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How it all started
The game of basketball, as we know it today was created by Dr. James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts to condition young athletes during the cold. It consisted of peach baskets and a soccer style ball. -
Basket
Originally, the game was played with peach baskets or 18” square boxes hung from the balconies. At this time the basket height was established at 10 feet, which still stands today. Obviously, the peach baskets and boxes slowed the game down since the ball had to be taken down after every shot with a ladder. The peach baskets were replaced first by heavy woven wire rims in 1892. Then, a year later, in 1893 cast iron rims were used. Open ended nylon nets were approved for use in 1912. -
Women's Basketball
Women’s basketball was introduced in 1893 by Sendra Berenson, a gymnastic instructor, at Smith College, Northampton, MA. No male spectators were allowed since it was socially unacceptable at the time. -
Team Size
After experimenting with teams up to 50 players, early games were primarily played by nine players on each side - the reason being that 18 students showed up for Naismith's class. In 1897 five players became the mandatory team size -
Fouls
Fouls were assessed for using a fist, traveling and physical contact (holding, pushing, tripping, or striking of an opponent). When a player committed two fouls they were disqualified until a goal was scored. For any flagrant fouls, just as today, players were disqualified for the whole game. When a team committed three consecutive fouls, without the opponent committing a foul, the opponent was awarded a goal -
Free Throw
When free throws were introduced in 1894 the free throw line was established at 21 feet from the basket. Anyone could shoot the free throws. This resulted in teams deploying specialized free throw shooters. A year later, in 1895, the free throw line was moved closer, to a distance of fifteen feet from the basket. In 1924, the free throw rule was amended which required the player who was fouled to shoot the free throws. -
Ball
The first basketball games were played with soccer balls. They were bad when you dribble. The first made basketballs were produced in 1894 by a bicycle company. In the late 1890's Spalding took over as the official ball maker. In 1905 the choice of basketballs was left up to the teams. In 1929 basketballs were re-designed for more bounce. -
Center Jump
In 1937 a center jump followed each successful basket. Teams with a good jumper had an advantage. Having a jump ball situation after every goal also slowed the game down considerably. Center jump still used today to start game and overtime periods. Alternating possession replaced jump balls in 1981. This was none to eliminate the multiple violations that were occurring on jump balls and officials inconsistency of tossing the ball up. -
Backboard
Wire mesh backboards were introduced in 1895 to prevent spectators in the balconies from interfering with play. Wood replaced the easily dented wire mesh backboards in 1904, and plate glass backboard usage was approved in 1909. Backboards were mounted flat against walls. In 1916 to prevent players from running up the walls for easy lay-ups, a two foot gap was between the backboard and the end line was required. In 1939 this gap was increased from 2 feet to the present 4 feet for more movement. -
Substitution
Initially, players were not allowed to re-enter the game. The rule was changed in 1920 to allow a player to re-enter the game one time. In 1934, the rule was expanded to allow players to re-enter the game twice, and, in 1945 the rule was finally changed to permit players to return to the game an unlimited number of times -
Coaching
In 1949 coaching during game was officially allowed. Prior to this time, believe it or not, no coaching was allowed during the game or even during a timeout. However, coaching was allowed during half time. -
Scoring
Originally, a successful goal was counted as one point, and one point was also given to a team anytime three consecutive fouls were called on the opponent. Free throws were first introduced in 1894. Both a made field goal and a made free throw were counted as one goal. In 1896, rules were changed to count a made field goal as two points. In 1961 the short lived American Basketball League played with the three point shot.
