World Report: November 15, 1996 Vol.2 No.9
- This Issue:
- Table of Contents
- Cover Story
- Cover Story - Spanish Version
- Mini-Lesson
- Comprehension Quiz
- Teacher's Guide and Worksheets
Basketball Flashback
These basketball players shot two-handed. They avoided taking jump shots because, well, they were just no good at them. And they considered slam-dunking absolutely rude.
Do these hoopsters sound like a bunch of rank amateurs? They were exactly the opposite--history's first pro basketball players--and they started it all 50 years ago in 1946.
The National Basketball Association's 50th anniversary season opened on November 1 with a rematch of the first professional game: New York vs. Toronto. The teams wore historic uniforms.
Basketball is not the same game it was in 1946. Players, on average, are 3 inches taller now! Most players in 1946 were paid less than $5,000 a year. They had to take other jobs to support themselves. Now N.B.A. players can rest easy in the off-season unless they're busy making shoe commercials. The average N.B.A. salary: $2.1 million. Big stars like Shaq and Michael Jordan make millions more.
N.B.A. games travel via satellite to TVs the world over. In Beijing, China, folks love the Chicago Bulls, whom they call the "Red Oxen." It's hard to believe that in 1962, when Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a single game for the Philadelphia Warriors, there wasn't even one TV camera to film his amazing feat.
The basketball craze shows no sign of slowing down. Last year a record 20 million fans bought N.B.A. tickets. But if ticket prices go up at the same rate over the next 50 years, fans in 2046 will have to shell out $200,000 for a courtside seat!
