BASKETBALL
In 1891 , Dr. James A.Naismith , a physical education teacher at the YMCA school in Springfield , Massachusetts , in the United States was asked to create a game that could be played indoors during the harsh winters. So Naismith put up two baskets on opposite walls of the gymnasium and got his class of 18 students to play a game of “basketball. The team that dropped the ball into the basket more time won. At first a soccer ball was used , but in 1894 , it was decided that the ball should be” inches (81 centimeters) around and weight 17.6 ounces (500grams).
In spite of all the changes that have taken place since then in the game of basketball , the size of the ball has remained the same , but the weight has increased to 21 ounces (600 grams).
The baskets used in early games had the bottom in them , and after each goal , someone had to climb a ladder in order to get the ball out and put it back into play. In 1906 , open baskets were introduced , which allowed the ball to pass through , and as a result , the pace of the game became faster. In the beginning , no backborads were used either. Therefore , fans sitting behind the basket would push away the ball when the opponent was going to score. Also in the early days, each team was made up of nine players. It wasn’t until 1897 that the five – player team become official.