Basketball

General Rules

Match Duration

 

The game duration usually includes four quarters of 10 minutes each according to FIBA rules and four quarters of 12 minutes each according to NBA. College men’s matches use two halves of 20-minutes and women’s matches use 10-minute quarters.

 

Scoring

 

Every free throw is awarded one point, 2-points are awarded for any field goal scored from inside the 3-point line and 3-points are awarded for every basket made from a throw behind the 3-points arc.

 

Violations

 

Violations are infraction of the rules governing how the ball can be handled. The ball must be advanced towards the basket by being dribbled, rolled, shot, passed between players, thrown or tapped. The ball must stay within the court; if the ball travels out of bounds, then the last team to touch it forfeits possession. The ball must not be kicked, nor be punched with the fist.

 

Fouls

 

A foul occurs when a player breaks a rule. A player may be disqualified from the match after making five or six fouls. Two main types of fouls are-

 

Personal Foul

 

It is an infringement of rules that includes illegal personal contact with an opponent like charging, blocking, screening, pushing, holding and illegal use of hands, elbow and legs or knees.

 

Technical foul 

 

It is an infraction of the rules that doesn’t involve personal contact during the play but includes fouls like unsportsmanlike conduct. This type of foul can be assessed against a player, any official present in the match or even against the crowd. These fouls are more serious than a personal foul and include profane language used by a player or an official, fighting, time-wasting and illegal substitutions.

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Equipment

Backboard

 

A backboard is a raised vertical board made from plexiglass (or tempered glass) which stands ten feet from the ground. The basket/net is usually mounted on the backboard.

 

Basketball Ball

 

A ball used in basketball games has different sizes according to different federations in which it's used.

 

FEDERATION	FORMAT	BALL SIZE
NCAA	Men	76 cm
NCAA	Women	74 cm
NBA	Men	75 cm
WNBA	Women	74 cm

 

Breakaway Rim

 

A highly flexible basketball rim that bends downward whenever a player dunks the basketball and then snaps back into its original position. It allows the player to dunk the ball without breaking the backboard and also helps prevent wrist injuries.

 

Basketball Court

 

The basketball court is usually made up of maple wood or concrete or asphalt. Its dimensions vary according to various federations you consider.

 

• NBA - 94 by 50 feet
• FIBA - 91.9 by 49.2 feet.

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Participants

Two teams of five players each side compete against each other. The players are generally referred by their playing positions on the court which include a point guard, shooting guard, power forward, small forward and center.

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Playing Area

The size of basketball court varies according to the federations and the level of play. Under NBA rules, the court is 90 x 50 feet while according to FIBA rules, the court measures 92 x 49 feet. The high school court measures 84 x 50 feet. A free-throw line (the key) is marked at 15 feet from the basket and is 16 feet wide for NBA and 12 feet wide for NCAA.

 

The baskets are always 10 feet above the floor except in youth competitions. The court is also marked with a 3-point arc at both baskets which is 19.75 feet from the center of the basket in high school competitions, 20.75 feet in NCAA, 21.65-22.15 feet in FIBA and 22-23.75 feet in NBA. The court should have a minimum of 25-27 feet height.

General History

Dr James Naismith, a teacher in YMCA Springfield, wanted to keep his gym class busy on rainy days. And this is how the game was invented in the early December of 1981. He nailed a peach basket on a ten-foot-high track and eventually removed its bottom so that the balls (which were actually soccer balls!) weren't needed to be retained manually.

 

The FIBA (French Fédération Internationale de Basketball) was founded in 1932, and men's basketball tournament was first held in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Whereas, the women's basketball tournament was first held in the 1976 Olympics. Also, the first FIBA basketball world championship for men was held in 1950, while the first women's championships were held in 1953.

 

The Basketball Association of America (BAA) was founded in 1946, and it was one of the first bodies to govern professional basketball matches. Three years later in 1949, it was merged with the National Basketball League (NBL), hence forming the National Basketball Association (NBA).

 

Ten years later in 1959, the basketball hall of fame was formed at Springfield, Massachusetts.

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Equipment History

Basketball was originally played with peach baskets attached to the mezzanine balcony of a playing court. These primary methods of playing basketball deemed impractical since spectators continuously interfered with the shot and balls had to be retrieved manually from the basket.

 

Later on, a hole was drilled at the bottom of the basket, and long sticks were used to poke out the ball from it. Then in 1906, the peach baskets and balcony combination was finally replaced by metal hoops and backboard, which helped in reducing interference and delays.

 

Basketball was originally played with soccer balls which were sewn together by laces. This type of basketball balls resulted in unexpected bounce due to the heavy laces. Finally, the lace-free ball construction was invented by Naismith himself.

 

Also, the colour of a basketball ball was initially brown but was later changed to orange due to increased visibility.

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Game Rules (major changes in rules)

Year 1894

 

Free throws were first introduced to the game.

 

Year 1897

 

Five players became the necessary team size.

 

Year 1909

 

Players were allowed to dribble the ball in a game.

 

Year 1913

 

The out of bound rule was modified to the current version, i.e. the team which last touched the ball before it goes out of bounds loses its possession.

 

Year 1932

 

The midcourt line was established to eliminate stalling in a game.

 

Year 1936

 

The three-second area was created to prevent the offensive players to gather around the basket and hence eliminate rough play.

 

Year 1944

 

The goaltending rule was adopted that made it illegal for a defensive player to touch the ball on its downward flight.

 

Year 1945

 

The substitution rule was reinstated, stating that a player can re-enter the game an unlimited time.

 

Year 1949

 

Coaching during a game was allowed. Strangely, before this rule was applied, no coaching was granted during a game.

 

Year 1960

 

The sudden death was replaced by overtime periods.

 

Year 1977

 

The NBA adopted the three-point shot.

General Variants

Half court

 

An informal form of basketball where players play as they want to and no strict rules are implemented. It means that the game can vary regarding team size and can be played without a referee.

 

Wheelchair basketball

 

Weelchair basketball is a para-sport introduced by disabled world war II veterans. The governing body of wheelchair basketball is the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF).

 

Water basketball

 

A form of basketball played in water (swimming pool), which combines the rules of basketball and water polo.

 

Beach basketball

 

A modified version of basketball played on a circular court on a beach with no backboard, no out of bounds rule, and no dribbling seen.

 

Slamball

 

A form of basketball that contains trampolines in place of a court. Players are required to jump on those trampolines and score points.

 

Streetball

 

It's an informal version of basketball that often uses only half of a basketball court. The number of players may also vary in these type of games.

 

 

Unicycle basketball

 

This a version of basketball which is played by dribbling the ball while riding a unicycle.