Have you ever wondered how your favorite sport got its start? In the book, Hoop Genius: How a Desperate Teacher and a Rowdy Gym Class Invented Basketball, author John Coy tells the story of a teacher named James Naismith, who invented the game of basketball as a way to keep a class of rowdy boys engaged and safe while playing indoors. With artwork by Joe Morse, the story relates how the first game of basketball ever played used a soccer ball and two old peach baskets for goals.
The boys in Mr. Naismith's gym class loved the game, and pretty soon other people wanted to play, including some women teachers from a nearby school!
The game of basketball soon grew to be one of the most popular sports in the country and in the world and even became an Olympic sport in 1936. (Grades K-3)
