doodlebasketball

HOW THE GAME BEGAN

From peach baskets
to the modern game.

Basketball began with 18 students, a soccer ball and two baskets meant for fruit.

It was invented on purpose, for a winter gym class, in December 1891. Its first 13 rules fitted on two typed pages, and several still shape the game you can watch today. Here is the story, and how the rules have changed, in plain English.

Plain English, with the sources linked.

Questions this page answers

A slatted wooden peach basket and a worn brown leather ball on a sunlit maple gymnasium floor
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

1891 13 rules

  • Two peach baskets
  • Thirteen rules
  • Five a side
  • Still no running with the ball

THE SHORT STORY

One winter, one gym.

A new indoor game for a school in Springfield,
Massachusetts, now played worldwide.

DECEMBER 1891

A game for a gym class

On 21 December 1891, 18 students at the YMCA Training School played the first game: nine against nine, aiming a soccer ball at two peach baskets.

The first facts

13 RULES

The rules, then and now

No running with the ball, two 15-minute halves, and out after a second foul. Some rules changed a lot; one barely changed at all.

Compare them

TODAY

The modern game

Five a side on a 28 by 15 metre court, four 10-minute quarters and 24 seconds to shoot, under FIBA’s rules.

The modern numbers

THEN AND NOW

1891 or today:
how did the rule change?

Pick a part of the game to compare Naismith’s original 13 rules with FIBA’s Official Basketball Rules 2024.

Then and now

Choose a part of the game
18919 a side

The first game, on 21 December 1891, had two teams of nine. FIBA rules today: two teams of five players each.

18912 × 15 min

Naismith set two 15-minute halves with five minutes’ rest. Today’s FIBA game is four quarters of 10 minutes, with a 24-second shot clock.

18911 goal

A goal counted when the ball was thrown or batted into the basket and stayed there. Today a free throw counts 1, a field goal 2, and 3 from beyond the 6.75 m arc.

1891No running

Rule 3 said a player cannot run with the ball. Moving with it by dribbling is allowed now; running with it is still a violation, called travelling.

18912nd foul: out

A second foul once put a player out until the next goal, with no substitute. Today a player who commits 5 fouls must leave the game.

Sources: Naismith’s rules via NFHS; FIBA Official Basketball Rules 2024.

FIBA rules govern international games. Leagues such as the NBA use their own rule books, with some differences in timing and distances.

THE GAME, IN TWO NUMBERS

Fewer players,
faster game.

Two ways the modern game differs
from the one played in 1891.

9 then → 5 now

Players per team

The first game had two teams of nine. Today’s FIBA rules set two teams of five on a court 28 metres long and 15 metres wide.

PLAYERS ON COURT

24 seconds

Time to attempt a shot

Naismith’s rules set two 15-minute halves. Under today’s FIBA rules, a team that gains control of the ball must attempt a shot within 24 seconds.

THE CLOCK

One rule has survived almost unchanged: Naismith’s rule 3 said a player cannot run with the ball. Today that is called travelling.

WATCH A GAME

Four things to
watch for.

  • Count the shot clock

    Watch the clock above the basket. The attacking team has 24 seconds to shoot, which keeps the game moving.

  • Spot the arc

    Shots released from beyond the curved line, 6.75 metres from the basket in FIBA games, count 3 points instead of 2.

  • Watch the feet

    A player holding the ball cannot run with it. Look for the dribble, and listen for the whistle when someone travels.

  • Keep an eye on fouls

    Each player can commit 5 fouls before leaving the game, so coaches often rest a player who is close to that limit.

Two hands holding an orange ball with fingertips spread along its dark seams
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

BASKETBALL FACTS

Five things worth
knowing.

An orange ball resting on a polished hardwood court beside a painted line, with a hoop and net softly blurred behind
AI-generated image, not a photograph of a real person or place.

  1. It started with fruit baskets

    The first goals were wooden peach baskets with closed bottoms, so someone had to fetch the ball out after every score. Open baskets, metal rims and backboards came later.

  2. Thirteen rules on two pages

    The rules were published in the school newspaper on 15 January 1892. The original typed pages were bought at auction and donated to the University of Kansas, where they are on display.

  3. Women played within two years

    Senda Berenson adapted the game at Smith College. Freshmen played sophomores there in March 1893, in the first women’s college game, with no men allowed to watch.

  4. Eight countries founded FIBA

    Basketball’s world body was founded in Geneva on 18 June 1932 by eight national federations, including Argentina, Greece, Italy and Switzerland.

  5. Olympic sport since 1936

    After a demonstration in 1904, men’s basketball became an Olympic medal event in Berlin in 1936. The women’s event followed in Montreal in 1976.

QUICK QUESTIONS

Basketball, answered.

Short answers to the questions people ask most.

Who invented basketball, and when?

James Naismith, a teacher at the YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts. The first game was played there on 21 December 1891 by 18 students, in two teams of nine.

Why is it called basketball?

Because the first goals were wooden peach baskets. They had closed bottoms, so the ball had to be fetched out by hand after every score. Open-bottomed baskets, metal rims and backboards came later.

How many rules did the first game have?

Thirteen. They covered fouls, timing, scoring and the referee’s duties, and were published in the school newspaper on 15 January 1892. The original typed rules are now held by the University of Kansas.

How long is a basketball game today?

Under FIBA rules, a game is four quarters of 10 minutes each. The attacking team must also attempt a shot within 24 seconds of gaining control of the ball.

When did women start playing basketball?

Within two years. Senda Berenson adapted the game at Smith College, where freshmen played sophomores in March 1893, in the first women’s college game. Women’s basketball joined the Olympics in 1976.

Sources

Where the facts come from

  1. December 2024: the invention of basketballUS Census Bureau
  2. The original rules of basketball: how little they have changedNFHS
  3. The original rules of basketballUniversity of Kansas
  4. Official Basketball Rules 2024FIBA
  5. The 8 founding federations (1932)FIBA Hall of Fame
  6. Senda Berenson and the first women’s college game (1893)Jewish Women’s Archive

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