NORHAILAH M.

ALI
BA SOCIOLOGY
THE HISTORY OF BASKETBALL

The basketball game began in December 1891 by the name of James Nais
mith, a Canadian born man. Naismith was instructor at the Springfield, Massach
usetts YMCA training school. He had to train young men to become teachers at 
newly opened YMCA centres.
With the cold weather keeping the class indoors, in December 1891,
Naismith was asked by the schools Superintendent of Physical Education, Dr.
Luther. H. Gulick, to create an indoor game that would keep the young men
active during the cold winter months. With the help of his wife and memories of
playing ‘Duck on a Rock’ during his childhood, he decided to create a game
that would focus on skill rather than strength. The game he ended up inventing
is the game we all know and love today – basketball.  
Naismith was a 31-year old graduate student when he created the indoor
sport to keep athletes indoors during the winters. The game became established
fairly quickly and grew very popular as the 20th century progressed, first in
America and then in other parts of the world. After basketball became
established in American colleges, the professional game followed. The
American National Basketball Association (NBA), established in 1946, grew to
a multibillion-dollar enterprise by the end of the century, and basketball became
an integral part of American culture