1.2 BASKETBALL 7 7 YMCA, acronym for Young Men s Christian Association, was an organisation which promoted young male adults well-being, mainly in the fields of health and education. In these early games at Springfield college, the ball was retrieved by a janitor, who used a ladder to get the ball out of the basket. The origins of basketball The first evidence of a game in which a ball had to be thrown against a target made of twigs fixed on a pole, dates back to 1591. However, the game of basketball as it is known today was created by James Naismith in 1891. Naismith, who was a PE teacher at Springfield College in Massachusetts, was asked by the local YMCA director to create an indoor sports game which could help athletes keep fit during the winter months with the least possible risk of injury. The first basketball game was played by Naismith s class of eighteen students, divided in two teams of nine players. For this new game, Naismith had devised a set of thirteen rules: the aim of the game was to throw a soccer ball into fruit baskets nailed to the gym balcony. Every time a point was scored, the game was stopped to retrieve the ball from the basket. After that, the first public basketball game was played in Springfield in 1892 . leagues 20 tO PlaY Michael Jordan THE ORIGINS OF BASKETBALL College basket janitor: collaboratore scolastico ladder: scala tie: pareggio twig: ramoscello Every team you play for, you meet new friends. - Jonas Never say never because limits, like fears, Valanciunas are often just illusions. American colleges had an important role in spreading basketball all over the USA. The earliest games between college teams took place in 1895; in 1897 the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) was founded to manage college basketball activity. In April 1905, the representatives of fifteen colleges created the Basket Ball Rule Committee, which became the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 1909; the popular NCAA men s basketball tournament started in 1939. Professional basketball The first professional league, called the National Basketball League, was founded in 1898 but soon dismissed in 1904. After that, new basketball leagues were established: the Eastern Basketball League, founded in 1909, the Metropolitan Basketball League, established in 1921, and the American Basketball League, founded in 1925. In 1946, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was founded and finally adopted the name National Basketball Association (NBA) three years later. As of early 21st century, the NBA is the most significant professional basketball league in the world.