NL Basketball Rules
Spirit of Game:
Canadian Dr. James Naismith created the game of basketball in 1891 while teaching at a YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts. He wanted a game that was non violent and one that could also be played inside. Naismith created 13 original rules that cover passing, dribbling, playing defense, role of a referee, and toward the bottom of the list, scoring. NLS will strive to make each session fun, and it will also be a league where learning basic rules and strategy of game will be taught.
Building Block:
Five minutes prior to each game, all participants will come together for "Building Block Theme". During this time, we'll discuss topics such as teamwork, leadership, safety, making good decisions, and value of hard work for example that are applicable to basketball but are lessons that goes beyond actual sport being played. Throughout the season, local community leaders in business, civic organizations, academia, and also volunteer parents will deliver specific message no longer than 5 minutes.
Role of Referee:
Our referees are current high school basketball players or former college/high school basketball players. They will call fouls, traveling, double dribble, out of bounds, etc. After making a call, they will also show the player(s) what was done wrong, and what to do next time to correct it. Referees help manage pace of game to ensure player safety. Referees also will encourage players, along with team coach to pass the ball and get all players involved. They also time game and call for substitutions every 5 minutes.
Coach:
Team Coaches make substitutions, make sure everyone is involved in game, participates in-group skill session, deliver Building Block, conducts pre game drills, and communicates with team regarding game cancellations/changes. Most important role of any coach is to be encouraging and supportive to all participants.
Team Pairing:
In general, NLS prefers not to take parent request for participants to play on same team. Our primary goal when making teams is to make sure that they are balanced. When there are multiple team requests, ability to ensure teams are fair become difficult and oftentimes not fair. Teams will be made after the first day. On first day, teams will be randomly selected and players will play a game. This is not a tryout. Players will be evaluated based on height, skill, and talent. We will place kids on same team that are siblings (unless told otherwise by parents) and also participants that go to same school.
Maximum Number of Participants:
On each team, there is a maximum of 10 players. In each division, there is a maximum of 8 teams.
- 1st Grade - 80 player max
- 2nd Grade - 80 player max
- 3rd and 4th Grade - 80 player max
- 5th - 6th -7th Grade - 80 player max
Outside Basketballs:
Please keep all outside basketballs in car or at home.
