Dr. Naismith,
with all of his imaginative planning, could not have dreamed his "Peach
Basket" game would develop into the world's greatest indoor sport. Although
the original 13 rules have been expanded to over 100, the spirit and
principles of the original rules are still in effect in today. Major rule
changes over the years addressed the number of players, the court
boundaries, dribbling, and the elimination of the center jump after made
baskets. first basketball games were played with soccer balls. However, they proved to be unsuitable for
dribbling and ball handling. The first manufactured basketballs were
produced in 1894 by a bicycle manufacturing 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. Because of their inability to
maintain their shape and their laces, these early brown leather basketballs
were hard to dribble. In 1929 basketballs were re-designed for more bounce
and with concealed laces which eliminated erratic bounces. The balls were
bigger, lighter and easier to handle. In 1942 molded basketballs that
maintained a constant shape and size replaced the stitched balls. In 1967
the American Basketball Association (ABA) played with a red, white and blue
basketball. Today, the WNBA and FIBA use contrasting panels. The men's ball
is 30" in circumference and the smaller women's ball is 29" in
circumference. Most official basketballs have been changed color from brown
to orange so that the ball can be more appealing and more noticeable to
spectators.
with all of his imaginative planning, could not have dreamed his "Peach
Basket" game would develop into the world's greatest indoor sport. Although
the original 13 rules have been expanded to over 100, the spirit and
principles of the original rules are still in effect in today. Major rule
changes over the years addressed the number of players, the court
boundaries, dribbling, and the elimination of the center jump after made
baskets. first basketball games were played with soccer balls. However, they proved to be unsuitable for
dribbling and ball handling. The first manufactured basketballs were
produced in 1894 by a bicycle manufacturing 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. Because of their inability to
maintain their shape and their laces, these early brown leather basketballs
were hard to dribble. In 1929 basketballs were re-designed for more bounce
and with concealed laces which eliminated erratic bounces. The balls were
bigger, lighter and easier to handle. In 1942 molded basketballs that
maintained a constant shape and size replaced the stitched balls. In 1967
the American Basketball Association (ABA) played with a red, white and blue
basketball. Today, the WNBA and FIBA use contrasting panels. The men's ball
is 30" in circumference and the smaller women's ball is 29" in
circumference. Most official basketballs have been changed color from brown
to orange so that the ball can be more appealing and more noticeable to
spectators.