Lucas Guadagno Ms. Sachs English 11 19 April 2024. Basketball: From High School Gymnasium to an International Favorite. Basketball, the fast paced and action packed sport of American roots, is a sport loved by millions of people from around the world. From the beginnings at the YMCA in 1891 using a soccer ball and two half bushel peach baskets, basketball has had some dramatic alterations to its rulebook and made tremendous gains in popularity since the 1920s, when The Great Gatsby took place. Basketball has not only simply made changes to its rules, and regulations, but has also culturally influenced the world off the court with its diverse evolution throughout the last century. First, Basketball in the 1920s and The Great Gatsby are both …show more content…
In the 1920s, people had time to spare due to the influx of wealth, and while some threw huge prohibition-era parties, others indulged in basketball and even began to form professional leagues. Both the increase in popularity of basketball and the chaotic parties Gatsby threw show the success the country was having economically during the twenties. Moving on, basketball has humble origins, and not much thought was put into its original creation. In 1891, James Naismith created the game of basketball using makeshift equipment he found laying around his classroom: half bushel peach baskets and a soccer ball. Naismith made use of literal trash laying around, showing the modest roots of basketball. (“Early Basketball”). Also, Naismith, a Canadian man teaching gym classes at a YMCA, came up with the game of basketball after not having anything planned for a gym class (Basketball). This is quite amazing, as Naismith’s attempt to appease a class of highschoolers would continue to evolve over the next 120+ years and eventually become a major sport worldwide, influencing different cultures from …show more content…
Nowadays, courts are of a rectangle shape and are 94 feet long and 50 feet long (Toole). This shows the change and regulation of basketball courts, as obstructions would cause a less fluid and unfair game for players. Also, the uniforms of players in leagues have dramatically changed since the early days of professional basketball. Players are required to wear “...one of three styles of uniforms: knee length football trousers; jersey tights... or short padded pants... plus knee guards.”(Basketball). Nowadays, players are required to wear a jersey (with their last name on it), shorts slightly above the knee, an undershirt tucked into their shorts, and approved sneakers of the player's choice. Use of spandex arm/leg coverings, glasses (prescription only), and sweatbands are also permitted. The uniforms of players have changed dramatically as the game has evolved, and rule changes like these show the differences in regulations throughout the decades of basketball. Finally, the professionalization and development of organized basketball led the way into modern day basketball. For example, the NBL (National Basketball League) was the first professional basketball league, formed in 1898. It differed from college level
Since its creation in 1893, the sport of basketball has been one of the most popular sports in the United States. One wouldn’t have to search long to find a basketball court and a pickup game in most American cities. Many people around the world look up to the stars of the National Basketball Association as role models.
In 1891 James Naismith created the game of basketball, this game started off as a game only man played. James Naismith was a Canadian P. E teacher and invented the game for his students during the winter. The game of basketball started in Massachusetts where Naismith invented the game and has now spread throughout the world. Not only did the sport start to pave its way, but so did women’s basketball. As time went on women’s basketball took off and became more popular with changes along the way.
Basketball is defined as a game where two teams of five play each on a rectangular court, usually indoors (Basketball/Sport). Basketball was invented by James Naismith on December 1, 1891 (Basketball/Sport). The object of basketball is to shoot the basketball through the opposing team’s basket and to out-score them by end of the regulation time limit. If the score is tied at this time, the game will go into overtime until one team wins. While reading about basketball, I found it interesting that when the sport was invented they would nail baskets to balconies with no backboards. This made it easy for spectators (in the balcony) to help their team by either swatting the
Status and prowess that inherently came from playing competitive sports and recreation also came out of convenience. As sports and recreation became integral in American everyday life, there was a problem in the north. It became too cold to play baseball and football outside, but it was wasn’t possible to play these sports inside as it just resulted in injuries to players and the facilities where they attempted to play them. Therefore, basketball was invented as a game where you couldn’t run with the ball and scoring was upright in hopes to decrease the amount of violence but also provide men with recreation in the winter. Soon, basketball just like cycling, football, prize fighting and baseball became a competitive sport and turned into a business where status and prowess become the significant. There were handbooks written to guide people to play and watch basketball and prove its status as a serious sport; “physical judgment is required and cultivated in handling the ball, receiving it from one of your own side, and eluding an opponents” (Naismith 5). Basketball, just like other sports required prowess, physical fitness and understanding of the game in order to defeat the
Before we plunge into the vast world of basketball, you need to understand where, and how America’s beloved sport began! The first official game of basketball was played in a cramped YMCA gymnasium in Albany, New York on January 20, 1892, but the concept was conceived in a small gym, back in 1891. A Canadian sports coach named James Naismith was in desperate search of a new sport to keep his gym active during rainy days, when he decided to nail a peach basket to his elevated track and write the basic rules for the game, however, he never knew that his new and simple pastime would soon rise to become one of the most highly regarded sports in America.
Many of us know of the fun game of basketball, the object of the game is to basically run up and down the court and shoot the ball, and block the other team when they try to score. Whichever team has the most points at the end of the game is the winner. According to Bran Faurschou’s article, “ NBA Hoops Online” Basketball was invented in 1891 by, Dr. James Naismith. He was a physical education instructor. Back then the game of basketball was a little bit different, It was the same concept but it was different. When Dr. James was working as the physical education instructor at the YMCA training school, he came up with the game of basketball as an activity for his
With five seconds left, the once psychotic crowd is now as silent as a lion stalking its prey. The clock starts and all that can be heard is the opposing team running down the court dribbling the ball to shoot the final shot. The clock sends of a high-pitched shout. The crowd shrieks for joy when the opposing team misses the shot and the crowds runs down to celebrate. Basketball was invented in 1891 by a Canadian Doctor named James Naismith and the fundamental still their games has change drastically ever since. Dr. James Naismith was a physical education professor at Young Men 's Christian Association Training School who wanted his kids to exercise inside on a rainy day that will achieve the proper level of fitness. He made a hoop a horizontal
On November 6, 1861 the great James Naismith was born in Ontario, Canada to Mr. and Mrs. John and Margaret Naismith. As a child James wasn’t very successful in school but excelled in physical activates, this triggered him to drop out of school and become a lumberjack. Soon after this he realized that he needed to turn his life around, so he went back to school to receive a degree in physical education. He later earned a job at a local YMCA in Springfield and was immediately put in task of finding a way to keep men in shape during the winter seasons. After many unsuccessful attempts he finally decided on a sport in which the players must throw a soccer ball into a peach basket on either side of the gymnasium. So on December 21, 1891 the newly formed game known as basketball had its first official game, the final score 1-0. As time passed different basketball leagues were formed the Basketball Association of America was founded in 1946 by owners of the major ice hockey arenas in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Canada. In 1949 the BAA joined another basketball league, the NBL, to create the currant league, the NBA. The NBA was a great success with many people. This success would led it to what it is today, a multi-billion dollar association known for consisting in a wide variety of elite athletes.
Basketball was created by a man named Dr. James Naismith. He created this game not for fun, but because Springfield College’s (then known as the International YMCA Training School) Physical Education class needed a new game to play.
Basketball was created as a sport in 1891 by James Naismith, and it quickly became popular among both men and women. It initially started with the same rules for each gender, but according to Patricia Cain in her article, “Women, Race, and Sports: Life Before Title IX,” the rules quickly changed for women. Cain (2001) states that, “Almost immediately, however, some educators began changing the rules of basket...
The game of basketball is a highly recognized and widely known sport. Basketball was first heard of in the winter of 1891 when a man by the name of James Naismith was told to instruct a physical education class at the Young Men’s Christian Association in Springfield, Massachusetts. Naismith was instructed to put together a game for young men to enjoy while they were at the YMCA. While trying to come up with a brilliant and fun game for these young men, Naismith reminisced back on his childhood in Canada. He remembered a game his friends and him had played all the time: “Duck on a Rock”, which involved trying to knock a large rock off a boulder by throwing smaller rocks at it. Naismith also remembered watching a game of rugby going on in the gymnasium. The game of Rugby involved tossing a ball into a box. After a very short time of trying to make up a game for these young men, Naismith came up with a brilliant idea. Little did he know the game that he came up with just so happened to be one of he most renowned sports in American history. Naismith’s idea pertained to nailing up raised boxes so that players could attempt to throw a ball in the basket. When there were no boxes too be found, he used peach baskets. Supposedly, Naismith came up with all the rules for this game in no more than “about an hour”, according to Alexander Wolff. Shortly after Naismith had invented the game of basketball, graduates of the YMCA traveled internationally which is the main reason as to why this sport is so widely known. The impact basketball has made on the lives of many Americans is incredible in the sense that it has given people the ability to ...
Have you ever watched a basketball game? Basketball is a great all-around sport that people love to watch and play.The professional level of basketball is extremely complicated, making it a great and fun sport. Starting from the early 1900’s and traveling all the way to the 21’st century, basketball has truly evolved from 8 teams to 30 and the NBA adding more rules each year.
Sports are often identified to have positive influences on many individuals. The sports industry is growing worldwide, especially the basketball industry, which is regarded in second place behind football. The global prevalence of basketball is unquestionable, especially among the young. Basketball is a dynamic team sport that involves a pattern of alternating, active, and skilled movement activities. There are compound demands that require a mixture of individual skills, team plays, strategies, and motivational aspects.
Can you imagine playing the game of basketball without a three point line? Basketball has constantly changed throughout history and continues to change today. The National Basketball Association has risen in popularity and is now one of America’s more popular sports. Because basketball continues to be a popular sport, a fan should learn about the origin of the NBA, how the game evolved from the late 1940s to the early 2000s, and how the players today impact the way it is played.
Sports, a very popular past time today, have been around since ancient times. Greek Olympic Games featured events from chariot races, javelin throws, to wrestling. In addition, a game similar to soccer was played in China by the second century BC. In England, a violent rugby type game was even played to settle feuds between villages. With the development of the industrial revolution and the creation of the first public schools, sports decreased in violence and were played more recreationally and constructively. Basketball was invented to help the youth in New England spend their energy in the winter months. Since the early 1900’s sports have been a key experience in the United States (“History of Sports”). I have played sports for many years, and the experience has helped me grow significantly as an individual.