BASKETBALL

History
Basketball was invented during the school year of 1891-92 at Springfield College in Springfield,
Massachusetts. Dr. James A. Naismith conceived the idea of attaching peach baskets at opposite ends of the
gym on the track that encircled the playing floor. This is where the height of 10 feet for the basket was
arrived at. Basketball derives its name from the original ball and basket used in the first games. The game
was introduced in YMCA’s across America and also to foreign countries. Basketball became part of the
Olympic Games in 1936.

Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball. The first balls made specifically for basketball were
brown, and it was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle, searching for a ball that would be more visible to
players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part
of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of
ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls.
Dribbling only became a major part of the game around the 1950s, as manufacturing improved the ball
shape.

Nature of the Game

Basketball is played by two teams of five players each. The object of the game is to score more points than
your opponent. The ball is passed, thrown, bounced, batted, or rolled from one player to another. A player
in possession of the ball must maintain contact with the floor with one foot (pivot foot), unless the player is
shooting, passing, or dribbling. Physical contact with an opponent can result in a foul if the contact impedes
the desired movement of the player.
Safety/Etiquette
1. Clear the gymnasium and immediate playing area of movable obstructions and cover
1. or pad those obstructions that cannot be moved.
2. No rough play or horseplay will be tolerated.
3. Be careful/aware of the walls during practice or play.
4. When possible make use of breakaway rims and pad the underside of the backboards.
5. No loose or hanging jewelry should be worn by competitors. Remove rings, bracelets
6. and wristwatches.
7. Only gym shoes with sufficient traction should be worn.
8. Always be alert of play, even if you are standing on the sidelines.
9. Whenever possible during the drills or game play, participants of common ability
10. levels should play against each other.
11. Good sportsmanship should be displayed by all.
12. Take periodic rest and water breaks.

Care of Equipment/Facilities
1. Balls are stored in portable bins and should be carefully returned to the bins at the end
1. of each period of use. Do not kick the basketballs or throw them from a distance
2. into the storage bins.
3. Balls should be checked often for proper inflation levels.
4. Do not sit on or throw the basketballs against the gym walls.
5. Do not hang on the rims or nets.
6. The playing floor should be swept and cleaned regularly.

Basic Rules
1. Players: Five players per team on the floor at a time with unlimited substitutions. Usually, players
fill the standard positions of 2 forwards, 2 guards, and 1 center. The names of
these may be changed depending on the offense played.

2. Offense: Team or individual patterns of play that are used to get the ball into scoring position. There
are two basic types of offensive attacks: the slow deliberate attack and the fast break attack.

3. Defense: Players may choose to play either a man-to-man defense (person to person) or zone. In
man to man each player is assigned a specific person to guard/play defense on. In a zone defense,
players are assigned a specified area to guard. The object of defense is to try to take the ball away
from your person or the person in your assigned zone area to force them to turn over the ball, or
force them to take a low percentage shot.

4. Scoring: Field Goals = 2 or 3 points. Free Throws = 1 point.

5. Timeouts: Timeouts are one minute or 30 seconds in length and can be requested during a dead ball
or anytime by the team in possession of the ball. Each team gets a total of five timeouts for the entire
game.

6. Timing:
 High school varsity games play 8-minute quarters.
 Time stops each time an official blows the whistle indicating a dead ball.
 There is one minute between quarters and 10 minutes at the half.
 A player has 10 seconds to shoot a free throw.
 A player has 5 seconds to inbound the ball.
 Running time is used in physical education and intramural situations. The clock
does not stop on dead balls.
 BASKETBALL

There are many variants of basketball, some play indoors and some outdoors, some play on larger grounds,
and some teams have more players. We can play the fun game on any flat surface but FIBA, the organizing
body has laid down some guidelines for a basketball court.

Court Design
A standard international basketball court is an indoor, rectangular court with dimensions 50 feet × 94 feet.

Courts at schools may be smaller. The court is divided into two symmetrical halves, one for each team.
Various markings are painted on the court. There’s a circle at the center, free throw semi circles, restricted
areas and three-point lines are marked on either side of the court. A no charge semi-circular area is marked
just below the basket.

The basketball court layout is rectangular in shape and is split in half by a mid-court line. There are 2
baskets, one located at each end of the court. The standard basketball rim is 10 feet off of the ground.

Equipment

Basketball is a simple game, it doesn’t require any equipment other than a hoop, a ball and a flat court.
Even two players can play and have fun with basketball.

Basket
A hoop or basket with net around its circumference and of 18-inch
diameter is firmly hung horizontally from a rectangular backboard
of 3.5 feet height and 6 feet width on either sides of the court. The
rim of the hoop is 10 feet above the ground. The backboard in
various international competitions is transparent for better visibility.
Ball
Basketball is an orange-colored and rough-textured spherical ball with black
contours usually made of leather or composite tough materials. The ball is
bounced continuously (dribbling), thrown through the air to other players
(passing), and towards the basket (shooting). So a typical basketball must be
very durable and easy to hold on to.

Other Equipment
There may be some more equipment for convenience.
 Some international courts have a game clock that makes a beep at the end of each period.
Some also show the shot clock countdown.
 Sometimes, the back boards have bordering lights that light up and indicate that a period is
about to end.
Starting Play

Teams are assigned a basket at which to shoot for the first half, and they switch ends at half-time. The game
begins with a jump ball at center court between one player from each team. Other players line up in
alternating fashion around the center circle. Once the ball is touched by either player, the game begins.

The team in possession of the ball is on offense and takes the ball toward their basket to score
against their opponent who is on defense.

Fundamentals
The fundamental skills involved in the game, include:

1. Dribbling - advancing the ball up the court by bouncing it with one hand.
2. Passing and catching - moving the ball around the court by throwing it to teammates.
3. Shooting - putting the ball through the hoop.
4. Rebounding - gaining possession of the ball from a missed shot that bounces off the backboard or
rim.
5. Jumping - an important skill used in rebounding, shooting, and blocking shots.
6. Defending - keeping the opponent with the ball from scoring.
7. Moving without the ball - to get open for a pass or shot, players must break away from their
defenders and cut to openings on the court

Positions

There are a variety of ways players can line up on the court, but the most common basketball
positions are:
a) #1 or Point Guard (PG)
b) #2 or Shooting Guard (SG)
 c) #3 or Wing or Small Forward (SF)
d) #4 or Power Forward (PF)
e) #5 or Center (C)

Scoring

Points are scored any time the ball goes through the basket.
 3 points = shot made beyond the 3-pt line
 2 points = shot made from anywhere else on the court
 1 point = free throw

Game Length

Games are divided into time segments known as periods. The length
and number of each period differs between leagues. For example,
college men's games are divided into 2 20-minutes halves, college
women's games are split into 4 10-minute quarters, while high school
games are made up of 4 8-minute quarters.

Fouls
Basketball fouls are penalties assessed by the referees for rough play to keep a player from gaining an
advantage over another player. A player who is fouled is awarded the ball out of bounds unless the foul
occurred during the act of shooting, in which case the player who is fouled is awarded 2 free throws.

Each player is allowed 5 fouls before they are removed from the game. Here are some common basketball
fouls:

 Blocking – A personal foul caused when the defender makes illegal personal contact with an
opponent who may or may not have the ball. Blocking is called when the defender impedes the
progress of the opponent.
 Charging (or Player Control Foul) – A personal foul occurring when an offensive player makes
contact with a defender who has already established a set position. A player with the ball must avoid
contact with a stationary defender by stopping or changing direction.
 Elbowing – It is a violation for a player to swing the elbows excessively.
 Flagrant Foul – A personal or technical foul, which is violent in nature. Examples are fighting,
striking, kicking, or kneeing an opponent.
 Hand Check – A personal foul caused by a defender making repeated contact with her hands on her
opponent.
 Holding – A personal foul caused by illegal contact with an opponent, which interferes with his
freedom of movement.
 Intentional Foul – A personal or technical foul, which keeps the opponent from capitalizing on an
advantageous situation. It could be contact away from the ball or contact when a defender is not
making a legitimate attempt to play the ball or a player. It also occurs when a player causes
excessive contact with an opponent.
 Offensive Foul – A foul caused by an offensive player, usually in the form of charging.
 Personal Foul – Illegal contact with an opponent while the ball is live, which hinders the opponent's
offensive or defensive movement. A personal foul also includes contact by or on an airborne shooter
when the ball is dead.
  Technical Foul – A non-contact foul by a player; an intentional or flagrant contact foul while the
ball is dead; or a violation charged to the head coach because of violations on the sideline or from
bench personnel.
 Team Foul – Any foul charged to a team. Once a team reaches 6 team fouls, its opponent is in a
bonus free throw situation.

Violations
The basketball basic rules include numerous ball handling and time violations that cause a team to lose
possession of the ball. Here are some common violations:

 Back-court Violation – If a player is the last one on her team to touch the ball before it goes into
the back-court, she cannot be the first player to touch it in the back-court.
 Closely Guarded (or Five-second Violation) – Violation that occurs when a ball handler in his
team's front-court is continuously guarded by any opponent who is within 6 feet of him while he is
either dribbling or holding the ball. The offensive player has 5 seconds to either get rid of the ball or
drive past the defender.
 Double Dribble - When a dribbler touches the ball with both hands at the same time or when the
dribbler picks up the ball and then starts dribbling again.
 Goal-tending – Occurs when a player touches a shot ball while it is in its downward flight above
the rim. It also occurs when a defender touches a free throw attempt outside the basket.
 Lane Violation – A violation called during a free throw situation against a player who enters the
lane too soon.
 Ten Seconds in the Back-court – A team has 10 seconds to advance the ball from their back-court
past the half-court line to the front-court.
 Three Seconds in the Lane – An offensive player cannot remain in the free throw lane for longer
than 3 seconds while her team is in control of the ball in the front-court. She has to clear the lane
completely with both feet to stop the official's count. If she receives the ball while she is in the lane,
she is allowed to stay beyond 3 seconds in order to drive toward the goal for a shot.
Traveling – A violation caused by moving the feet in any direction without properly dribbling the ball. It
results in a turnover, and the ball is given to the opposing team. While holding the ball, a player has to
establish a pivot foot which has to remain on the floor at all times until he passes, shoots, or dribbles. While
holding the ball, his knee cannot touch the floor and if he falls, he must get rid of the ball before attempting
to get up.

Technical Personnel in basketball

Basketball officials must have a quick whistle and the

ability to make split-second decisions during game
play in order to be effective and call a fair game. If
you're looking to break into officiating, understanding
the duties of the basketball officials will help you
prepare for a demanding and sometimes thankless line
of work.

Pre-Game Duties
Before the ball is even tipped, basketball officials have
a number of different duties to make sure everything is
in order for the start of the game. Referees check the
different equipment used in the game, including the
ball to make sure it's properly inflated, the playing surface and baskets to make sure there are no hazards to
players during the game. Officials also check the official game books to make sure the rosters are inputted
correctly to help guard against scoring mistakes during the game.
Calling Fouls and Violations
The main role of basketball refs is to make sure there is fair play for all players during the game. That
means calling violations such as travels, double dribbles and three-second violations, as well as determining
when a foul has occurred and the appropriate penalties. Officials study the rules and take tests to make sure
they know the ins and outs of every section of the rules. Many violations are cut and dried, but fouls are
often result of an official's judgment of whether the contact gave an advantage or disadvantage.

Signals
To help communicate with players, coaches, the scorer's table and spectators, basketball refs use hand
signals to indicate different fouls and violations. For example, to signal a foul, the ref raises his hand above
the head with a fist, then makes a signal indicating the type of foul. A block – a player illegally using the
body to block the path of an opponent – is signaled by bringing both hands down on either side of the waist.
An offensive foul is indicated by placing the hand on the back of the head and pointing in the direction of
the offended team.

Correcting Errors
Officials are also responsible for correcting any errors that occur during the game that are correctable by
rule. For example, if it is determined that a team did not receive foul shots when it was entitled to them –
such as for bonus free throws – the officials may stop play and award the team the free throws if the mistake
is discovered before play resumes after the first dead ball after the error. In college basketball and the NBA,
officials may use television monitors to help determine if a basket went in before time expired or whether a
successful field goal should count for two or three points.

1. Referee
The whistle blows again. The coach, red-faced with
rage and arms flailing, stomps toward center court. A
crescendo of boos rises from the crowd. The
basketball referee has done his job, making a decision
to enforce the rules of the game and ensure player
safety, even if it draws the ire of coaches and fans.

Lead Referee
Lead referee (also known as crew chief in
NBA) is the in charge of the game. Normally,
all two or three referees are independent in
terms of making their decisions but in case of a
dispute, it’s the lead referee whose verdict is considered final.

Roles & Responsibilities of a Basketball Referee

Enforce Rules
A basketball official is expected to be an objective enforcer of league rules. When an infraction is
committed, the referee will stop play by blowing her whistle and penalize the team that violated the
rule. Common rule violations include committing fouls, dribbling infractions and losing the ball out
of bounds. The penalties for rule violations vary, but most often involve a loss of possession, or free
throws being awarded to the other team.

Maintain Order
By making decisive and fair calls, the referees attempt to make sure that the game is played in a
sportsmanlike manner. Even so, a purposefully hard foul or a player engaging in excessive trash talk
can turn a basketball game into an all-out brawl. If an athlete continues to display poor
sportsmanship, he might be assessed a technical foul by the referee. At the professional level, two
technical fouls in a game leads to a participant's ejection.

Game Flow
A basketball referee is responsible for keeping the game moving. When a player or coach calls for a
timeout, the official must acknowledge it and order the clock to stop. The official will keep track of
the length of the timeout and restart play when the timeout has expired. To avoid unnecessary game
stoppages, referees also regulate when teams can substitute players.
 Player Safety
Basketball players often wear a variety of braces and guards. Referees make sure that none of these
items pose a threat to player safety. All accessories must be free of sharp or protruding edges.
Metallic or gemstone jewelry of any kind is prohibited. If a player is bleeding, officials will
immediately remove that player from the game. The injured player can return after a cut has been
properly dressed and the bleeding contained.

2. Scorers
Scorer play supportive role in the game of the basketball. There can be
one or two scorers in a game depending on the rules of the league and
their job is to write down the stats relevant to the game. They keep a
running summary of points scored, notify field goals and free throws
made and missed. They also record the fouls called on each player and
informs a referee if sixth fouls is called against a player (to eject him
from game). Also notes the timeouts and let the referee knows if all
timeouts have been used up by a team.

3. Timers
Timer assists referee in recording time. Generally, two timers are
appointed by the league. One is official timer who operates the game
clock and the other is shot clock operator who operates 24 second clock.
Official timer alerts referee when each half is going to start and stops the
clock when any kind of interruption occurs during a game (fouls, out of
bounds, timeouts etc.) while shot clock timer informs referee when a
player takes 24 or more seconds to shoot a ball (keeping the ball in
possession for 24 seconds or more is a violation).

The most important of all basketball timekeeper responsibilities is ensuring that the correct time
displays on the clock. Also, another one of your jobs is making sure the clock starts and stops at the
appropriate time.
Keeping score of the game comes second in priority of tasks for a timekeeper in basketball. Even so, the
score should be an exact match to the one recorded in the score book.

Note: For larger leagues (e.g., NBA, FIBA, NCAA, PBA etc.), a commissioner is included which is in
charge of the whole tournament’s process. The commissioner shall sit in between the scorer and the
timer. His primary duty during the game is to supervise the work of the table officials and to assist the
referees and umpires in the smooth functioning of the game. These must officials must be uniformly
dressed during the game.