A five-a-side team ball game, invented by James Naismith in 1891 in Springfield, MA; but a similar game was played by the Olmecs in Mexico in the 10th-c BC. It is especially popular as a professional sport in the USA. Played on a court, the object is to throw the ball through your opponent's basket, situated at the end of the court, and 10 ft (3·05 m) above the ground. Virtually all professional basketball players are well over 6 ft (1·8 m) tall.
Basketball is a sport in which two teams of five players each try to score points on one another by throwing a ball through a hoop (the basket) under organized rules.
Points are scored by passing the ball through the basket from above;
Through time, basketball has developed to involve common techniques of shooting, passing and dribbling, as well as players' positions, and offensive and defensive structures. While competitive basketball is carefully regulated, numerous variations of basketball have developed for casual play.
While competitive basketball is primarily an indoor sport, played on a basketball court, less regulated variations have become exceedingly popular as an outdoor sport among inner city groups.
History
History of basketball
In early December 1891, Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian physician of McGill University and minister on the faculty of a college for YMCA professionals (today, Springfield College) in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. Women's basketball began in 1892 at Smith College when Senda Berenson, a physical education teacher, modified Naismith's rules for women. The first official basketball game was played in the YMCA gymnasium on January 20, 1892 with nine players, on a court just half the size of a present-day National Basketball Association (NBA) court.
Basketball's early adherents were dispatched to YMCAs throughout the United States, and it quickly spread through the USA and Canada. While the YMCA was responsible for initially developing and spreading the game, within a decade it discouraged the new sport, as rough play and rowdy crowds began to detract from the YMCA's primary mission.
Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball. The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle, searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use.
Dribbling, the bouncing of the ball up and down while moving, was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement.
Basketball, netball, volleyball, and lacrosse are the only ball games which have been identified as being invented by North Americans.
College basketball and early leagues
Naismith and Berenson were instrumental in establishing college basketball. In 1892, University of California and Miss Head's School, played the first women's inter-institutional game. Berenson's freshmen played the sophomore class in the first women's collegiate basketball game at Smith College, March 21, 1893. The same year, Mount Holyoke and Sophie Newcomb College (coached by Clara Gregory Baer) women began playing basketball. Stanford women played Berkeley, 9-on-9, ending in a 2-1 Stanford victory.
Teams abounded from through the 1920s. There were hundreds of men's professional basketball teams in towns and cities all over the United States and little organization of the professional game. Players jumped from team to team and teams played in armories and smoky dance halls. And barnstorming squads such as the Original Celtics and two all African American teams, the New York Renaissance Five ("Rens") and (still in existence as of 2006) the Harlem Globetrotters played up to two hundred games a year on their national tours. In 1905, the National Women's Basketball Committee's Executive Committee on Basket Ball Rules was created by the American Physical Education Association. These rules called for six to nine players per team and 11 officials. The International Women's Sports Federation (1924) included a women's basketball competition. And in 1926, the Amateur Athletic Union backed the first national women's basketball championship, complete with men's rules. By 1938, the women's national championship changed from a three-court game to two-court game with six players per team.
College basketball was rocked by gambling scandals from 1948 to 1951, when dozens of players from top teams were implicated in match fixing and point shaving.
U.S. high school basketball
Before widespread school district consolidation, most United States high schools were far smaller than their present day counterparts.
Today virtually every high school in the United States fields a basketball team in varsity competition. Baseketball's popularity remains high, both in rural areas where they carry the identification of the entire community, as well as at some larger schools known for their basketball teams where many players go on to participate at higher levels of competition after graduation.
National Basketball Association
In 1946, the National Basketball Association was formed, organizing the top professional teams and leading to greater popularity of the professional game. The first game was played in Toronto, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and New York Knickerbockers on November 1, 1946. Today the NBA is the top professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition.
The NBA has featured many famous players, including George Mikan, the first dominating "big man"; and the three players who many credit with ushering the professional game to its highest level of popularity: Larry Bird, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, and Michael Jordan.
The NBA-backed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) began 1997. Though it had an insecure opening season, several marquee players (Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Sue Bird among others) helped the league's popularity and level of competition. Other professional women's basketball leagues in the United States, such as the American Basketball League (1996-1998), have folded in part because of the popularity of the WNBA.
In 2001, the NBA formed a developmental league, the NBDL.
International basketball
The International Basketball Federation was formed in 1932 by eight founding nations: Argentina, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Romania and Switzerland. At this time, the organization only oversaw amateur players.
Basketball was first included in the Olympic Games in 1936, although a demonstration tournament was held in 1904. Women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976, with teams such as Brazil and Australia rivaling the American squads.
FIBA dropped the distinction between amateur and professional players in 1989, and in 1992, professional players played for the first time in the Olympic Games. A team made entirely of NBA players finished sixth in the 2002 World Championships in Indianapolis, behind Yugoslavia, Argentina, Germany, New Zealand and Spain. In the 2004 Athens Olympics, the United States suffered its first Olympic loss while using professional players, falling to Puerto Rico and Lithuania in group games. (It should be noted, however, that of the twelve players originally selected by the NBA, only Tim Duncan and Allen Iverson chose to play; the rest of the team was put together from second and third choices.)
Worldwide, basketball tournaments are held for boys and girls of all age levels. Players from all over the globe can be found in NBA teams. (Duncan competes for the United States internationally, as the Virgin Islands do not field a basketball team for international competition.)
The all-tournament teams at the two most recent FIBA World Championships, held in 2002 in Indianapolis and 2006 in Japan, demonstrate the globalization of the game equally dramatically. The only players on either team to never have joined the NBA are Cameron and Papaloukas.
The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc which is 6.25 meters (20 ft 6 in) from the basket in international games and 23 ft 9 in (7.24 m) in NBA games.
Playing regulations
Games are played in four quarters of 10 (international) or 12 minutes (NBA). The time allowed is actual playing time;
Five players from each team may be on the court at one time.
For both men's and women's teams, a standard uniform consists of a pair of shorts and a jersey with a clearly visible number, unique within the team, printed on both the front and back.
A limited number of time-outs, clock stoppages requested by a coach for a short meeting with the players, are allowed.
The game is controlled by the officials consisting of the referee, one or two umpires and the table officials. The table officials are responsible for keeping track of each teams scoring, timekeeping, individual and team fouls, player substitutions, team possession arrow, and the shot clock.
Equipment
The only essential equipment in basketball is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends.
A regulation basketball court in international games is 28 by 15 meters (approx.
Violations
The ball may be advanced toward the basket by being shot, passed between players, thrown, tapped, rolled or dribbled (bouncing the ball while running).
The ball must stay within the court; The ball-handler may not move both feet without dribbling, known as traveling, nor may he dribble with both hands or catch the ball in between dribbles, a violation called double dribbling. A team, once having established ball control in the front half of the court, may not return the ball to the backcourt.
There are limits imposed on the time taken before progressing the ball past halfway (8 seconds in international and NBA), before attempting a shot (24 seconds), holding the ball while closely guarded (5 seconds), and remaining in the restricted area (the lane, or "key") (3 seconds).
No player may interfere with the basket or ball on its downward flight to the basket, or while it is on the rim (or, in the NBA, while it is directly above the basket), a violation known as goaltending. If a defensive player goaltends, the attempted shot is considered to have been successful. If a teammate of the shooter goaltends, the basket is cancelled and play continues.
Fouls
An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through personal contact is illegal and is called a foul. These are most commonly committed by defensive players; however, they can be committed by offensive players as well. Players who are fouled either receive the ball to pass inbounds again, or receive one or more free throws if they are fouled in the act of shooting, depending on whether the shot was successful.
The referee may use discretion in calling fouls (for example, by considering whether an unfair advantage was gained), sometimes making fouls controversial calls.
A player or coach who shows poor sportsmanship, for instance, by arguing with a referee or by fighting with another player, can be charged with a technical foul. Blatant fouls with excessive contact or that are not an attempt to play the ball are called unsportsmanlike fouls (or flagrant fouls in the NBA) and incur a harsher penalty; in some rare cases a disqualifying foul will require the player to leave the playing area.
If a team surpasses a preset limit of team fouls in a given period (quarter or half) – four for international and NBA games – the opposing team is awarded one or two free throws on all subsequent fouls for that period, the number depending on the league. A player who commits five fouls, including technical fouls, in one game (six in some professional leagues, including the NBA) is not allowed to participate for the rest of the game, and is described as having "fouled out".
Common techniques and practices
Positions and structures
Although the rules do not specify any positions whatsoever, they have evolved as part of basketball. Since the 1980s, more specific positions have evolved, namely:
point guard: organizes the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that it gets to the right player at the right time shooting guard: creates a high volume of shots on offense; on defense seeks rebounds and steals, but sometimes plays more actively power forward: plays offensively often with his back to the basket; on defense, plays under the basket (in a zone defense) or against the opposing power forward (in man-to-man defense) center: uses size, either to score (on offense) or to protect the basket closely (on defense)The above descriptions are flexible. The most commonly interchanged positions are point guard and shooting guard, especially if both players have good leadership and ball handling skills. Zone defense involves players in defensive positions guarding whichever opponent is in their zone.
Offensive plays are more varied, normally involving planned passes and movement by players without the ball. The two plays are combined in the pick and roll, in which a player sets a pick and then "rolls" away from the pick towards the basket. Screens and cuts are very important in offensive plays; Teams almost always have several offensive plays planned to ensure their movement is not predictable. On court, the point guard is usually responsible for indicating which play will occur.
Defensive and offensive structures, and positions, are more emphasized in higher levels in basketball;
Shooting
Shooting is the act of attempting to score points throwing the ball through the basket. While methods can vary with players and situations, the most common technique can be outlined here.
The player should be positioned facing the basket with feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, and back straight. The player holds the ball to rest in the dominant hand's fingertips (the shooting arm) slightly above the head, with the other hand on the side of the ball.
Players often try to put a steady backspin on the ball to deaden its impact with the rim. Most players shoot directly into the basket, but shooters may use the backboard to redirect the ball into the basket.
Another common shot is called the layup. This shot requires the player to be in motion toward the basket, and to "lay" the ball "up" and into the basket, typically off the backboard (the backboard-free, underhand version is called a finger roll). The most crowd-pleasing, and typically highest-percentage accuracy shot is the slam dunk, in which the player jumps very high, and throws the ball downward, straight through the hoop.
A missed shot that misses the basket completely is referred to as an air ball.
The best shooters combine great dedication, coordination, and confidence.
Passing
A pass is a method of moving the ball between players. The bounce pass takes longer to complete than the chest pass, but it is also harder for the opposing team to intercept (kicking the ball deliberately is a violation). Thus, players often use the bounce pass in crowded moments, or to pass around a defender.
The overhead pass is used to pass the ball over a defender.
The outlet pass occurs after a team gets a defensive rebound.
The crucial aspect of any good pass is being impossible to intercept. Good passers can pass the ball with great accuracy and touch and know exactly where each of their teammates like to receive the ball.
Dribbling
Dribbling is the act of bouncing the ball continuously, and is a requirement for a player to take steps with the ball.
When dribbling past an opponent, the dribbler should dribble with the hand farthest from the opponent, making it more difficult for the defensive player to get to the ball.
Good dribblers (or "ball handlers") tend to bounce the ball low to the ground, reducing the travel from the floor to the hand, making it more difficult for the defender to "steal" the ball.
A skilled player can dribble without watching the ball, using the dribbling motion or peripheral vision to keep track of the ball's location. By not having to focus on the ball, a player can look for teammates or scoring opportunities, as well as avoid the danger of someone stealing the ball from them.
Height
At the professional level, most male players are above 1.90 meters (6 ft 3 in) and most women above 1.70 meters (5 ft 7 in). Guards, for whom physical coordination and ball-handling skills are crucial, tend to be the smallest players. The tallest players ever in the NBA, Manute Bol and Gheorghe Mureşan, were 2.31 m (7 ft 7 in).
The shortest player ever to play in the NBA is Muggsy Bogues at 1.60 meters (5 ft 3 in). Other short players have thrived at the pro level. While shorter players are often not very good at defending against shooting, their ability to navigate quickly through crowded areas of the court and steal the ball by reaching low are strengths.
Variations and similar games
Variations of basketball are activities based on the game of basketball, using common basketball skills and equipment (primarily the ball and basket). Other variations include children's games, contests or activities meant to help players reinforce skills. Most of the variations are played in informal settings without referees or strict rules.
Perhaps the single most common variation is the half court game. Only one basket is used, and the ball must be "cleared" - passed or dribbled outside the half-court or three-point line - each time possession of the ball changes from one team to the other. Half-court games require less cardiovascular stamina, since players need not run back and forth a full court. Half-court games also raise the number of players that can use a court, an important benefit when many players want to play.
A popular version of the half-court game is 21. When a shot is missed, if one of the other players tips the ball in while it is in the air, the score of the player who missed the shot goes back to zero, or if they have reached 15, their score goes back to 15. a variation in which two players will use only a small section of the court (often no more than a quarter of a court) and compete to play the ball into a single hoop. Such games tend to emphasize individual dribbling and ball stealing skills over shooting and team play.
Outdoor basketball courts are commonly referred to as "blacktop", a reference to the asphalt surface used on many outdoor recreation grounds.
Basketball Organizations/Leagues
nba.com National Basketball Association wnba.com Women's National Basketball Association fiba.com International Basketball Federation olympic.org Olympic BasketballBasketball Reference & Stats
basketball-reference.com basketball statsBasketball News, Resources, & plays Basketball at the Open Directory Project history-of-basketball.com history of basketball hoophall.com hall of fame ozref.com referee resources sacredhoops.com basketball rules Wikia has a wiki about: College Basketball Basketball at the Yahoo! Directory
| Men's Professional Basketball Leagues |
|---|
| National Basketball Association |
| American Developmental Leagues: American Basketball Association | World Basketball Association |
| Other North American Leagues: Mexico | Paraguay |
User Comments Add a comment…