Filed under: NBA Fans
Do you have $2 million lying around? Then you can find out how to play the game of basketball as it was meant to be played, literally, by Dr. James Naismith. |
| Ian Naismith with the original rules in 2006 |
"When my grandfather was alive," Ian Naismith told New York Times, "it wasn't worth a dime."
The rules bear little resemblance to the game to be played tonight as the NBA season kicks off. There was no dribbling; if you fouled twice you were out until the next time a goal was made; it was to be played with an "ordinary Association football" and was to be a clean sport without "shouldering, holding, pushing or striking." Yeah, you go tell Kevin Garnett that's how the game's supposed to be played.
It's amazing that this document even exists, let alone that it's set to be sold at an auction. It speaks of a changing world, not just in terms of the worn, yellowed typewritten pages in a digital age, or a game without the crossover, the dunk, or, you know, pretty much anything the Celtics consider part of their strategy (I wonder if Naismith thought about putting in a "no-whining" rule for his gym class kids he invented the game for), but that such a wonderful part of the game's history could be locked away in a private estate. If the NBA hasn't considered making the investment to keep the game's rules in-house, it should.
Meanwhile, anyone else think an All-Star event, with proceeds to go to the Naismith Foundation, that featured NBA players trying to play the game as it was originally invented would be awesome? Tim Duncan set shots, for the win. Josh Smith might combust, literally, on the court. Somehow I still think Steve Nash would be awesome at it.
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Source: http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/10/26/naismiths-original-rules-for-basketball-to-be-auctioned/
Jennifer Morrison Jennifer ODell Jennifer Scholle Jennifer Sky Jenny McCarthy
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