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Basketball is a competitive sport invented as a men's game in 1891 by James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts but now played on every inhabited continent and by men and women, most often contested by two teams, each comprising five participating players, for whom substitutions may be made. For some teams the substitutions may only consist of a few players and for others they may have anywhere from 7 to 8 subs. The team attempts to advance a spherical ball through a cast-iron basket with attached net and backboard, elevated such that the basket rim is–in most professional leagues–ten feet (3.048 meters) from the surface of the rectangular basketball court, for indoor games usually made of hardwood and for outdoor games usually made of asphalt, on which the sport is played.

Offensively, a player advances the ball either by bouncing it himself while stationary or moving (dribbling) or by throwing it (passing) it to a teammate, such that a player, within the time permitted by a shot clock, eventually propels (shoots) the ball toward the basket; should the ball pass through the basket, one (free throw), two (field goal), or three (three-point field goal) points, depending on the distance from which the shot is taken, are awarded; the player, in most cases, to have tendered the ball to the scoring player is credited with an assist. Several strategies are employed by a team toward the end of generating uncontested shots for players, who most often begin a given play play in distinct areas—the center and power forward proximate to the basket (top of the key); the small forward and shooting guard proximate to the three-point arc; and the point guard passim. The team to have scored more points upon the expiration of the time alloted for the game, usually between 40 and 60 minutes and divided into four equal quarters or two equal halves, is the winner, and ties are most often settled during overtime periods.

A defense attempts to prevent an offensive team from scoring and to garner the ball for itself, employing various strategies to force an opposing player to surrender (turnover) the basketball, by dispossessing (steal) a player or successfully contesting his shot (block) or, upon an opponent's making an unsuccessful shot, overcoming an opponent to win the loose ball (rebound).

Certain disruptive contact, especially that by which an advantage is gained, is penalized (as a personal foul), as is unsportsmanlike conduct (as a technical foul), with disqualification often imposed on players who accumulate a pre-arranged number of fouls in one game. Certain means of ballhandling, such as one's running with the ball while not dribbling (travelling) or one's catching the ball between dribbles (double dribbling) are proscribed and, when committed by a given team, result in the awarding of possession to the opposing team.

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20130103 2012-13 Michigan Wolverines at Northwestern (1).jpg

The 2012–13 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team represented the University of Michigan during the 2012–13 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. For the forty-sixth consecutive year, the Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team played its home games in Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the Crisler Center. This season marked the team's ninety-sixth consecutive year as a member of the Big Ten Conference (B1G). The team was led by sixth-year head coach John Beilein. The team was led by 2013 national player of the year, Big Ten Player of the Year and 2013 Consensus All-American Trey Burke and three additional All-Conference honorees. Stauskas and McGary earned multiple Big Ten Freshman of the week recognitions during the season. Burke was the second National Player of the Year and fifth first team consensus All-American in Michigan basketball history. Michigan entered the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament as the youngest team in the field. The team made its first Sweet Sixteen appearance since the 1993–94 team did so. The Wolverines appeared in the national championship game for the first time since 1989 – appearances in 1992 and 1993 were vacated due to a scandal. Following the season at the 2013 NBA Draft, Burke and Hardaway, who were selected ninth and twenty-fourth, respectfully, gave Michigan its first pair of first round NBA draft choices since the 1994 NBA Draft.

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Yao Ming

Yao Ming (born 1980) is a Chinese professional basketball player who plays for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is currently the tallest player in the NBA, at 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m). Yao, who was born in Shanghai, China, started playing for the Shanghai Sharks as a teenager, and played on their senior team for five years in the Chinese Basketball Association, winning a championship in his final year. He entered the 2002 NBA Draft, and after negotiating with the CBA and the Sharks to secure his release, he was selected by the Houston Rockets as the first overall pick of the draft. He has since been selected to start for the Western Conference in the NBA All-Star Game in all six of his seasons, and has been named to the All-NBA Team team four times. However, the Rockets have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs since he joined the team, and he has missed significant time due to injury in each of the past three seasons. Yao is married to Ye Li, a former player for the China women's national basketball team. He is one of China's most well-known athletes, with sponsorships with several major companies, and he has been the richest celebrity in China for five straight years. He has also co-written an autobiography of his life with Ric Bucher, and his rookie year in the NBA was the subject of a documentary film.



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