The founding father of basketball is Dr. James Naismith. James Naismith is one the two American sports inventors, along with William G. Morgan of volleyball. James Naismith was born November 6, 1861 in Ramsay Township, a small town near Almonte, Ontario, Canada. The basis of basketball was developed by Naismith's child-hood life activities at school. At school, James played a simple game known as "duck-on-a-rock." The game revolved around the attempt to knock a "duck" off the top of a large rock with throwing another rock at it.
James, being an orphan, lived with his aunt and uncle. He attended grade school at Bennies Corner, and graduated from high school in 1883 at Almonte High School. After high school, he attended McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where he became an accomplishable athlete for McGill in football, gymnastics, and soccer. James earned a Bachelor's Degree in Physical Education in 1888 and a Diploma from the Presbyterian College in Montreal in 1890. In 1891, James taught physical education, and was the first to become the McGill directors of athletics. But soon after, James left to Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, where he became a physical eduacation teacher at the YMCA International Training School.
In Springfield, was where basketball came to be. It was here that James was faced with a challenge, he was to create an indoor sport that would prove to be suitable for the students during the winter time and be played within a small area. So as to not create a sport that relied solely on strength, James developed a sport that required more skill and precision. The first basketball game was played with a soccer ball and peach baskets serving as goals. Basketball's popularity grew immensely and spread through YMCA'S in the east and flourished to the west in less than a year.
James moved to Colorado to become the Denver YMCA director in 1895. In 1898, James Naismith joined the University of Kansas faculty, serving as a physical education teacher and a chaplain. In Kansas was where Naismith resided for the rest of his life. While at the University of Kansas, Naismith coached the varsity team for eight seasons. In 1939, James Naismith died in Lawrence, Kansas. Naismith left behind a legacy that still flourishes and thrives today. Basketball is a sport that has revolutionized and concreted the foundation of being a supreme contender in aspects of being a spectator's sport. In honor of James Naismith, his book Basketball: Its Origins and Developments was published posthumously in 1941, and the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in Springfield was named after him in 1959.
There were 13 rules that James Naismith devised for the regulation of the game:
1.The ball may be thrown in any direction with one or both hands.
2.The ball may be batted in any direction with one or both hands, but never with the fist.
3.A player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for a man running at good speed.
4.The ball must be held in or between the hands. The arms or body must not be used for holding it.
5.No shouldering, holding, pushing, striking or tripping in any way of an opponent. The first infringement of this rule by any person shall count as a foul; the second shall disqualify him until the next goal is made or, if there was evident intent to injure the person, for the whole of the game. No substitution shall be allowed.
6.A foul is striking at the ball with the fist, violations of Rules 3 and 4 and such as described in Rule 5.
7.If either side make three consecutive fouls it shall count as a goal for the opponents (consecutive means without the opponents in the meantime making a foul).
8.Goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the ground into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edge and the opponents move the basket, it shall count as a goal.
9.When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field and played by the first person touching it. In case of dispute the umpire shall throw it straight into the field. The thrower-in is allowed five seconds. If he holds it longer, it shall go to the opponent. If any side persists in delaying the game, the umpire shall call a foul on them.
10.The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have the power to disqualify men according to Rule 5.
11.The referee shall be the judge of the ball and decide when it is in play in bounds, to which side it belongs, and shall keep the time. He shall decide when a goal has been made and keep account of the goals with any other duties that are usually performed by a referee.
12.The time shall be two 15-minute halves with five minutes' rest between.
13.The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winners.
Among various other facts, Naismith also graduated as a medical doctor. The sport of basketball was introduced at the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Naismith had been flown to Berlin to watch the games.
