Basketball Goes College
Some of the first colleges to adopt a basketball program were Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Cornell. These teams made up what was the first inter-collegiate basketball league. There were a total of eight teams.
As time went on, basketball changed. It started out as a game of patience and strategy. Most of the first games had scores that never were more than 15 or 20 points. The ivy league dominated the college basketball spotlight through the forties. As time went on many more colleges got into the swing of things and created teams and these teams joined leagues and so on. All of this led to the emergence of the NCAA.(National Collegiate Athletic Association)
The NCAA
As more and more colleges began to start teams to play this inventive game a higher order took over. The NCAA incorporates much more than basketball, in fact it covers all sports of the Division I colleges. It's importance in basketball, shows up mainly in the season ending tournament.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is responsible for determining the best college team in all the land. The NCAA tournament is where the pros of tomorrow exhibit their skills and abilities.
The NBA
The NBA, the National Basketball Association, is the forerunner of modern basketball at its highest form. This league is more than basketball, it is a multi-million dollar business with contracts, deals, and the best players of all time. The NBA plays a big role in the importance of college basketball and the NCAA.
Many of the players that sign contracts in the NBA come right out of college. Therefore, players that can prove their worth in the NCAA usually wind up very rich individuals!!! The NBA is the parent league of the CBA and often the players that can prove themselves in the CBA move up to NBA.
A Child's Dream
Kids across the World dream of what it would be like to be a professional basketball player. Every kid wants to be like Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson or whoever the new star might be. They practice religiously in hopes of becoming the best.
Basketball has provided much more than a game that is watched and played. It has given many children a dream.