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Basketball is one of few sports with a known birth date. Think about it. Baseball? Football? Soccer? On December 1, 1891, in Springfield, Massachusetts, James Naismith hung two half-bushel peach baskets at opposite ends of a gymnasium and out-lined 13 rules to his students at the International Training School of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), which later became Springfield College. Naismith (1861-1939) was a physical education teacher who was seeking a team sport with limited physical contact but a lot of running, jumping, shooting, and the hand-eye coordination required in handling a ball. The peach baskets he hung as goals gave the sport the name of basketball.
Naismith and his wife were Christians and subscribed to a Christian Missionary magazine from Central America where Naismith saw a feature article about the Aztec ball game called Ollamalitzli and the Mayan game of Ulama. He had also read articles by a New Zealander called Tom Ellison who wrote about ancient Maori ball sports that required a lot of aerial handball skills. He took account of the hole that the round bouncy ball had to go through in the Central American games and the excitement of the traditional Maori game where a round flax ball was passed with speed and dexterity. With his supportive wife he then devised a game suitable for an indoor gymnasium. Winters are cold in Massachusetts.
Basketball was born in the United States, but five of Naismith's original players were Canadians, and the game spread to Canada immediately. It was played in France by 1893; England in 1894; Australia, China, and India between 1895 and 1900; and Japan in 1900. America’s game of basketball continued to spread world and today is the second most popular sport in the world. Soccer is king, but American football and baseball lag far behind in both participation and fan base. Basketball is truly an international sport.
Matthew Wilson was drafted #1 by the Washington Bullets, despite his statements that he did not intend to play NBA basketball. I saw Matthew at a fund raiser in New York and asked him why he didn’t want to play in the NBA. “It’s a great opportunity to keep your name in front in the headlines,” I pointed out. “Besides, I would like to see how you match up against the great players.”
“Coach, there is so much more that I need to do, that would be impossible to do if I played in the NBA eight months a year. Father McGinnis and I have organized a world-wide disaster relief program that occupies much of my time,”
“But isn’t basketball a good way to advertise?” I asked.
“You’re right, Coach. It is a perfect way for me to get my message across to millions of people. I realize I couldn’t get the press coverage unless I keep playing.”
“If that’s true, I don’t understand why you refuse to play in the NBA?”
“Do you realize how popular basketball is worldwide? Take a look at the FIBA.com website. The NBA is just a small piece of the pie. When is the last time the US won the Olympics games?”
I did a quick look up on my laptop while Matthew waited. I was surprised at what I found. The FIBA is the world governing body for basketball and is formed by five FIBA Zones and 213 National federations of basketball throughout the world. The association was founded in Geneva in 1932, two years after the sport was officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Its original name was ‘Fédération Internationale de Basketball Amateur’. Eight nations were founding members: Argentina, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Romania, and Switzerland. During the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, the Federation named James Naismith, the founder of basketball, as its Honorary President. The Federation headquarters moved to Munich in 1956, then returned to Geneva in 2002.
FIBA has organized a FIBA World Championship for men since 1950 and a World Championship for Women since 1953. Both events are now held every four years, alternating with the Olympics. FIBA dropped the distinction between amateur and professional players in 1989, and in 1992, professional players played for the first time in the Olympic Games. United States' dominance continued until 2002 when a U.S. team made entirely of NBA players finished sixth in the 2002 World Championships. The globalization of basketball was further illustrated by the makeup of the all-tournament teams at the 2002 and 2006 Olympics; only one member of either team was American.
“So how does this fit into your plans?” I asked, still not sure what Matthew had in mind.
“I’m forming an all-star team that will travel around the world. We’ll do clinics for kids, play exhibition games against national teams and maybe raise a little money to address some of the problems in the region.”
“Another Harlem Globetrotters,” I suggested. “All you need is the Washington Generals,” the whipping boys that the globetrotters took along on their tours.
“Don’t minimize what Abe Saperstein and his Globetrotters did for the African American people or for basketball. Their model is a good one, but I’ll let each country provide the competition. I will add a small, political or social agenda, depending upon where we play.”
“Have you thought about how you are going to publicize this tour?” knowing it was a stupid question as soon as I asked. Matthew always thought of everything.
“Did you ever get to know Freddie and his crew in high school?”
“You mean the Freddie that did the lights and sound effects for the pep rallies?”
“Yep; that’s the guy. He also produced the ‘We Kick Ass’ video. The five of them all received degrees from the New York Film Academy and have agreed to help me out. They will be the advance publicity team, produce videos to distribute at clinics, schedule meetings with people I want to meet with, and basically manage my tour.”
“I have to admit that I thought those guys were a little weird, but I’m happy to hear that they are doing well. When do you start?”
“They have been in Rio de Janeiro for two weeks setting things up. Our team is flying to Brazil next week to play a South American all star team captained by Manu Ginobili. I understand President Nestor Kirchner is a huge basketball fan and has agreed to meet with me to discuss ways we can address Argentina’s energy crisis.”