sport

BASKET AND STREETBALL



This article is about the sport. For the ball used in the sport, see Basketball (ball). For other uses, see Basketball (disambiguation).

Basketball

Michael Jordan goes for a slam dunk
Highest governing body	FIBA
First played	1891, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
Characteristics
Contact	Contact
Team members	12 to 15 (5 at a time)
Mixed gender	Single
Category	Indoor or Outdoor
Ball	Basketball
Olympic	1936

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five active players each try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a 10 feet (3.048 m) high hoop (the goal) under organized rules. Basketball is one of the most popular and widely viewed sports in the world.^[1]

Points are scored by throwing (shooting) the ball through the basket above; the team with more points at the end of the game wins. The ball can be advanced on the court by bouncing it (dribbling) or passing it between teammates. Disruptive physical contact (foul) is not permitted and there are restrictions on how the ball can be handled (violations).

Through time, basketball has developed to involve common techniques of shooting, passing and dribbling, as well as players' positions, and offensive and defensive structures. Typically, the tallest members of a team will play center or one of two forward positions, while shorter players or those who possess the best ball handling skills and speed, play the guard positions. While competitive basketball is carefully regulated, numerous variations of basketball have developed for casual play. In some countries, basketball is also a popular spectator sport.

While competitive basketball is primarily an indoor sport, played on a basketball court, less regulated variations have become exceedingly popular as an outdoor sport among both inner city and rural groups.

STREETBALL

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Streetballers at the Venice Beach basketball courts, California, USA.

Streetball is a less formal variant of basketball, played on playgrounds and in gymnasiums across the world. Often only one half of the court is used, but otherwise the rules of the game are very similar to those of basketball. The number of participants in a game, or a run, may range from one defender and one person on offense (known as one on one) to two full teams of five each.

Streetball is a very popular game worldwide, and some cities in the United States have organized streetball programs, such as midnight basketball, as a way for young people to keep out of trouble and avoid problems such as juvenile crime and drugs. Many cities also host their own weekend-long streetball tournaments. Hoop-It-Up and the Houston Rockets' Blacktop Battle are two of the most popular. In recent years, streetball has seen an increase in media exposure through television shows such as ESPN's "Streetball" and "City Slam", as well as traveling exhibitions such as the AND1 Mixtape Tour and Ball4Real.