The evolution of the rules of basketball, and the contributions made by players and teams of the NBA, since the start of the game, has formed basketball into the complex, exciting and popular game it is today.
The founding of basketball gave birth to the game fans would come to know and love. Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian physical education instructor from Springfield, Massachusetts, founded the game of basketball in 1891, when the head of the physical education department, Luther Gulick, asked him to create a team sport that could be played in the winter. So, he created a game he named basketball where the original object was to shoot a ball into a peach basket raised 10 feet from the ground.
Naismith's conception of basketball was embodied in 5 principles, stating that the ball had to be large, lightweight, and easily handled, and running with the ball would not be permitted. Also, there could be no restrictions upon any player's getting the ball at anytime, bodily contact was not permissible, and the goals had to be horizontal and elevated. This left the game to be open to the many changes that were soon to follow.
As the rules of basketball evolved, the complexity of the game increased making the game what it is today. Over the years, there have been changes in rules of game play and changes in the basket/court. The first modification was in 1893 when metal hoops with bags replaced the wooden peach baskets.
Just a year later, the backboard was introduced. It wasn't until 1913 that the metal hoops evolved into baskets with bottomless nets, which made it so players could play without having to retrieve the ball out of the basket every time someone scored. The evolution of the rules seemed to be at a standstill until 1932 when the 10-second rule was adopted. The 10-second rule stated that the offensive team had to advance the ball across the division line (the half court line) in 10 seconds or the ball would be turned over to the other team.
In 1935, another rule penalizing delay stated that any offensive player could not stand in the free throw lane for more than three seconds or they would again lose possession. Two years later, in 1937, the center jump, which is when the referee throws the ball up into the air and the centers tip it back to one of their team mates in order to claim possession, was eliminated after every basket. Instead, the ball was put back into play by the team scored on from out of bounds where the other team scored.
Also, in that same year defensive players were prohibited from touching the rim when the ball was above the basket, a rule that would later evolve into the rule against goaltending in 1944, when a player blocks the ball when it is above the basket, interfering with the descent of the ball, and thus giving the opposing team two points. Also in "44, all restrictions on a player"s re-entering the game were abolished. Additionally, in 1948, coaches were allowed to consult with their players during time outs.
And finally in 1955, the foul lane was change from six feet to twelve feet, which resulted in more offensive movement and less physical contact. While these are not all the rules that have evolved since the start of basketball, they are rules that set the foundation of modern basketball today and are what make basketball the complex sport that it is.
The contributions made by basketball players allowed for the game of basketball to evolve into the exciting game it is today, and broadened the horizons for athletes to come. In its early years, basketball had little scoring with two basic shots: the lay-up and the two-handed set shot. That is until Hank Luisetti from Stanford invented the one-hand shot in 1938, a shot more difficult to defend.
But it didn't stop there because in 1946, Joe Fulks of the Philly Warriors invented the jump shot. It became the most popular shot in basketball because it greatly increased scoring (World Book Reference Online). These two developments in the game of basketball gave way to superstars that will always be remembered as greats. One such player was 1970s phenomenon, Nate Archibald, considered the most exciting “little man (6'1, 150 lbs.) to play the game of basketball”. Nicknamed Little Big Man, Archibald became an immediate starter for the Kansas City-Omaha Kings, averaging 16 points a game. Later in his career, he lead the league in scoring with 34.9 points per game and 11.4 assists per game, a feat yet to be accomplished by any other NBA player.
But Archibald was a star among stars. Julius Erving, better known as Dr. J, became known for his spectacular shots and jumping ability. However, what truly set him above the rest was his famous finger roll, “a drive to the basket in which he scoop[ed] the ball underhanded toward the basket and ladle[d] it into the net”. During the next twenty years, basketball experienced the greatest players ever seen such as the graceful Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the scoring genius Wilt Chamberlain, the magical Magic Johnson, and the silent-but-deadly Larry Bird.
