Keansburg Youth Association

The 13 Original Rules of Basketball

The ball may be thrown in any direction with one or both hands.
The ball may be batted in any direction with one or both hands (never with the fist).
A player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for a man who catches the ball when running at a good speed if he tries to stop.
The ball must be held in or between the hands; the arms or body must not be used for holding it.
No shouldering, holding, pushing, tripping, or striking in any way the person of an opponent shall be allowed; the first infringement of this rule by any player shall count as a foul, the second shall disqualify him until the next goal is made, or, if there was evident intent to injure the person, for the whole of the game, no substitute allowed.
A foul is striking at the ball with the fist, violation of Rules 3,4, and such as described in Rule 5.
If either side makes three consecutive fouls, it shall count a goal for the opponents (consecutive means without the opponents in the mean time making a foul).
A goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the grounds into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edges, and the opponent moves the basket, it shall count as a goal.
When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field of play by the person first touching it. In case of a dispute, the umpire shall throw it straight into the field. The thrower-in is allowed five seconds; if he holds it longer, it shall go to the opponent. If any side persists in delaying the game, the umpire shall call a foul on that side.
The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have power to disqualify men according to Rule 5.
The referee shall be judge of the ball and shall decide when the ball is in play, in bounds, to which side it belongs, and shall keep the time. He shall decide when a goal has been made, and keep account of the goals with any other duties that are usually performed by a referee.
The time shall be two 15-minute halves, with five minutes' rest between.
The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winner. In case of a draw, the game may, by agreement of the captains, be continued until another goal is made.

Dr. James Naismith came up with an idea for a different kind of sport in 1891 called basketball. Originally it was referred to as netball, but today has become one of the greatest sports ever. Mr. Naismith was a professor at Springfield College and was struggling with a concept for a new type of game to condition young students during the winter months after football had ended and the track and baseball seasons were still several months away. Gym classes at that time tended to be regimented calisthenics, gymnastics and drills, and the students were restless for active games they could play indoors.

During a temporary teaching assignment of a gym class of 18 bored and restless young men, Naismith conceived of a way to play within the confines of a gymnasium and without the natural roughness of outdoor games such as football and rugby. In addition to borrowing elements from lacrosse, rugby and football, Naismith recalled "duck on the rock" a childhood game from his native Canada, which gave him the idea of tossing a ball in an arc toward the goal. To keep the game from becoming too rough, he required that the player with the ball either dribble it in order to run or take only one stride before passing to a teammate.

On the last day of his teaching assignment, Naismith selected a soccer ball for his new game and asked the janitor Pop Stebbins if he had any wooden boxes to be used as goals. The janitor offered him two peach baskets he had in the storeroom, which Naismith accepted. After hammering the goals into place and asking the department secretary to type up his 13 rules of the game, Naismith organized his class into two groups of nine men each. The janitor was on hand with his stepladder to retrieve the one ball that was successfully tossed into the basket during the game that day.

Eventually, one of the students suggested they call the game "Naismith ball." Naismith laughed and said that such a name would kill the game. The student then suggested "basketball" to which Naismith agreed.

On that December day in 1891, as the first game of basketball was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Springfield, Naismith not only discovered the solution to his problem of keeping student-athletes in condition during the winter months, but also created what has become one of the most popular team sports in the world today.

Naismith was a true believer in the YMCA ideal of emphasizing both spiritual and physical development. He also believed that girls as well as boys could benefit from playing the game of basketball. When a group of grade school teachers asked Naismith shortly after the invention of the game about its suitability for girls, he encouraged them to organize a girls team and offered the use of the gym. Indeed, during his courtship of his future wife, Maude Sherman, he encouraged her to play, and when the first girl's basketball tournament was held in March of 1892 at the "Y," Maude was among the players.

On top of inventing the game, he also was admitted to the Springfield Basketball Hall of Fame, which none the less was also named after him. Basketball has come a long way since Mr. Naismith, but it wouldn't have been possible without him.