The History of Basketball and the Emergence of a Youth Base

Basketball was invented in 1891 by Dr. James Naismith, who was a physical education professor and instructor at the YMCA International Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts. Naismith was looking to liven the gym and keep it active during a rainy day when the members could not go outside to play. Naismith was looking for a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied in the proper levels of physical fitness during long New England Winters. Naismith first nailed a peach basket to a ten foot high elevated track. The basket still had its bottom intact, so each time the balls had to be removed manually. Basketball was first played with a soccer ball, but the first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, but it was not until the 1950s that the orange colored ball that is commonly used now was introduced. In the initial sport, dribbling was the only means of ball movement, there was no dribbling, as there is today. Dribbling became a large part of the game when the manufacturing of the ball created a more round-shaped ball as opposed to the asymmetrical ball that had been used prior to that time.

The backboard was first introduced to decrease interference from the balcony on which the basket was nailed. The effect it had was introducing rebound shots.The first official basketball game was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Albany, New York on January 20, 1892 with nine players. Basketball spread once it was introduced at YMCAs across the United States and Canada. Although the YMCA was the first to establish it, it was also the first to condemn it because of its rough action and hostile crowds. However, other amateur clubs and colleges quickly adopted it, and basketball continued to grow. The first professional league, called the National Basketball League, was formed in 1898 to protect players from being exploited and to encourage a less rough game. Naismith himself brought the game to the college landscape, and coached at the University of Kansas for six years.

Basketball has grown as a youth sport as well, with players competing at all levels of youth play, from youth leagues, to AAU team to high school. Since its birth, basketball has enjoyed great popularity among American youths. Basketball uniforms have changed throughout the years, with uniforms today looking dramatically different than what they looked like years before. Socks are arguably the most popular and defined part of a basketball uniform. Many children look for unique basketball socks, and can find them on online retailers for an agreeable price.