Basketball: Then and now

Basketball is usually considered an American sport, but it was actually invented by a Canadian churchman called James Naismith.

He wanted to create a game that could be played indoors during the winter, as a way of keeping his students at the YMCA in shape.

Today, Basketball is played worldwide, with players from more than 30 countries strutting their stuff in the American National Basketball Association (NBA) - the world’s leading professional league.

How to play – and win

At the Olympic Games, Basketball is played on an indoor court by two teams of five players.

The aim is to score points by shooting the ball into your net (or ‘basket’), which sits on a backboard 3.05 metres (10 feet) above floor level.

The players move the ball around the court by bouncing it along the floor and throwing it to one another. Games consist of four 10-minute quarters with teams changing ends at half-time.

Basketball at the Games

The US men’s team has dominated Olympic Basketball.

For 36 years after Basketball entered the Games as a full medal sport at Berlin 1936, the question was always who would win silver.

Then, at Munich 1972, the Soviet Union won a tight gold medal match, beginning a rivalry that lasted until Barcelona 1992.

At Barcelona, professional players took part for the first time, and an all-star NBA ‘Dream Team’ won gold.

Women’s Basketball – first held at the Games in Montreal 1976 – has not been so one-sided, although the United States and Russia still dominate.

Facts about Basketball

• The original Basketball hoops were not bottomless nets, but peach baskets with bottoms. An official had to use a ladder to retrieve the ball after every score.
• There was an exhibition Basketball tournament at the St Louis 1904 Olympic Games, but only a few American club teams competed.
• In Berlin 1936, the first official Olympic Basketball tournament was held outdoors on courts made of sand that turned to mud in the rain.
• The tallest player in modern Basketball is Yao Ming of China, who stands at a massive 7’6” (2.29m).
• The modern basketball is 24cm in diameter, while the hoop has a diameter of 46cm.

Jargon buster

• Slam dunk: When a player jumps to the level of the basket and slams the ball down into the net with one or both hands.
• Downtown: The area outside the ‘three point’ semi-circle.
• Time-out: A one-minute break, called by the coach to talk tactics.
• Live ball: A ball in play.
• Assist: A pass that leads directly to a basket scored by a teammate.

Get involved

Most players get their first taste of the sport in the park or school playground with friends. Use the Active Places site to find a court near you.

If you want to join a club contact England Basketball, Basketball Scotland or Basketball Wales who also run grassroots schemes to help people get started in Basketball (see 'releated websites').