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The
History of basketball, a game that started with 18 men in a YMCA gymnasium
in Springfield, Mass., has grown into a game that more than 300 million
people play worldwide. The man who created this instantly successful
sport was James Naismith.
The new game was initially explained by 13 basic rules and was played with a soccer ball, peach baskets and nine to a side. There have been major changes to the game since that first contest, which is believed to have been played Dec. 21, 1891.
But perhaps what is most amazing about Naismith's creation, other than the fact that few sports that are purposely invented actually stand the test of time, is that the essence of basketball-throwing a ball into an elevated goal-has remained the focus from day one.
But
if Naismith's invention did not lead to profit, it did lead to huge
popularity for basketball. Even in the final years of the 19th century,
with communication and transportation that was primitive by today's
standards, the game's growth was palpable, immediate and widespread.
James Naismith had changed the face of sport, not so much for the
19th century, but the 20th, and it is now clear, the 21st. All in
an effort to keep unruly students at bay. |
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