How Did Basketball Change Throughout The Great Gatsby

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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

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