Introduction ne of the sweetest sounds in the world is the SWISH a ball makes as it brushes against the thick cords of a basketball net This sound can mean only one thing a player has made a shot and a team has added to its score A basket might be the reward for a total team effort It might be the result of one player s talent It might just be a lucky shot Indeed no two baskets are exactly alike A ball can travel many different paths from a shooter s hand into the net Making a basket is limited only by a player s skill and imagination Basketball began in the United States more than one hundred years ago Since then the sport has spread all over the world New players and new ideas come to basketball every day This book looks at the art of shooting and how it has shaped the game Most of all it celebrates the special thrill you get from launching a shot and watching the ball and listening to it as it swishes through the basket Manu Ginobili floats a soft shot over the outstretched arms of two defenders in the 2005 NBA Finals A player has many ways to put the ball in the
One Aiming for the Stars THE HISTORY OF SHOOTING ou don't have to be a sports fan to know that basketball is very different from other games It looks different sounds different and requires different skills than other sports Basketball is different in another important way No one is exactly sure when or how those other sports began or even who invented them We do know these things about basketball In the autumn of 1891 students at the YMCA Training School in Springfield Massachusetts were facing another dreary winter of indoor exercise In the fall and spring they played fun outdoor sports such as baseball football soccer and lacrosse However when the weather turned cold they were stuck inside in the gymnasium They marched did calisthenics and twirled wooden clubs shaped like bowling pins Boring The school wanted to create a new team sport that would keep students active and entertained indoors An instructor named Dr James Naismith came up with A group of men play a game they called basketball outdoors in
