Shakeysha Kirby
Eng 101
Basketball
“Sport is a kind of physical, play that is constrained by rules: a physically exertive activity that is aggressively competitive within constraints imposed by definitions and rules.” (Schultz and Lavenda 2001:132) “There are many sports activities in American which attract millions of participants for personal enjoyment, the love of competition and for the benefits of fitness and health. In addition, sport teaches social values like teamwork, sportsmanship, self-discipline, and persistence that are highly regarded in U.S. society.” (Sports in America. http://www.usinfo.pl/abouusa/sports/) Among America’s top three favorite sports is basketball. Basketball simply defined, as a game played by two opposing teams of usually five players on a rectangular, often wooden court with a raised basket at each end and points are scored by tossing a ball through the basket at the opponent’s end. From youth leagues, to high school, college teams, to the NBA and the WNBA, and streetball, basketball is a sport that brings together people of all shapes, sizes, colors, genders, age groups, countries, cities, and states onto one court where all backgrounds diminish to honor the principle of the game. “Sports are both a social glue, bonding the country together and a vehicle for transmitting such values as justice and fair play, teamwork and sacrifice. They have contributed to racial and social integration, and even to the development of language, as sports terms and expressions slide into everyday usage.” (unknown online source1)
The concept of basketball came to the mind of a Massachusetts man by the name of James Naismith (1861-1939). The Canadian native was working at the Young Men’s Christian Association where some of the gentlemen had been engaging in disorderly conduct. Naismith as their physical education was asked to create a game for the boys, something that would occupy them indoors until winter came to an end. “He recalled...