In 1891, James Naismith decided to try to invent a new sport. Because he played rugby, he made rules so that no rough playing was involved. 

He worked as a physical education  teacher in Massachusetts for the Y.M.C.A. organization. Mr. Naismith asked the janitor to put up two peach baskets. The janitor put them on the balcony of the gym. They used a soccer ball in their first basketball game. When Mr. Naismith decided it would take too long for the janitor to get the ladder and get the balls down, he cut a hole in the peach baskets so that the ball would fall down and the game would move faster. Then he decided to make them into metal baskets instead of peach baskets, so they would have a smaller chance of breaking. Then they attached a net to the metal. The fans had a problem interfering with the shots, so a backboard was invented. A little while later, they invented slightly bigger balls with leather coverings. Mr. Naismith called them basketballs.  

Rules of the Game

To start the game, a referee tosses up a basketball and one  player from each team tries to tap the ball with one hand to a teammate.

When the player gets the ball he has a choice either to shoot, pass, or dribble. The dribble comes to a stop when a player touches the ball with two hands. If the player decides to pass the player can either pass the ball with their hands, roll the ball, or bounce the ball to a teammate.

Players keep playing if the ball stays in bounds. When the opposite team score the other team throws in the ball from under the opponents basket. If a player makes a free throw it is worth 1 point, if a player makes a field goal it is worth 2 points, if a player makes a 3 point field goal it is worth 3 points. There are 2 different types of fouls. A. fouls and B. violations. The violation that happens more often is called a traveling violation. A travel is where a player walks around on the court without dribbling, or shooting, or passing. Goaltending is another violation. It is where a player contests a shot when the ball is already coming down towards the basket. Almost all fouls or violations are rewarded to the opposite team.

Since James Naismith wanted this sport to be a no contact, so pushing, pulling, tripping, charging, or holding are against the rules. If the referee calls a foul the other team is rewarded with either foul shots or the ball. If a player makes a free throw it is worth 1 point. If someone fouls you while you are shooting you could get two free throws if you miss the shot or one free throw if you made your shot. When a high school or college player gets 5 fouls they are called out of the game. When a N.B.A. player gets 6 fouls they are called out of the game. When a player gets a foul the whole team gets the foul. When the team gets more than 4 fouls in a quarter the opposite team is rewarded extra free throws.