MODULE | TEAM SPORTS

Introduction of Basketball

Objectives:
a) Understand historical development of Basketball.
b) Determine the people in whose efforts the game
basketball became known.

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams

of five active players. Each try to score points against
one another by propelling a ball through a 10 feet (3m)
high hoop (the goal) under organized rules. Basketball
is one of the most popular and widely viewed sports in
the world.

Points are scored by shooting the ball through the basket from above; the team with
more points at the end of the game wins. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from
behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the
player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one or more one-point free
throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play
expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated. The ball can
be advanced on the court by bouncing it (dribbling) or passing it between teammates.
Disruptive physical contact (fouls) is not permitted and there are restrictions on how the ball
can be handled (violations).

The five players on each side fall into five playing positions the tallest player is
usually the center, the tallest and strongest is the power forward, a slightly shorter but
more agile player is the small forward, and the shortest players or the best ball handlers are
the shooting guard and the point guard, who implements the coach's game plan by
managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays (player positioning). Informally,
players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, and one-on-one.

Through time, basketball has developed to involve common techniques of shooting,

passing and dribbling, as well as player’s positions and offensive structures. While
competitive basketball is carefully regulated, numerous variations of basketball have
developed for casual play. In some countries, basketball is also a popular spectator sport.

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MODULE | TEAM SPORTS

BRIEF HISTORY

Dr. James Naismith is known world-wide as the inventor of

basketball. He was born in 1861 in Ramsay township, near Almonte,
Ontario, Canada The concept of basketball was born from his school
days in the area where he played a simple child’s game known as
duck-on-a-rock outside his one-room schoolhouse. The game involved
attempting to knock a “duck” off the top of a large rock by tossing
another rock at it. Naismith went on to attend McGill University in
Dr. James Naismith Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

After serving as McGill’s Athletic Director, he moved on to the YMCA Training School
in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA in 1891 where the sport of basketball was born. In
Springfield, Naismith was faced with the problem of finding a sport that was suitable for
play inside during the Massachusetts winter for the students at the School for Christian
Workers. Naismith wanted to create a game of skill for the students instead of one that
relied solely on strength. He needed a game that could be played indoors in a relatively
small space. The first game was played with a soccer ball and two peach baskets used as
goals.

Peach Fruit Wooden Basket

& Soccer Ball

In addition to the creation of the sport, Naismith graduated as a medical doctor,

primarily interested in sports physiology and what we would today call sports science and as
Presbyterian minister, with a keen interest in philosophy and clean living. Naismith watched
his sports, introduced in many nations by the YMCA movement as early as 1893. Basketball
was introduced at the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Today basketball has grown to become one
of the world’s most popular sports.

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Naismith’s handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006,

indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated
rules from a children’s game called “Duck on a Rock”, as many had failed before it. Naismith
called the new game ‘Basket Ball’

There were only thirteen rules of "basketball".

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.
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 when 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, tripping or striking in any way the person of an
opponent shall be allowed. 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 substitute.
6. A foul is striking the ball with the fist, violation of rules 3 and 4, and such as
described in rule 5.
7. If either side makes three consecutive fouls it shall count a goal for opponents.
8. A goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from grounds into the basket
and stays there If the ball rests on the edge and the opponent moves 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
person first touching it. In case of a 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 the judge of the men and shall note the fouls, and notify the
referee when three consecutive fouls have been made.
11. The referee shall be the judge of the ball and shall decide when the ball is in play, in-
bounds, and 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 fifteen-minute halves, with five-minute rests between.
13. 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.

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- December 21, 1891 first inaugural game

- First public basketball game was played on March 11, 1892
- Dr. Luther Gullick his professor who pushes Naismith to invent this game.

5 Principles in Basketball:
1. The game is played with a round ball and with the hands.
2. A player cannot run with the ball.
3. Any player can take up any position on the playing court at any time.
4. There shall be no physical contact between players.

5. The goal or the basket shall be placed horizontally above the floor of the court

For more information please click the link below. The History of Basketball.
https://www.thebasketballworld.com/history.htm
https://springfield.edu/where-basketball-was-invented-the-birthplace-of-basketball

Reference:
Book: Physical Education for College
Author: Mr. Doris D. Tulio

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