From Peach Baskets to Global Phenomenon: The Evolution of Basketball
One basket one ball everyone knows how to play basketball however very few people know this man and very few people know the story behind the invention of this sport discover how and why James Naismith invented basketball dunks three-point shots crossover today all these aspects of the game seem natural but when basketball was invented they weren't part of it at all and to truly understand the origins of this sport you have to go back to the 19th century.
Winter of 1891 in Springfield Massachusetts that's when James Naismith invented what would become one of the most lucrative sports at the time he was a 30-year-old Canadian who'd just become a gym teacher this profession was so much more than a job for him because in his younger days, he did gymnastics football and lacrosse he was teaching at Springfield collage a YMCA which had the aim of developing autonomy direction and responsibility in young people.
But in 1891 Massachusetts had one of the worst winters in its history a deadly blizzard stopped all outdoor activities james naismith had to find an alternative for his students and asked him to invent something to entertain young people first he banned all contact sports to avoid injuries then the teacher remembered duck on a rock a Canadian game which he used to play as a child it was from that point on that his idea started to take shape he needed to find a sport where speed and skill took priority on December 21 1891 James hung two peach baskets from the rafters of the gym 10 feet high he formed two teams of nine player and give them an old football.
"I told them the idea was to throw the ball into the opposing team's peach basket I blew a whistle" and the first game of basketball began this first game finished with a score of one to nothing the idea completely won over James' student who decided to give the sport a name nae smit ball the teacher rejected and it was France Mahan the head of the class who decided to call it basketball because you needed a basket and a ball to play inspired sometimes it's the simple thing that works the best but the first game also only an outline of the sport James regretted there being so few rules when he created it that was my big mistake the boys began tacking kicking punching and clinching.
One boy was knocked out several of them with black eyes and one had a dislocated shoulder after that first match I was afraid they'd kill each other so Nate Smith decided to establish the 13 original rules of basketball the most important being that a player is banned from running with the ball in their hands and that physical contact I not allowed thanks to these rules basketball became a very clean and organized sport years later basketball was being played across the entire country and James Naismith's crowning moment came in 1936.
His sport was included in the Berlin Olympic Games who would have been through this when he was hanging baskets in his gym in New England but this was just the start of an even greater story years after its creation the sport continued to evolve lines were added to the court rules were modified and new ones created then basketball took a new dimension when the first dunks happened from them on the simple passing games also became spectacular the players got taller and taller not everyone could become a professional player but rarity also leads to amazing things many talents revolutionized the game even further firstly wilt chamberlain and bill Russell.
But before the 1990s basketball was still very American when Michael jorden arrived he completely changed the face of the sport his impact can't just be summed up by kids who wanted to be like Mike in this time basketball became a real business with the NBA as the ultimate model of success today basketball is one of the most played sports in the world the NBA is one of the most lucrative sports leagues in the world lebron james kevin durant stephen curry there are more stars that ever real icons James naismith could have never imagined all of this when he created his sport but 130 years later we have to thank him for changing history and bringing one of the greatest sports the world has ever known into ours.
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