Basketball

Introduction & Top Questions
History
- The early years
- Growth of the game
- U.S. high school and college basketball
- U.S. professional basketball
- U.S. women’s basketball
- International competition
Play of the game
- Court and equipment
- Rules
- Principles of play
Winners of select basketball championships
- NBA championship
- WNBA championship
- NCAA men’s championship
- NCAA women’s championship
- FIBA Basketball World Cup
- FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup
NBA all-time records

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images & Videos

James Naismith stands outdoors holding a vintage basketball in one hand and a peach basket in the other, demonstrating the original basketball equipment.

Julius Erving of the Philadelphia 76ers dribbles a basketball on the court during a game, wearing a white Sixers uniform with number 6.

Pete Maravich, wearing number 23 LSU Tigers basketball uniform, dribbles the ball during a game, with spectators visible in the background.

How March Madness Made College Basketball America's Favorite Pastime

Ben Bluitt of Loyola (Chicago), wearing number 17, jumps to block a shot by Wallace Jones of Kentucky, number 27, during a basketball game at Madison Square Garden.

At a Glance

basketball summary

Quizzes

Serena Williams poses with the Daphne Akhurst Trophy after winning the Women's Singles final against Venus Williams of the United States on day 13 of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 28, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (tennis, sports)

Great Moments in Sports Quiz

The Dating Game: Which Came First? Vol. 2

Cricket bat and ball. cricket sport of cricket.Homepage blog 2011, arts and entertainment, history and society, sports and games athletics

Sports Quiz

Sports Season

Usain Bolt of Jamaica reacts after breaking the world record with a time of 19.30 to win the gold medal as Churandy Martina (left) of Netherlands Antilles and Brian Dzingai of Zimbabwe come in after him in the Men's 200m Final at the National Stadium during Day 12 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 20, 2008 in Beijing, China. (Summer Olympics, track and field, athletics)

I Am the Greatest (Athlete)

Related Questions

How are layups, jump shots, hook shots, and dunks used in basketball?
How did John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins dominate college basketball?
How did basketball spread from the United States to other countries?
How did the American Basketball Association affect the NBA?
How did the National Basketball Association form in 1949?
How did the fast-break strategy change college basketball?
How did the first basketball differ from a modern basketball?
How do FIBA basketball rules differ from NBA rules?
How does a full-court press try to force turnovers?
How does dribbling allow a player to move with the ball?
How is 3x3 basketball different from traditional five-on-five basketball?
How is a basketball game started with a jump ball?
How many players were originally on early basketball teams?
How many points do field goals, three-point shots, and free throws score?
What does the NBA G League do for basketball players and NBA teams?
What equipment was used in the first basketball game in 1891?
What happens when a basketball player takes too many steps without dribbling?
What is the difference between a fast break and a set offense in basketball?
What is the difference between man-to-man defense and zone defense?
What kinds of uniforms did early basketball players wear?
What role does FIBA play in international basketball?
What was unusual about the courts used by the first National Basketball League?
When and where did James Naismith invent basketball?
When did basketball first reach France and England?
When did basketball nets begin to have open bottoms?
When did five-player basketball teams become the official standard?
When did men’s and women’s basketball become Olympic sports?
When did the NBA adopt the 24-second shot clock?
When was the college basketball dunk ban ended?
When was the first basketball made for the sport instead of using a soccer ball?
When were James Naismith’s original basketball rules first published?
Which colleges played the first five-on-five college basketball game?
Which country was the first to play basketball outside the United States?
Who popularized the one-handed shot in college basketball?
Who scored the only basket in the first basketball game?
Who won the first five-on-five college basketball game in 1896?
Why are basketball hoops 10 feet above the floor?
Why could NBA players join the U.S. Olympic Dream Team in 1992?
Why did James Naismith create basketball at the YMCA Training School?
Why did basketball organizations create rule-making committees?
Why did early professional basketball leagues struggle to survive?
Why did some YMCA associations ban basketball in its early years?
Why did the NCAA tournament become more prestigious than the National Invitation Tournament?
Why does basketball have a shot clock?
Why is the NBA eligibility policy called the one-and-done rule?
Why were backboards added to basketball hoops?
Why were the three-second rule and goaltending rule introduced?
How does basketball exercise your body?
What are the main types of sports that involve ice skating?
What is the age limit for competitive figure skating?
What is double-touching in curling?
How is curling scored in the Olympics?
What is the main objective of curling?
What is the role of sweeping in curling?
Which country invented curling?
Who invented volleyball?
What was volleyball originally called?

Sports & Recreation Basketball

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External Websites

BBC - Bitesize - Basketball - factfile
Library of Congress - Research Guides - Basketball
The Canadian Encyclopedia - Basketball in Canada
Springfield College - Where Basketball was Invented: The History of Basketball
National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Physiology of Basketball Â– Field tests.

Britannica Websites

Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.

basketball - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
basketball - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Taking flight Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls leaping into the air during the slam-dunk competition at NBA All-Star weekend in Chicago, February 6, 1988.

Basketball

sport

Written by

William George Mokray

Editor and Publisher, Basketball's Best. Writer for Converse Basketball Yearbook. U.S. correspondent on basketball for European publications. Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, 1965.

William George MokrayAll

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Nov. 11, 2026 •History

Basketball, game played between two teams, typically of five players each, on a rectangular court. Each team tries to score by shooting, laying up, or dunking the ball through the opponent’s goal, an elevated horizontal hoop and net called a basket. The only major sport strictly of U.S. origin, basketball was invented by James Naismith in 1891 and within a decade had spread around the world. Over the course of the 20th century, it became...

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