Basketball
We explain what basketball is, its history, rules, and elements. Also, what are the NBA and its most outstanding players?
Basketball has been an Olympic sport since 1936.
What is basketball?
Basketball, basketball or basketball (hispanicization of basketball, in English), is a team sport in which two groups of players face each other and aim to get a ball into the opposing team‘s hoop. The team that makes the most goals or “baskets” wins the game.
The basketball court is flat, indoors or outdoors, with a hoop at each end suspended about three meters high. Every time a team makes a basket, they score points. Each basket has a different score according to the place on the court from which the shot is made.
Basketball is one of the sports most practiced today by teams of men and women, both professionally and amateur. The most recognized basketball league is the NBA, a private American league in which groups like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Chicago Bulls play. In addition, there are other variants of this sport, such as wheelchair basketball, streetball, and 3×3 basketball.
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) is the governing body for the practice of this sport throughout the world and is in charge of organizing official competitions. Basketball has been an Olympic sport since 1936.
Basketball Characteristics
The main characteristics of basketball are:
Goal. The game’s object is to pass the ball through the opposing team’s hoop as often as possible to accumulate points. The team with the most points at the end of the match wins.
Annotations. Each basket corresponds to a score, but the baskets have different points according to the place on the court from which the shot is made. A basket is worth two points if it is made inside the three-point line (6.75 m from the basket), three points if it is from a long distance, and one point if it is a free throw.
You are playing field. The basketball court is a rectangle 28 meters by 15 meters and has a basket at each end.
Duration. The game lasts four periods of ten minutes each, with the possibility of five-minute overtime in the event of a tie in the score.
Duration. Two teams of a maximum of twelve players each face each other. Only five players from one group can be on the court at anytime.
Referees. During the match, the following intervene: the main referee, an assistant referee, and the table referees. The referee’s function is to start and end the conflict, issue sanctions and control the game.
