Basketball's Canadian side

The father of Basketball, Dr. James Naismith

Here's a fun fact that not many people are aware of: basketball is Canadian. Sure, you might tell me that it was first played in Springfield, Massachusetts and not on Canadian soil, which is fair enough, but the fact that the sport was the brainchild of a Canadian born innovator, Dr. James Naismith is reason for me to believe that the sport is Canadian. Naismith was born in Ontario and if my limited knowledge of Canadian geography is correct, he was born in present-day Mississippi Mills, Ontario.

There would be no LeBron James and no Kobe Bryant and definitely no Steve Nash if it wasn't for Naismith's invention on a cold winter day in Springfield in December 1891. And ever since then, the sport has not looked back. At least 10 players in this original game of basketball were university students from Quebec, (according to an nba.com article from March 2002), thus ingraining Canada and Canadians into the sport's earliest days. That very same article cites how quickly the sport spread into Canada; like maple syrup on warm pancakes, if you must. This hockey- obsessed country has participated in Olympic basketball from as early as the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, Germany, three years before Naismith breathed his last breath.

Another great story that I came across while doing my research was the fact that Naismith had just 14 days to invent the game. According to his resume, the game was invented "under orders from Dr. Luther Gulick, head of Springfield YMCA Physical Education, to provide an athletic distraction for students. Gulick demanded that it would not take up much room, could help its track athletes to keep in shape."

Probably a more well-known fact is that the first ever game in the sport's most elite league, the NBA, was played on Canadian soil in Toronto between the New York Knickerbockers (now the NY Knicks) and the defunct Toronto Huskies. Of course, the league was then known as the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the Huskies were only around for one season, but as I've said before, the sport was already showing its Canadian side.

Modern-day basketball fans in Canada have to contend with the struggling Toronto Raptors. I've often seen lots of vintage Vancouver Grizzlies memorabilia around the halls of Fanshawe College itself, proving the fact that the sport is indeed ingrained in Canadians. Videos of the famous pairing of Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady in the late 1990s still sends shivers down my spine: I guess you could call that the heyday of the Toronto Raptors.

US Patent #1,718,305 will be remembered as the basketball granted to G.L. Pierce in 1929, almost four decades after the game was invented. While Naismith's 'original 13 rules' might have been modified several times over the ages, the joy and excitement that the sport of basketball brings hasn't diminished one bit. It's a Canadian invention, after all.

Originally Written for the Interrobang: http://www.fsu.ca/interrobang_article.php?storyID=8723&sectionID=4&issueID=209
Image Credit: http://www.peoplequiz.com/images/bios/James-Naismith.jpg-5864.jpg