The history of american basketball is rich with personalities and success through its three different leagues: the NBA, the NCAA and, most recently, the WNBA. The origins of basketball in the US begin in Springfield, Massachusetts. Here James Naismith developed the game for young men attending the YMCA in order to deal with the harsh winters outside and their idle time inside. Naismith nailed up peach baskets to each end of the gym and gave the players a ball to try and throw in to the baskets. He sketched out the fundamental rules of basketball that day in 1891, which are still used today. The first professional league began seven years later and eventually evolved into the different leagues we have now.
Working at a company that produces electronic basketball scoreboards, Electro-Mech employees are fans (some fanatics) of a variety of team sports, with basketball being just one example. We make sure follow all the latest (and hottest) basketball news, trends, scandals and, of course, games. It is our passion and pleasure to share our knowledge and expertise with you on our favorite sports. Just read on to find out what we mean.
The history of the NCAA: The NCAA college game was the first to appear of the three leagues. In 1895, the first basketball game between two colleges took place but the first 5-on-5 game in the history of American basketball took place one year later in 1896. In 1906, an intercollegiate sports league was formed with formal schedules of competition between colleges and universities. Four years later the history of the NCAA began in earnest as that name was adopted for sports competition. The greatest development for the popularization of the sport began in 1939 when the NCAA introduced its tournament, where the best teams in college met for a tournament to determine the national champion. In the days before TV and other distractions, this was wildly successful and eventually grew into the 65-game “March Madness” format that exists today.
The history of the NBA: Trying to capitalize on the success of the NCAA tournament, the hockey league owners of the day got together to try and fill their arenas during the offseason for hockey and professional basketball was born. Though there were loose leagues playing across the country prior to this, the history of the NBA was born in 1946 (first called the Basketball Association of America) with formal teams and, of course, arenas to play in. In 1949, the NBA formally adopted this name by merging with the competing National Basketball League. The history of American basketball will show that the NBA contracted to just eight teams and ultimately had to merge with the American Basketball League (ABL) in the 1960s to stay solvent before the NBA became a powerhouse and international game with the advent of two major college stars in the early 1980s, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson.
The history of the WNBA: The origin of basketball for women was just one year after it was invented, 1893. Women played in full-length dresses satisfying the conventions of the day. It took a long time to develop into an accepted women’s sport, first gaining acceptance at the college level where the court was changed to be the standard size from its smaller 2/3 size. It was not until after the 1996 NBA season that the history of the WNBA truly began. The NBA Board of Governor’s adopted the new league and began running “We Got Next” ads during the NBA playoffs. The format was to hold a short season (34 games) with playoffs and a Finals series, a format which is still used today.