is class. On his way to the gym, he asked a janitor if he had two boxes that were eighteen inches squared. Unfortunately, the janitor didn’t have any boxes, but he did have something probably better. The janitor presented James with two old peach baskets, about fifteen inches in diameter around the top. James took the baskets, got a hammer and some nails, and attached the baskets to the lower rail of the balcony. He placed them at either end of the gym, about ten feet above the floor. After outlining the rules and selecting the teams, the first game of basketball ever, was played in Springfield, Massachusetts; December 1891.On that historic day, the first uniforms consisted of long grey trousers, short-sleeved jerseys and a pair of gym shoes. Filling these uniforms were the team members, nine in all, stationed in this order from the goal:1 goalkeeper2 guards (right and left)3 centres (right, left, and centre)2 wings (right and left)1 home manToday, these players would be the same as three guards, three centres, and three forwards. The game was monitored by a referee and an umpire, who also acted as ball retrievers since the bottoms of the baskets had not yet been cut. Although the game had its rules, it still needed a name. Frank Mahan, one of James’ students, suggested it be called “Naismith ball” but James laughed and declined. Then, in light of the peach baskets being used as goals, Frank proposed the name “Basketball.” James agreed. Now the new sport had a name.James used his class as the test subjects for the game and they loved it; now it was time to move on. From the eighteen members of his class, James formed a team of nine, the captain being Frank Mahan. They competed against teams in the eastern states. This group of nine is recognized as the first basketball team in history.On January 15, 1892, the Y.M.C.A’s school paper, the Triangle, published an article about Dr. Na...
