Everything started back at the end of 19th century, between 1891 and 1892 at International YMCA Training School that was in Springfield. The group of college students wanted to participate in indoor activities with the idea to burn the energy off after the end of football season.
Since it was winter, they could not workout outside, and they had various activities such as apparatus work, calisthenics, and marching, but that was not appealing to most of them especially when compared with football excitement that went throughout the year.
That is the main reason why they invented the game we call basketball today. Even though we live in the time where most people are checking NBA basketball picks history, you should have in mind that from the very beginning the sport was a part of a few enthusiasts that wanted to let the steam off.
Finally, it became multi-billion dollars industry, but it was not like that from the very beginning. Also, we are here to present you what happened back then:
The Inventor of Basketball – James Naismith
The coach and instructor of that particular class were James Naismith, who graduated in Montreal with a theology degree, and enjoyed sports such as athletics. He got back in Springfield with the idea to study physical education, which was a new academic discipline.
When he looked at his class during the winter we have mentioned above; he got an idea that later became something that we call basketball today. He introduced the new approach such as the psychology of play, and during the class discussion, he wanted to create and implement a new indoor game that would be simple to learn, interesting and easy to play during the cold winter hours.
Since the energy of students got to the uncontrollable point, he had to come up with something that would take the energy out of them and provide them enjoyment at the same time. He wanted to motivate the young men, and he thought the best way to do it is to create something that will provide them recreation but also increase their instincts.
Therefore, he started thinking about a new approach, a new game that would be simple to assimilate, but with the complex moments so that interest could rise along the way. The idea was that it should be played outdoors on any ground, and a large number of people would play at once.
Check this particular website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Naismith if you want to learn more on James Naismith the inventor of basketball.
It had to provide the exercise that will affect the energy levels of students, but without the harshness of rugby, soccer, and football, because accidents in indoor areas would end up badly for students.
He started to combine different sports and techniques from rugby such as jump ball, soccer such as size and shape of ball, lacrosse that used goals and game called duck on a rock. Finally, he decides to approach the school janitor and found two 18-inch square boxes that he could use as goals.
However, a janitor found two peach baskets instead, and Naismith decided to nail them to the gymnasium balcony, one at each end. The height of the balcony rail was ten feet, and one man on each side had to pick the ball from it to let it back in the play. A few years after, he decided to cut the bottoms so that ball could fall loose, which increased the pace of the game.
He created 13 essential rules that were described in his book, and it included the method of moving the ball and other things such as how to constitute a foul. Since the rules became a vital part of this particular game, he had to appoint a referee, and the game had to be divided into two 15 minutes halftimes with five minutes rest in between.
He typed the rules on bulletin board, and as soon as the class met afterward, the college students created a team with three centers, three guards and three forwards per side. Since centers met at the midcourt, similarly as today, Naismith decided to toss a ball in the air.
That was the first moment when basketball was born, and the rest is history.
