Basketball

Basketball

A Game of Excitement Basketball is a game of excitement. Things change quickly during games. A few seconds left on the clock can be enough to turn a loss into a win. There is nothing more exciting than watching a player take a last-second shot far from the basket. In that moment, all eyes are on the ball. Everyone wonders if it will fly through the net, bounce off the rim, or be an " air ball" that misses completely.

Early Days Although basketball is now a global sport, it started small in 1891. Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian-born teacher in Massachusetts, was concerned about how to get his students to exercise enough during the cold winters. He set out to invent a sport that could be played indoors. After a few tries, he hit gold by nailing a peach basket up on the wall. He called his new sport basket ball.

Basketball quickly swept the country, becoming popular at schools. Part of the reason for its popularity was the ease with which it could be played. All you needed was a ball, a basket, and a court. Men's and women's basketball started in schools in 1892, and by the 1920s dozens of schools in the United States offered varsity high school basketball teams. Basketball remained mostly an American pastime until 1949, when the National Basketball Association (NBA) began. After the NBA formed, basketball became the major- league sport that it is today.

More Popular Than Ever In the United States, there are professional and amateur players of all different ages. The NBA has 30 teams. The WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) has 12 teams. There are 336 national college teams. Almost every high school has a basketball team. Basketball camps are available for younger students, and just about every park with a court has regular pickup games going.

Global Phenomenon While it is not yet as popular as soccer, the sport of basketball is growing around the world. The tipping point came in 1992 when the United States sent the “ Dream Team" to the Olympic Games. The Dream Team was the first Olympic team made up of NBA players. The whole world saw some of the greatest players ever win the gold medal.