Autistic Hoops Star Going Hollywood…

Autistic hoops star going Hollywood, Associated Press, NBC Sports
His play drew national attention, and a flood of calls from Hollywood. His parents have received inquiries from about 25 production companies ranging from The Walt Disney Co. and Warner Bros. to independent documentary filmmakers. [...] “I don’t know what I’m walking into,” McElwain said. [...] In his team’s final home game of the season, McElwain entered with four minutes to go. It was his first and only appearance for the Athena varsity team in this Rochester suburb. The 5-foot-6 manager hit six 3-point shots and a 2-pointer and was carried off the court on his teammates’ shoulders.

Player Positions

Although the rules do not specify any positions whatsoever, they have evolved as part of basketball. During the first five decades of basketball’s evolution, two guards, two forwards, and one center were used. Since the 1980s, more specific positions have evolved, namely:

1. Point Guard organizes the team’s offense by controlling the ball and making sure that it gets to the right player at the right time
2. Shooting Guard creates a high volume of shots on offense; guards the opponent’s best perimeter player on defense
3. Small Forward often primarily responsible for scoring points via cuts to the basket and dribble penetration; on defense seeks rebounds and steals, but sometimes plays more actively
4. Power Forward plays offensively often with his back to the basket; on defense, plays under the basket (in a zone defense) or against the opposing power forward (in man-to-man defense)
5. Center uses size, either to score (on offense) or to protect the basket closely (on defense)

The above descriptions are flexible. On some occasions, teams will choose to use a three guard offense, replacing one of the forwards or the center with a third guard. The most commonly interchanged positions are point guard and shooting guard, especially if both players have good leadership and ball handling skills.

There are two main defensive strategies: zone defense and man-to-man defense. Zone defense involves players in defensive positions guarding whichever opponent is in their zone. In man-to-man defense, each defensive player guards a specific opponent and tries to prevent him from taking action. Variations of these two main structures are also used. Read more ->

Game Rules

Basket, Backboard and Ball

The original basket was a peach basket nailed to the wall of a gymnasium. This type of basket and its position, however, eventually proved impractical. In 1897, a board (later known as the backboard) was placed behind the basket to allow the ball to bounce off it during shots. The bottom of the basket was cut open to allow the ball to fall through in 1914, thereby eliminating the need to poke the ball out every time a goal was scored.

In 1921, the basket and backboard were moved two feet (60 cm) from the wall to stop players climbing the wall to score baskets. The basket and backboard were moved inwards a further two feet in 1940 to allow more movement underneath the basket without players going out of bounds.

The ball was originally 32 inches (81 cm) in circumference; this was reduced to 31 inches (79 cm) in 1931. A further reduction took place in 1935 to the current circumference of between 29½ and 30¼ inches (74.9 and 76.8 cm). Read more ->

Game History

In early December 1891, Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian physical education student and instructor at YMCA Training School (today, Springfield College) in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters to keep the students in shape. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums, he wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto a 10-foot (3.05 m) elevated track. In contrast with modern basketball nets, this peach basket retained its bottom, and balls had to be retrieved manually after each “basket” or point scored; this proved inefficient, however, so a hole was drilled into the bottom of the basket, allowing the balls to be poked out with a long dowel each time. Read more ->

Luol Deng Teaches Spin Move

Luol Deng teaches how to spin around the defender correctly, what to pay attention to, and how to finish. He starts by saying: “basketball is a game of reaction.” Have your defender react to your first move to beat him with your counter-move.

1. Have your defender lean to one side.
2. As soon as he leans, spin to the other side.
3. Put the ball away from the defender to protect it.
4. Then, look up towards the basket. See help defenders coming. See you teammates. See if you have a shot for yourself
5. It is not good enough to beat one guy and be happy with it. You have to learn to react to what’s happening next (basketball is still a team game!).
6. Speed is important, but what’s even more important is being smart about it. You have to have your defender lean to one side, then you change speed to beat him.