Clean Living With Basketball

From a peach basket to a world game · 从桃筐到世界运动

Americans go wild over basketball. Many American youngsters grow up dreaming of "shooting hoops" one day in the professional leagues. Basketball has always been an American game. Today, however, basketball is slowly being transformed into a global sport.

Its inventor, Dr. James Naismith, would be astounded to see the current appeal of the game he invented in 1891 when he was an athletic director at a YMCA training school in the U.S.A.

Naismith grew up in Canada, where he surely played a popular children's school game called "Duck on a Rock". A target, known as the "duck", was situated atop a large rock. The object of the game was to throw another rock high into the air and make it land in a way that knocked the duck off the large rock.

When Dr. Naismith began working at the men's training school, he remembered this childhood game. He had his hands full with tough young teenagers who were in trouble with the law. His goal was to educate these troubled young men, and to help them turn their lives around in a positive way.

Dr. Naismith wanted a game where strength was not enough for victory. He wanted to show the young boys that using their brains was a far better way to succeed.

He nailed a peach basket about four metres above the floor at each end of a small gymnasium. A soccer ball was used as the first basketball, and a simple set of thirteen rules was drawn up.

From these humble beginnings, the game we now know as basketball was born. Over the years, it has changed quite a bit. The rule book of thirteen rules has grown by leaps and bounds, but the simple elegance of the game can still be appreciated.

By the time of his death in 1939, the game Dr. Naismith loved was well on the way to taking its place as a top world sport.

Right up to the end, Dr. Naismith maintained his belief that basketball could provide an outlet for troubled kids who needed a sport where skill was more important than strength — where the values of clean living ruled.

Clean Living With Basketball — How a peach basket tamed troubled teens

Americans go wild over basketball. Many American youngsters grow up dreaming of "shooting hoops" one day in the professional leagues. Basketball has always been an American game. Today, however, basketball is slowly being t(1)__________ into a global sport.

Its inventor, Dr. James Naismith, would be astounded to see the current a(2)__________ of the game he invented in 1891 when he was an athletic director at a YMCA training school in the U.S.A.

Naismith grew up in Canada, where he surely played a popular children's school game called "Duck on a Rock". A target, known as the "duck", was situated atop a large rock. The o(3)__________ of the game was to throw another rock high into the air and make it land in a way that knocked the duck off the large rock.

When Dr. Naismith began working at the men's training school, he remembered this childhood game. He had his hands full with t(4)__________ young teenagers who were in trouble with the law. His goal was to educate these troubled young men, and to help them turn their lives around in a p(5)__________ way.

Dr. Naismith wanted a game where strength was not enough for v(6)__________. He wanted to show the young boys that using their brains was a far better way to succeed.

He nailed a peach basket about four metres above the floor at each end of a small gymnasium. A soccer ball was used as the first basketball, and a simple set of thirteen rules was drawn up.

From these h(7)__________ beginnings, the game we now know as basketball was born. Over the years, it has changed quite a bit. The rule book of thirteen rules has grown by leaps and bounds, but the simple elegance of the game can still be a(8)__________.

By the time of his death in 1939, the game Dr. Naismith loved was well on the way to taking its place as a top world sport.

Right up to the end, Dr. Naismith m(9)__________ his belief that basketball could provide an o(10)__________ for troubled kids who needed a sport where skill was more important than strength — where the values of clean living ruled.

📌 重点单词 · Key Vocabulary

🔗 重点词组 · Key Phrases

💡 语法小贴士 · Grammar Tips

🏀 文化拓展 · A Classroom Disguised as a Court

1891 年的冬天，马萨诸塞州斯普林菲尔德的 YMCA 训练学校里，一群无处发泄精力的年轻人把体育馆闹得底朝天。体育主管奈史密斯想起新斯科舍的童年游戏「石头上的鸭子」——那个游戏靠的不是力气而是准头，他由此确信：新运动的核心应该是技巧而非冲撞。他把两只装桃子的篮子钉在体育馆两端的栏杆上（当年约十英尺高），借来一个足球，写下十三条规则——篮球就这样诞生了。

最早的桃篮是有底的：每次投中，得有人爬梯子把球取下来。据说后来实在嫌麻烦，才剪掉了篮底——「进球」从此顺滑如流水。1896 年首场公开篮球赛、1936 年柏林奥运会篮球正式入奥，奈史密斯亲自到场抛球开赛。当年那间小体育馆里的权宜之计，如今是两百多个国家和地区的共同语言。

标题里的 clean living 是 YMCA 的核心理念：体育不只是竞技，更是塑造品格的课堂。奈史密斯晚年最自豪的不是发明了一项运动，而是证明了——球场可以是课堂，规则可以是教育，运动可以把迷途的少年一个个接回来。