Basketball is a game played between two teams, typically of five players each, on a rectangular court. Each team tries to score by shooting, laying up, or dunking the ball through the opponent’s goal, an elevated horizontal hoop and net called a basket.
Basketball was invented by James Naismith on December 21, 1891, at the International Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) Training School, Springfield, Massachusetts, where Naismith was an instructor in physical education. Basketball is the only major sport strictly of U.S. origin (although Naismith was born in Canada).
Basketball is a dynamic sport that builds stamina from the short sprints required of running up and down the length of the court. Movements distinct to basketball, such as jumping to take a shot or to grab a rebound, require frequent muscle contractions, which can build muscular endurance.
Additional weight training is recommended for basketball players in order to improve their performance on the court.
The success of international basketball was greatly advanced by the inclusion of men’s basketball in the Olympic Games beginning in 1936. Basketball has caught on particularly well in Italy, and Spain has several basketball leagues. The other major center of European basketball is eastern Europe, particularly in the Balkans.
Basketball is a dynamic team sport played by two teams, usually with five players each, on a rectangular court. The objective is to score points by shooting a ball through the opponent's basket, which is a hoop with a net.