by Ric S

Created on: March 08, 2007   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

From its humble beginning at the YMCA training facilities in Springfield, Massachussetts in 1891, basketball has evolved into one of the most popular, exciting and entertaining sports in the world. Dr. James Naismith originally invented the game to provide an indoor game that would meet the proper level of physical activities and at the same time occupy the interest of his students. He could not have envisioned that the game now is played in almost all parts of the world, and fans of the game will grow in millions.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) surely has been one of the contributors to the sports' popularity. Formed in 1946, it positioned basketball as professional sports and was able to market the games to the people. The league was able to produce popular players like Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Michael Jordan. Their on-court heroics and exploits have immortalized them into basketball legends. For years, people are still going to talk about Wilt and Bill's battles, Magic's showtime playmaking and Jordan's creativity and competitiveness.

In 1992, FIBA, the International Basketball body, has allowed professional players to play in the Olympics. This allowed Magic, Bird, Jordan and the rest of the USA team (aptly named Dream Team by media) to show their skills and talent to the world. This brought on a more global attention to the games and was able to raise the level of games as it is played in other countries outside USA. Players like Dirk Nowitzki, Manu Ginobili, Pau Gasol soon become superstars on their own right and compete with the same talent level as the Americans. By 2000's it was becoming clearer that the rest of the world had catched-up and basketball is no longer dominated by Americans, and the US team's failure to get the gold medal in the 2004 Olympics proved it. However, this did not hurt basketball as sports. Instead, this makes the games even more interesting as there is now a more diverse style of plays and there are more fans following the games.

As in any other sports, basketball had its share of controversies. Fights and brawls during games, players and coaches misbehaving, drug and substance abuse. However, the game continues to produce tremendously talented athletes. Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson and Dwayne Wade are just few of the players that make fans hooked on watching the games. They continue to delight the crowd with their skills and provide entertainment that is worth the money and time spent watching.

Today basketball is played almost anywhere, be it played on the streets of New York, on the colleges, or on the full-packed stadium. The NBA is one of the top professional sports league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition. Exciting, athletic and skillful players add color and drama to the games. The intense action on court is enough to make audience gasp for breath and make those "oohs" and "aahs" with the players' unbelievable creativity. Basketball maybe a competitive sports for the purists, but it is definitely a form of entertainment to most.

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