In This Guide
Basketball: Nothing but the Net
Fans, players, coaches, and parents will find the Web to be an excellent source of basketball information. It has sites covering introductory topics, sites providing exhaustive statistics, resources for keeping on top of the latest scores from the league, and others offering advice on how you can improve your game. The Web will act as not only your personal coach, but as your statistician and commentator as well.
Expand All Guide SectionsThe History of Basketball
The origins of basketball can be traced to 1891 when Springfield, Massachusetts P.E. teacher James Naismith devised an indoor game to keep his students occupied during the winter. At the time, a peach basket served as the hoop, and a soccer ball was used as the ball. The game has come a long way since those early days, and over the years has accrued a rich history.
Dulcinea's Insight
- No two sites present basketball's history in exactly the same way. Some focus on the events surrounding its genesis, others on the NBA, and still others on specific aspects, like women's involvement or international play. Put them all together and you'll have a well-rounded understanding of the game's fascinating history.
- Basketball history can be told through essays and narrative accounts, or through lists and statistics. Both prose and data figures are provided below.
Dulcinea's Picks
HoopHall.com
is the official site of the Basketball Hall of Fame. At this site you'll find a complete list of basketball Hall of Famers and award winners, as well as the history of the founding of the sport.
The Kansas Heritage Group
has an in-depth biography of Dr. Naismith, the inventor of basketball, including his involvement in the development of Kansas basketball.
InternationalBasketball.com's
"History" area provides the history of the game along with historical advertisements and photos. You'll have to scroll through this rather cumbersome site to find them but it's worth the effort.
NBAHoopsOnline
is a history and statistics site. The navigation bar on the left side of the page allows visitors to scroll through a variety of lists and charts. Access information on former NBA Champions, referees, coaches, #1 draft picks, coaches' titles, and more.
SportsKnowHow.com
has a history of the game including early play, a timeline of major events, notable teams, and the foundation of professional basketball.
For women's basketball ...
The History of Women's Basketball
is a site maintained by an avid collector of women's basketball artifacts. It has a history of the roots of women's basketball accompanied by some interesting vintage photographs. The site isn't graphically exciting, but the quality text and links make it worth a surf.
The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
has a brief history of women's basketball, profiles of past inductees, and visitor information about the museum in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The Rules of Basketball
Since James Naismith introduced his original 13 rules, the game of basketball has been evolving, with rules constantly being tweaked to adjust to changing times. The Web will help you learn the game's central tenets and help you keep up with the latest changes for all levels of play.
Dulcinea's Insight
- You'll find the rules of basketball in two primary forms: brief summaries of the central rules of play, and detailed breakdowns of the official rules. If you're unfamiliar with basketball, start by looking at a summary. If you're a veteran looking for clarification on some nuance, or just plain curious to see the official rules, use one of the detailed breakdowns.
- Basketball.com may present the best overview of the NBA's rules but if you're looking for specific information on associations beyond the NBA, check out USbasketball.com, which digs a bit deeper.
Dulcinea's Picks
For introductory information on the game of basketball ...
TopEndSports
has a concise overview of basketball that's a good starting point for readers with little knowledge of how the sport is played. There's a significant amount of advertising in the margins, so be sure not to confuse it with the genuine content.
Basketball.com
has an in-depth rules area with subsections for the particular types of rules, including scoring and timing, the play clock, fouls and penalties, and more.
The Basketball Hall of Fame
has the original 13 rules of the game, as outlined by Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball.
For official rules ...
NBA.com
has the National Basketball Association's official rules. You'll also find the official referee hand signals.
WNBA.com
has its 2007 official rulebook available in PDF form.
The NCAA
has a 184-page PDF file containing the official rules and interpretations for both men's and women's college basketball.
FIBA.com
is the online home of the International Basketball Federation; it has PDF versions of its official rules available for download.
USA Basketball
provides a thorough breakdown and comparison of basketball's rules across three different leagues: FIBA, NBA, and NCAA. It also has a detailed, 79-page summary of international basketball rules.
Professional Basketball Leagues and Amateur Organizations
Basketball is truly an international sport. Some of the NBA's top players hail from countries as far afield as Germany, Argentina, Serbia, and Lithuania. And although the NBA is the world's premier professional league, there are other exciting pro and amateur leagues with differing levels of talent, operating both at home and abroad. In this section we'll point you toward sites with information about these leagues and the organizations that represent them.
Dulcinea's Insight
- To access the official sites of some obscure international leagues, like the Lithuanian Basketball League or the Philippine Basketball League, check out the Yahoo Directory of basketball leagues.
- Each league page has links to the Web sites of its member teams.
- For information on Division I, II, and III collegiate basketball, visit NCAAsports.com.
Dulcinea's Picks
For organizations ...
FIBA.com
is the online home of the International Basketball Federation, the international governing body for the sport of basketball. At their site you can learn all about the make-up and activities of the organization, read official basketball rules and regulations for international play, and read comprehensive biographies of the member countries.
USA Basketball
is your source for official information about the U.S. national team. On the site you'll find coach and player biographies, team results, schedules, news, and more for both men's and women's squads. Stay on top of their year-round international play using this site.
For pro leagues ...
NBA.com
has a ton of interesting features for info-craving hoop heads. Beyond individual team pages, scores, standings, stats, and schedules, there's an extensive news section covering stories from the league, the NBA abroad, trades, and NBA community programs.
WNBA.com
is the home of the Women's National Basketball Association. On the site you'll find league news from around the Web, a player database with bios and career stats, schedules, standings, and league stats.
The NBA D-League
is the developmental system of the NBA. Check out its official site for team, player, and league data, as well as the latest headlines and ever-important transaction news.
Other professional leagues ...
The Continental Basketball Association
is a pro basketball league that's affiliated with USA Basketball, the sport's governing body in the United States.
The United States Basketball League
is a springtime men's basketball league that was formed in 1985. Notable NBA players to have appeared in the USBL include Spud Webb and Manute Bol.
The American Basketball Association
is a nationwide professional basketball league that was founded in 1999. The site features information about the league and teams, as well as photos, stats, and news.
Basketball Blogs
Sure, watching games and rooting for your team are at the heart of any fan's sporting experience. But let's be honest: the post-game discussion, in the form of amateur analysis, friendly argument, and water-cooler talk, is a huge part of the fun. This type of dialogue has been standardized (and commercialized) online, in the form of basketball blogs. These are daily diaries where fans and pundits vent, preach, or comment on the latest headlines from around the leagues. Their opinion-based observations can be both enlightening and entertaining.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Often, individual teams have official or widely read, privately written blogs. A good method for locating team blogs is to check out the "External Links" section of your team's Wikipedia entry. To do this, visit Wikipedia.org, enter your team's name in the search bar, and scroll down toward the bottom of the page.
- Large sports sites like ESPN.com and SportsIllustrated.com have very good college basketball coverage. For information about these sites and others, check out the "What's the latest in sports news?" section of our Sports guide.
Dulcinea's Picks
TrueHoop
is written by Henry Abbott and considered the best of the best when it comes to basketball blogs. It has recently been acquired by ESPN.
HoopsHype
is one of the most widely read sites for NBA rumors. It provides tons of interviews and insights and has one of the Web's most up-to-date rumor mills.
The NBA FanHouse
is one of the most comprehensive b-ball blogs out there. The site's team of writers covers individual teams as well as the league itself, bringing you the latest news, summaries, trade rumors, analysis, and commentary. If volume is what you're looking for, the FanHouse is your ticket.
The Basketball Jones
provides readers with a daily podcast that recaps recent NBA action and offers insight and analysis. This show is both entertaining and informative.
For college basketball ...
KenPom.com
features the analysis of Ken Pomeroy, who uses statistics to draw conclusions about the world of college basketball. His site features his own RPI, statistical rankings, and a blog that builds on his statistical analysis.
The Mid-Majority
focuses on mid-major conference basketball, with news stories, players of the week, conference tournament coverage and a blog written by Kyle Whelliston. It also features the 100 Games Project, in which Whelliston attended 100 games in a season and wrote about his experiences.
For women's basketball...
Women's Hoops Blog
has extensive coverage of women's college basketball and the WNBA. New content is added daily, with multiple entries during the busier parts of the season. The site's lone weakness is the lack of a search feature or topic-organized archive, which can make it difficult to find the information you're looking for.
Basketball Stats
Statistics are an integral part of basketball (as they are for most all sports). Although they can't measure a player's intangibles, the only quantifiable way to assess a player's ability is to check his stats. Stats can be used to flesh out box scores, make projections, negotiate trades, and more.
Dulcinea's Insight
- APBRmetrics is the analysis of basketball players and games through the study of statistics. Derived from baseball's SABRmetrics, APBRmetrics uses stats and calculations not found in the common box score like Offensive and Defensive Efficiency, Effective Field Goal Percentage and Pythagorean Record.
- 82games.com is dedicated to APBRmetric analysis, and Basketball Reference features many APBRmetric stats. Basketballprospectus.com will apply APBRmetrics to NCAA Basketball when the site launches in time for the 2007-2008 season.
Dulcinea's Picks
Basketball-Reference.com
has all the NBA stats a basketball fan could want, in a very simple and easily searchable format.
databaseBasketball.com
is a data-oriented site voted best basketball reference by Sports Illustrated. The statistics here span the regular and post seasons, and include all-star games. Minimal advertising lets you get straight to the content.
NCAA.org
is the place to find statistical information on intercollegiate basketball. Individual and team statistics are contained within their archives.
NBA.com's
comparison feature allows you to compare team-by-team player statistics dating back to the 1997-98 season.
82games.com
is an innovative site with statistics you can't find in a box score. Though most may be considered "unofficial" statistics, the metrics used to tabulate these stats are helpful for determining which players make their teammates better, who's leading the league in charges taken, and what impact the fast break has. New users should check out the "Visitors Guide" for a primer on how to interpret their statistics.
Basketball Tickets
The roar of the crowd, the throbbing of their stomps and cheers, the smells of the vendors, and the intensity of the players can only be experienced by seeing a game in person. From your doorstep to the stadium gate, the Web can get you there.
Dulcinea's Insight
- If you wish to see any of these teams play live, it's simple to buy tickets via the Internet. Although each team page at NBA.com provides links to purchase tickets, there are also other Web sites that sell tickets without much hassle.
- Ticketmaster.com allows you to buy tickets directly from the box office. The other sites mentioned in this section allow customers to purchase tickets from third parties, typically at a price chosen by the original ticket owner. Every so often you can get tickets for less than face value on the third-party sites as prices are typically set by supply and demand, but more often you'll pay a premium. However, if you want hard-to-get tickets for big events, these sites are very helpful.
Dulcinea's Picks
BuySellTix
allows you to find tickets by browsing through different sports and hot events categories, and by searching for tickets by event name or location. Tickets are available for both college and professional basketball games. BuySellTix also makes it easy to post tickets you wish to sell in the general pool.
Ticketmaster.com
is the official site for event tickets, including the NBA.
StubHub
is known as the site where fans can buy and sell tickets to various events, including basketball games (professional and intercollegiate).
Onlineseats.com
is very similar to BuySellTix.com in terms of matching sellers with potential customers, but may provide different users with various options for purchasing tickets.
Watching and Listening to Basketball Games Online
The Web gives you many options for following basketball, even if you live outside your favorite team's market. It's easy to see or hear games live if you know where to look.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Oftentimes the easiest way to find where your favorite team is being broadcast is to visit their official site.
- For advice on watching the NBA (and other sports) online, check out the "How can I watch games online?" section of our Sports guide.
Dulcinea's Picks
For television ...
NBA League Pass
allows you to view NBA games outside of their local viewing area. For $159 a year, you can view up to 40 games a week. You also gain access to NBA League Pass, which broadcasts live games online.
NBA.com
lists the television networks carrying each game during the season.
Live Sport on TV
is a UK-based site that provides a sport-by-sport listing of where to watch events on UK television. NBA, NCAA, and European league games are listed.
For radio ...
RadioTime
allows visitors to listen to radio feeds online. Search for your local station by entering the station's name, and simply click the play button for instant access. Some stations require a subscription but most are free.
Yahoo
has college basketball radio broadcasts available online for a subscription. Many games, however, are available free of charge.
Sirius Satellite Radio
provides coverage of NCAA and NBA basketball. A complete listing of the NCAA teams broadcasted can be found on this site.
Fantasy Basketball
The Web offers options for both casual and devoted fantasy basketball users, including analysis to help you win your league.
Dulcinea's Insight
- The typical fantasy basketball leagues are comprised of 10 categories: points, rebounds, assists, field goal percentages, free-throw percentages, steals, blocks, three-point field goals, and turnovers.
- The message boards on Fantasy Basketball Cafe are very helpful, especially for new fantasy owners.
- At NBA.com there's a fantasy NBA area with research tools like injury reports, news, a stats center, and depth charts.
Dulcinea's Picks
For leagues ...
Yahoo Fantasy Basketball
provides a hosting service that allows you to create a private league or join a public league. The leagues are free and easy to use for casual fantasy users.
For fantasy analysis ...
The Fantasy Basketball Federation
offers 24 team keeper leagues to serious fantasy users. The cost for new users to start a league is $15.
Rotoworld
is one of the best fantasy-based news sites on the Web, with a team of established members providing up-to-date insight on all major fantasy sports. A bonus feature for this site is the mobile formatting that allows you to view news updates on your phone or Web-enabled PDA.
Basketball Monster
provides customizable rankings for players as well as a very handy schedule grid that allows you to view how many games each team plays in a given fantasy basketball week. This is a no-frills, informative site.
Fanball.com
is a flashier and more user-friendly source of fantasy information. It has in depth articles, a news feed for injury and player status updates, and forums.
Fantasy Basketball Cafe
provides rankings and news, along with an established message board community. Use the forums to ask members specific questions, run leagues, and exchange insights daily.
Improving your Basketball Skills
If you wish to improve your skills and reach your potential as a player, use one of the many Web sites dedicated to basketball skills development.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Below you'll find three varieties of skill improvement sites: those containing original content, those selling instructional videos, and those hosted by national basketball camps.
- Sites with free content are great because they make browsing and reviewing different drills, plays, techniques, and strategies quick and easy. Most use some combination of text, diagrams, and video clips to narrate the instruction. Often these are personal pages, hosted by people with varying degrees of knowledge, so you'll have to evaluate the material from an objective perspective. Degerstrom.com is an example of one such site.
- Videos aren't generally free, but they can be extremely effective tools given their visual nature and cheesy 80s soundtracks. You'll have to select a video based on factors like cost, reviews, authority, and content.
- Basketball camps are the most effective resource, given the individual attention and customized coaching they offer.
- Each of the basketball camp Web sites listed below can provide useful information on how to register for a basketball camp, depending on your age and skill level. Local Web sites may provide information on specific, locally held camps; searches like this can be done on Google.com, searching for "basketball camps" or "adult basketball camps," + "[your area]."
Dulcinea's Picks
For coaching and drills ...
Degerstrom.com's
"Basketball drills" area provides a very detailed list of drills that one can do to improve his or her skills. Options within this site include ball handling, passing, and rebounding.
GuideToCoachingBasketball.com
aims to reveal the "secrets" that basketball coaches use to take their teams to the top. This site provides tips on offense and defense, and lays down the fundamentals.
How To Play Better Basketball
prides itself on being able to teach someone to play like the pros by practicing like the pros.
The BBC
section on Basketball breaks down the rules and equipment needed to play basketball, and also has a subsection dedicated to basketball skills.
For training videos ...
HoopSkills.com
is a basketball skills development site. They sell various training and coaching videos as well as equipment like "strength shoes."
Better Basketball
is the online home of the video series and magazine with the same name. Through these outlets, users can access high quality basketball instruction, covering introductory through advanced skills topics.
Youth Sports Club
, calling itself "Earth's Headquarters for Instructional Sports DVD's, Books & Videos," has a wealth of videos for the eager learner or coach.
For skills camps ...
Five-Star Basketball
camps are high school basketball camps hosted in numerous locations throughout the United States. Five-Star has produced many collegiate and professional players, including Carmello Anthony, Rasheed Wallace, Isiah Thomas, and Patrick Ewing.
www.GirlsBasketballCamps.com
www.GirlsBasketballCamps.com
GirlsBasketballCamps.com
is a directory of girls' basketball camps across the United States. Find a camp near you using the "Camp Locator" clickable U.S. map.
Advantage Basketball Camps
are nationally recognized and were selected by Sports Illustrated as one of the top two camps in the United States. Their Web site provides information on the camps, their methods, and how you can sign up.
The Michael Jordan Flight Schools
have youth and adult basketball camps. Browse the site for details, venues, and registration information.
Never Too Late Basketball
specializes in adult basketball instruction, offering practice programs for beginner to advanced players in weekly sessions and weekend camps.
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