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Jumping

How high someone jumps depends on how much force is used to push down on the floor. How hard they push down is based on the strength and power of the person's legs. The harder they push down the higher they go. Hang time is mostly an illusion by the person jumping because they are moving in a direction. Half of the time in the air is generally going up, while the other half they are falling down. Gravity has a major affect on jumping. If there was no gravity, players could jump alot higher, but would not be able to come down. Players try to combat gravity by wearing light shoes, being in shape, and doing anything they think might help. The maximum jump height is reached when time= the vertical component of the jump velocity at take off divided by the acceleration due to gravity.

Bouncing

     While dribbling a basketball, the ball comes back up. This is because of the collision between the air molecules in the basketball and the ground. When the ball hits the ground, the bottom hitting the ground has a "dent" in it. Air is a gas. In gases, the molecules move freely and bounce and hit each other. When the ball is "dented," the air molecules get packed into a tighter space. With this smaller space, the molecules move and bounce off each other at greater speeds. This greater speed pushes against the wall of the basketball and forces it to its original size, which causes it to bounce. 1) "This proves Newton's Third Law, which states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Which explains why when the ball is pressed in by the floor, the ball exerts an equal and opposite force and bounces back upwards."
     Hurling a basketball down creates a the same power going back up, which proves Newton's Third Law. However, the basketball doesn't reach back to its full height. This is due to the forces of air pressure and gravity.

Free Throws

A free throw is a shot from a line 15 feet from the basket. Sound easy? It's not. Engineers from North Carolina State give the following recommendations.

• Give the ball a backspin of 3 Hz, which is 3 complete reveloutions. This helps the ball go through the net with more ease.
• Aim at the back of the rim. Estimates say that this increases the chances of it foing in by 3%. You want the ball going in with about 2 inches between the ball and teh back of the rim.
• Have a 52 degree launch, which means the highest point should be 2 inches lower than the top of the backboard.
• Practice, Practice, Practice. The easiest way is muscle memory.

Spinning

Basketballs don't travel at very high speeds while in the air and so, if they spin, it doesn't effect the air resistance on the ball. Spinning helps the basketball into the hoop if it hits the rim or backboard. Since the ball is spinning, the amount of energy being produced is reduced because the friction increase from it. The loss of energy reduces the speed of the ball when it hits the board/rim and has a smaller rebound.

Friction

Friction is a force that opposes the motion of two objects that are in contact with each other. Proper basketball shoes add friction, allowing a player to turn and to run faster. The design of the outsole of the shoe affects the friction on the floor. If there was no friction, a basketball player would have a hard time moving, and once he moved, stopping and changing direction. Players need to be able to turn quickly to try to stay ahead of their opponents.

A Brief History of Basketball

Basketball was invented by Dr. James Naismith in the winter of 1891. He created 13 rules. Today, basketball is one of the most popular sports. Famous players include Michael Jordan, Julius Erving, Dwight Howard, and Jimmer Fredette. Julius Erving, known as Dr. J, was one of the first players to slam dunk. Michael Jordan increased the popularity of basketball with his amazing athletic ability in the "Be like Mike" era. DwightHoward has proved that defense is cool and wowed spectators with his athleticism. Jimmer Fredette shows that size doesn't matter and created his own "Jimmer" range and rage.