks after the

game was invented, students introduced the game at their own YMCAs. The rules were printed

in a College magazine, which was mailed to YMCAs around the country. Because of the

College’s well-represented international student body, the game of basketball was introduced to

many foreign nations in a relatively short period of time. High schools and colleges began to

introduce the new game, and by 1905, basketball was officially recognized as a permanent winter

sport.

The rules have been tinkered with, but by-and-large, the game of “basket ball” has not changed

drastically since Naismith’s original list of “Thirteen Rules” was tacked up on a bulletin board at

Springfield College.

Where was Basketball Invented?

There’s been some confusion over the precise nature of the official relationship between

Springfield College and the YMCA, as it relates to James Naismith and the invention of

basketball.

The confusion stems in part from changes in the School’s name in its early history. Originally

the School for Christian Workers, the School early in its history had three other names which

included “YMCA”: the YMCA Training School, the International YMCA Training School, and,

later still, the International YMCA College. The College didn’t officially adopt the name

“Springfield College” until 1954, even though it had been known informally as “Springfield

College” for many years.

But by whatever name, since its founding in 1885 Springfield College has always been a private

and independent institution. The College has enjoyed a long and productive collaboration with

the YMCA, but has never had any formal organizational ties to the YMCA movement.

The confusion has been compounded by a small sign on the corner of the building where

basketball was invented. The building stood at the corner of State and Sherman streets in
Springfield, Massachusetts. The sign, carrying the words “Armory Hill Young Men’s Christian

Association,” is visible in old photographs of the building that have circulated online. This has

led some to believe, erroneously, that the Armory Hill YMCA owned the building, and that

James Naismith was an employee of the YMCA.

However, in 2010, some historic YMCA documents and Springfield College documents from the

period were rediscovered. These documents prove conclusively that the gymnasium in which

Naismith invented basketball was located not in a YMCA but in a building owned and operated

by the School for Christian Workers, from which today’s Springfield College originated. The

building also included classrooms, dormitory rooms, and faculty and staff offices for the

institution. The Armory Hill YMCA rented space in the building for its activities, and used the

small sign to attract paying customers.

James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, was an instructor in physical education at the

College. It was Luther Halsey Gulick, Naismith’s supervisor and the College’s first physical

education director, who challenged Naismith to invent a new indoor game for the School’s

students to play during the long New England winter. There is currently no evidence to suggest

that either man ever worked for the Armory Hill YMCA, per se.

EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES

 Basketball Court

 Ball
  Basketball Hoop

 Backboard

 Scoreboard

 Uniform
  Whistle

 Game Clock

 Protective Gear

BASIC RULES

The rules of basketball can vary slightly depending on the level of play (for example professional

rules differ from college rules) or where the game is played (international rules are different from
USA professional rules). These rule differences, however, are usually just variations on the basic

game of basketball and the majority of the rules discussed below can be applied to most any

game of basketball played.

The winner of a basketball game is the team with the most points. You get points by throwing

the basketball through the opponent's hoop or basket. In regular play a basket made from within

the three point line is worth 2 points and a basket shot from outside the three point line is worth

three points. When shooting a free throw, each free throw is worth 1 point.

Rules for the offense

The basketball team on offense is the team with the basketball. When a player has the basketball

there are certain rules they must follow:

1) The player must bounce, or dribble, the ball with one hand while moving both feet. If, at any

time, both hands touch the ball or the player stops dribbling, the player must only move one foot.

The foot that is stationary is called the pivot foot.

2) The basketball player can only take one turn at dribbling. In other words, once a player has

stopped dribbling they cannot start another dribble. A player who starts dribbling again is called

for a double-dribbling violation and looses the basketball to the other team. A player can only

start another dribble after another player from either team touches or gains control of the

basketball. This is usually after a shot or pass.

3) The ball must stay in bounds. If the offensive team looses the ball out of bounds the other

team gets control of the basketball.

4) The players hand must be on top of the ball while dribbling. If they touch the bottom of the

basketball while dribbling and continue to dribble this is called carrying the ball and the player

will lose the ball to the other team.

5) Once the offensive team crosses half court, they may not go back into the backcourt. This is

called a backcourt violation. If the defensive team knocks the ball into the backcourt, then the

offensive team can recover the ball legally.

Defensive Rules

The team on defense is the team without the basketball.

1) The main rule for the defensive player is not to foul. A foul is described as gaining an unfair

advantage through physical contact. There is some interpretation that has to be made by the

referee, but, in general, the defensive player may not touch the offensive player in a way that
causes the offensive player to lose the ball or miss a shot.

Rules for everyone

1) Although the foul rule is described above as a defensive rule, it applies exactly the same to all

players on the court including offensive players.

2) Basketball players cannot kick the ball or hit it with their fist.

3) No player can touch the basketball while it is traveling downward towards the basket or if it is

on the rim. This is called goaltending. (touching the ball on the rim is legal in some games).

Every player on the court is subject to the same rules regardless of the position they play. The

positions in basketball are just for team basketball strategy and there are no positions in the rules.

OFFICIALS AND OFFICIATING

THE OFFICIATING STAFF.  The makeup of the officiating corps is strictly a matter of

choice. The minimum number is five: a referee, an umpire, a scorer, a timer and a shot-clock

operator. In some cases, eight officials are used in a lineup comprising a referee, two umpires, a

shot-clock operator, two scorers and two timers. Years ago, when there was a center jump after

each field goal or free throw; two officials did it all-the referee on the court and one combined

scorer-timer on the sidelines.

REFEREE IS OFFICIAL IN CHARGE. Although the duties of the officials may not concern

spectators or players, you should know that the referee controls the game. The referee is the

official who tosses the ball up for the center jump at the start of the game and each overtime

period. The referee’s assigned chores range from inspecting and approving all equipment before

the game’s starting time to approving the final score. In between, the referee is responsible for

the notification of each team three minutes before each half is to begin and deciding matters of

disagreement among the officials. The referee has the power to make decisions on any points not

specifically covered in the rules and even to forfeit the game if necessary.

OFFICIALS CONDUCT GAME. During actual play, there is no practical difference between

the referee and umpire(s). They are equally responsible for the conduct of the game; and,

because of the speed of play, their duties are dictated essentially by their respective positions on
the court from moment to moment. For this reason, the rules specify that no official has the

authority to question decisions made by another official.

The officials’ control, which begins 30 minutes before starting time for men and 15 minutes for

women and concludes with the referee’s approval of the final score, includes the power to eject

from the court any player, coach or team follower who is guilty of flagrant unsporting conduct.

When the referee leaves the confines of the playing area at the end of the game, the score is final

and may not be changed.

As we pointed out earlier, jump balls occur only at the start of the game and all overtimes; but

officials still must concentrate upon throwing the ball up straight. At other times, play will be

resumed with a throw-in. The team not obtaining the ball after the first center jump will begin the

alternating process.

OFFICIALS’ SIGNALS. When a foul occurs, the official is required by the rules to (a) signal

the timer to stop the clock, (b) designate the offender to the scorer and © use his or her fingers to

indicate the number of free throws.

When a team is entitled to a throw-in, an official must (a) signal what caused the ball to become

dead, (b) indicate the throw-in spot (except after a goal) and © designate the team entitled to the

throw-in.

DUTIES OF SCORERS AND TIMERS. Scorers must (a) record, in numerical order, names

and numbers of all players, (b) record field goals made and free throws made and missed, © keep

a running summary of points scored, (d) record fouls called on each player and notify officials

when a player-disqualification or bonus-free-throw situation arises, (e) record timeouts and

report when a team’ s allotted number has been used, and (f) record when a squad member has

been ejected for fighting.

It is the game-clock and shot-clock operators’ responsibility to keep everyone abreast of key

factors while carrying out the timing regulations.

FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS

Dribbling
Dribbling is an important skill for all basketball players. This skill will allow you to move up and

down the court, maneuver past defenders and execute plays. Proper dribbling requires ball-

handling skills and knowledge of how to spread your fingers for ball control. It is also best if you

know how to dribble equally well with both hands.

Shooting

In order to score points in basketball, you need to shoot the ball into the hoop. This requires the

ability to properly hold and throw the ball into the air toward the basket while avoiding

defenders. A proper shot requires precise aiming, arm extension and lift from the legs. There are

different types of shots you need to learn, including jump shots, layups and free throws.

Running

Running is a big part of basketball. In a full-court game, you will find yourself running back and

forth as the game quickly transitions between offense and defense. When you have the ball,

running will help you to avoid defenders and get to the basket quicker. On defense, you often

will find yourself needing to run after the opponent, especially during fast breaks.

Passing

Passing is another skill that when mastered can help you become a complete basketball player.

Basketball is a team sport that involves finding a teammate who is open for a shot. The ability to

pass the ball to this player can make the difference between scoring and not scoring. Really great

passers are an important part of a basketball team and usually the ones who set up scoring plays.

Jumping

Jumping is another skill that can define how good a basketball player is. Jumping is involved in

offense during the jump ball in the beginning, while taking shots and sometimes while trying to

catch a pass. On defensive you will need the ability to jump when trying to block a shot or a

pass. Being able to out jump your opponent for a rebound also is important.