Changzhou
Changzhou is a prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. It was known as Yanling and Jinling. Located on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, Changzhou borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the west, Zhenjiang to the northwest, Wuxi to the east, the province of Zhejiang to the south. Changzhou is located in the developed Yangtze Delta region of China extending from Shanghai going northwest; the population of Changzhou city was 4,592,431 at the 2010 census. "The Ruins of Yancheng", comprise the remains of a walled city located in the Wujin district of Changzhou, founded over 3000 years ago at the beginning of the Western Zhou dynasty. The earliest record of a settlement on the site of modern Changzhou is as a commandery founded in 221 BC at the beginning of the Qin Dynasty. During the interregnum between the Sui and Tang, the city of Piling was the capital of Shen Faxing's short-lived Kingdom of Liang. Changzhou got its present name meaning "ordinary prefecture" in 589.
Following construction of the Grand Canal in 609, Changzhou became a canal port and transshipment point for locally-grown grain, has maintained these roles since. The rural counties surrounding Changzhou are noted for the production of rice, tea, silk and fruit. During the Taiping Rebellion of the 1850s, one of five palaces housing the leaders of the so-called "Kingdom of Celestial Peace" was constructed in Changzhou. Today the ruins of the "King's Palace" can be found near the People's No.1 Hospital. In the 1920s, Changzhou started to attract cotton mills; the cotton industry got a boost in the late 1930s when businesses began relocating outside of Shanghai due to the Japanese occupation. Unlike many Chinese cities, Changzhou continued to prosper during the upheavals of the Cultural Revolution of 1966–76. Today it is an important industrial center for textiles, food processing and high technology. Historical Changes On January 1, 1953, Changzhou was set as provincially administrated municipality.
In 1958, Zhenjiang Prefecture was renamed as Changzhou Prefecture, the administration office was moved from Zhenjiang to Changzhou. Changzhou was incorporated by Changzhou Prefecture. In 1959, Changzhou Prefecture was changed into Zhenjiang Prefecture, the administration office was moved from Changzhou to Zhenjiang. Changzhou was incorporated by Zhenjiang Prefecture. In 1960, Wujin County of Zhenjiang Prefecture was incorporated into Changzhou. In 1962, Changzhou was changed into provincially administrated municipality and Wujin County was incorporated into Zhenjiang Prefecture. In 1983, when the municipally affiliated county system was carried out, Wujin County, Jintan County and Liyang County of Zhenjiang were incorporated into Changzhou; the urban area was divided into five municipally administrated districts, Tianning, Zhonglou and Jiaoqu. At that time, Changzhou administrated five districts. From September of 1986, as approved by State Council, Guanghua District was revoked and the previous administrative area was incorporated into Zhonglou District and Tianning Districrt.
Liyang County was changed into Liyang City. At that time, Changzhou administrated two counties and four districts. In 1993, Jintan County was changed into Jintan City. In 1995, Longhutang Town, Xinqiao Town, Baizhang Town and Weitang Town of Wujin County were incorporated into Jiaoqu District; as approved by State Council on June 8 of 1995, Wujin County was promoted to Wujin City, with the government set in Hutang Town. In 1999, as approved by the provincial government, Taixiang Town of Jiaoqu District was revoked and incorporated into Xueyan Town of Wujin City; the prefecture-level city of Changzhou administers seven county-level divisions, including five districts and one county-level city. Its total population was 4,592,431 inhabitants at the 2010 census, an average 2% per year increase since the previous census, 3,290,918 lived in the built-up area made up of 5 urban districts. Changzhou is an educational hub and is home to several universities, including Changzhou University, Hohai University, Jiangsu Teachers' University of Science and Technology, Jiangsu Teachers' University of Technology, Changzhou Institute of Technology.
The city has a number of prominent secondary schools, including the Changzhou Senior High School of Jiangsu Province. As the first education park taking higher vocational education as its distinguishing feature in China, Changzhou Higher Vocational Education Base was called the “cradle of silver-collar workers”; every year, it cultivated 20,000 technological talents to the Yangtze River Delta area. 100% of the graduates signed employment contracts and the one-off employment rate was higher than 98%. There are 5 higher vocational colleges and an undergraduate college in the park, which have realized the cross-school study, common credit and resource sharing. A large number of qualified vocational talents were cultivated here. Based on this, Changzhou Scientific Education Town was founded, it cooperates with foreign universities in America, Canada and Germany, domestic universities like Nanjing University, scientific institutes and hi-tech enterprises in constructing nearly 100 laboratory, practice and technological R&D centers.
Presently, it is marching towards the national sample vocational education area, experimental area of production and research, the cluster area of scientific innovation. Many central leaders such as Hu Jintao, Jia Qinglin and Luo Gan have paid inspection visits here and spoke of it. Changzhou's traditional role has been that of a c
WNBA draft
The WNBA draft is an annual draft held by the WNBA through which WNBA teams can select new players from a talent pool of college and professional women's basketball players. The first WNBA draft was held in 1997; the WNBA "requires players to be at least 22, to have completed their college eligibility, to have graduated from a four-year college or to be four years removed from high school". Since the WNBA draft is held in April, before most U. S. colleges and universities have ended their academic years, the league considers anyone scheduled to graduate in the 3 months after the draft to be a "graduate" for draft purposes. The specifics of this rule differ in several ways from those used by the NBA for its draft. Both drafts make a distinction between U. S. and "international" players. However, the definition of "international player" differs between the two drafts; the NBA defines an "international player" as an individual who has permanently resided outside the U. S. for the three years preceding the draft while playing basketball, did not complete high school education in the U.
S. and has never enrolled in a U. S. college or university. A prospective NBA player's birthplace or citizenship is not relevant to his status as an "international player". On the other hand, the WNBA defines an "international player" as "any person born and residing outside the United States who participates in the game of basketball as an amateur or professional", who has never "exercised intercollegiate basketball eligibility" in the U. S; this means that a prospective WNBA player, born in the United States is treated as a U. S. player, regardless of where she was trained in basketball. The association defines as an "international player" a prospect with non-U. S. Nationality if one of her parents is a natural-born American; the current age limit for NBA draft eligibility is 19, measured on December 31 of the calendar year of the draft. The WNBA's age limit is 20 for "international players" and 22 for U. S. players, both being measured as of December 31 of the calendar year of the draft. A WNBA prospect who graduates from college while under the age limit can be eligible, but only if the calendar year of her college graduation is no earlier than the fourth after her high school graduation.
In both drafts, players subject to the rules for U. S. players can declare early eligibility. For those players who are eligible to declare early, the timing of the declaration process is different. NBA prospects must notify the league office of their intent to enter the draft no than 60 days prior to the draft, held in June. Current rules allow prospects to withdraw from the draft and retain college eligibility, as long as they comply with NCAA rules regarding relationships with agents, do not sign a professional contract, notify the league office of their withdrawal no than 10 days after the end of the NBA Draft Combine. WNBA prospects must notify the league office no than 10 days before the draft, must renounce any remaining college eligibility to enter the draft. However, because postseason national tournaments are still ongoing during the 10 days prior to the draft, certain players who would otherwise be eligible to declare cannot do so before the standard deadline. A prospect whose team is still playing during the 10-day window must make her declaration within the 24 hours following her team's final game of the season, but no less than 3 hours before the scheduled start of the draft.
The 1997 WNBA draft was divided into three parts. The first part was the initial allocation of 16 players into individual teams. Players such as Cynthia Cooper and Michelle Timms were assigned to different teams; the second part was the WNBA Elite draft, composed of professional women's basketball players who had competed in other leagues. The last part would be the 4 rounds of the regular draft; the next three seasons to follow 1998, 1999 and 2000 would all have expansion drafts. There would not be another expansion draft until the 2006 season. All seasons before 2002 had 4 rounds. Since 2003, all drafts are 3 rounds. In 2003 and 2004, there would be dispersal drafts due to the folding of the Cleveland Rockers, Miami Sol and Portland Fire; the players were reallocated to existing teams. There were dispersal drafts in 2007 with the folding of the Charlotte Sting, 2009 with the shuttering of the Houston Comets, in 2010 when the Maloofs cast off the Sacramento Monarchs to focus their resources on the Kings franchise in the NBA.
There are no restrictions. However, college sports governing bodies, most notably the NCAA, prohibit players from competing in professional leagues with their college eligibility. Once the player has joined the WNBA, she is eligible to participate in overseas leagues during the WNBA offseason. Dena Head is the oldest #1 draft pick, having graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1992 and the first player drafted to the WNBA. Lauren Jackson is the youngest #1 draft pick, being drafted at the age of 19; as of 2012, six first picks have gone on to win WNBA Championships, with 12 rings amongst them. In the seventeen seasons that the WNBA has been in existence, eight #1 draft picks have helped lead their teams to a playoff berth in their rookie year. Notes WNBA Rookie of the Year Award
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association as a member club of the league's Western Conference, Northwest Division. Since 1991, the team has played its home games at Vivint Smart Home Arena; the franchise began play in 1974 as an expansion team based in New Orleans. The Jazz were one of the least successful teams in the league in their early years. Although 10 seasons elapsed before the Jazz qualified for their first playoff appearance in 1984, they did not miss the playoffs again until 2004. During the late 1980s, John Stockton and Karl Malone arose as the franchise players for the team, formed one of the most famed point guard–power forward duos in NBA history. Led by coach Jerry Sloan, who took over from Frank Layden in 1988, they became one of the powerhouse teams of the 1990s, culminating in two NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998, where they lost both times to the Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan.
Both Stockton and Malone moved on in 2003. After missing the playoffs for three consecutive seasons the Jazz returned to prominence under the on-court leadership of point guard Deron Williams. However, partway through the 2010–11 NBA season, the Jazz began restructuring after Sloan's retirement and Williams' trade to the New Jersey Nets. Quin Snyder was hired as head coach in June 2014. On June 7, 1974, the New Orleans Jazz were admitted as an expansion franchise into the National Basketball Association. Team officials selected the name because of its definition in the dictionary: collective improvisation; the team began its inaugural season in New Orleans in the 1974–75 season. The team's first major move was to trade for star player Pete Maravich from the Atlanta Hawks for two first-round draft picks, three second-round picks, one third-round pick over the next three years. Although he was considered one of the most entertaining players in the league and won the scoring championship for the 1976-77 season with 31.1 points per game, the Jazz's best record while in New Orleans was 39–43 in the 1977–78 season.
Maravich struggled with knee injuries from that season onward. Venue issues were a continual problem for the team. In the Jazz's first season, they played in the Municipal Auditorium and Loyola Field House, where the basketball court was raised so high that the NBA Players Association made the team put a net around the court to prevent players from falling off of the court and into the stands; the Jazz played games in the cavernous Louisiana Superdome, but things were no better, because of high demand for the stadium, onerous lease terms, Maravich's constant knee problems. They faced the prospect of spending a whole month on the road each year because of New Orleans' Mardi Gras festivities, similar to the long road trip faced by the San Antonio Spurs each season during their city's rodeo. Years founding owner Sam Battistone claimed that there was no contingency plan in case the Jazz had qualified for the playoffs. However, the Superdome's manager at the time, Bill Curl, said that the stadium's management always submitted a list of potential playoff dates to the Jazz management, but these letters were never answered.
After what turned out to be their final season in New Orleans, the Jazz were dealt a further humiliation when the Los Angeles Lakers selected Magic Johnson with the first overall pick in the 1979 NBA draft. The pick would have been the Jazz's had they not traded it to acquire Gail Goodrich two years earlier; the Jazz had given up the rights to Moses Malone in order to regain one of the three first-round picks used for the Goodrich trade. Despite being competitive, the Jazz drew well during their first five years. However, by 1979 the franchise was sinking financially. Barry Mendelson, the team's executive vice president for most of the early years, said one factor in the financial trouble was an 11-percent amusement tax, highest in the U. S. at the time. The team could not attract much local corporate support—an important factor in those days—or local investors. Battistone decided to move it. After scouting several new homes, he decided on Salt Lake City though it was a smaller market. Salt Lake City had been home to the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association from 1970 to 1976.
The Stars had been popular in the city and had won an ABA title in their first season after moving from Los Angeles. However, their finances collapsed in their last two seasons, they were shut down by the league 16 games into the 1975–76 season after missing payroll. Although Salt Lake City was not known for its jazz culture, the team decided to keep the name, as there was not enough time before the start of the 1979–80 season to receive league approval for a name change; the Jazz preserved the original Mardi Gras-themed colors: green and gold. The Jazz's attendance declined after the team's move from New Orleans to Utah because of a late approval for the move and poor marketing in the Salt Lake City area; the team's management made the first of several moves in 1979, bringing high-scoring forward Adrian Dantley to Utah in exchange for Spencer Haywood. Dantley averaged 28 points per game during the 1979–80 season, allowing the team to waive Pete Maravich early in
Taylorsville High School
Taylorsville High School is a public high school established in 1981, located in Taylorsville, United States. The principal is Mrs. Emily Liddell; the mascot is the Wilbur the Warrior. The current enrollment represents many different ethnic groups. Taylorsville High is one of eight high schools in Granite School District. Taylorsville High is located in the central part of the Salt Lake Valley and was built in 1981 to serve the growing population of the Taylorsville area. School boundaries are Jordan River to 3100 West and 4100 South to 6600 South; as of the 2017-18 school year, 1,762 students are enrolled at Taylorsville High School. Taylorsville has immense pride in its history and continues to strive to improve and excel academically. Taylorsville has successful programs for AVID, JROTC and Latinos in Action, along with large AP program. Mrs. Emily Liddell- Principal Emily Liddell assumed the position of principal on March 5, 2018 after Dr. Garrett Muse was appointed Director of High School Accountability for the Granite School District.
Mr. Jami Hutchins- Assistant Principal Mr. Jordan Kjar- Assistant Principal Mr. Brian Murray- Assistant Principal Dr. A Earl Catumull 1981-1986 K. Wendall Sullivan 1986-1988 Michael B. Cannon 1988-1993 Dr. David Gourley 1993-2003 Jerry Haslam- 2003-2010 Dr. Garett Muse- 2010-2018 Taylorsville High offers nineteen different Advanced Placement courses along with several Honors courses in core subjects. Advanced Placement courses are created by the College Board and offer college-level material and exams to high school students. Students may receive course credit at colleges and universities across the country, if they earn a high score on the exam. Taylorsville offers Concurrent Enrollment classes, these are college-level classes which are offered to juniors and seniors, in which students can earn both high school and college credit at the same time. Concurrent Enrollment classes are taught by Taylorsville faculty who have been approved by Salt Lake Community College or Utah Valley University as adjunct faculty members.
Concurrent enrollment credit can be transferred to most state colleges. Taylorsville has a large AVID program, was recognized as an AVID Highly Certified Site for 2017–18. AVID is an in-school academic support program that helps prepare students for college, by teaching them skills needed to succeed in college. AVID places academically average students in Honors, CE, AP classes and provides support to help the student see success in these more advanced classes; the AVID program continues to have a 100% college acceptance rate, meaning every AVID senior has been accepted into a college or university. In Jan of 1994, Taylorsville High was approved to offer a JROTC program to students. Taylorsville's JROTC program has earned the Unit of Distinction Award seven out of eight years possible; the program still is the only JROTC program in the state that does so. The program teaches students the Army values, helps students get back on track or stay on track for graduation, excellent leadership skills to use throughout their life.
The original JROTC instructors were Lieutenant Colonel Horton and First Sergeant Heikel, the program is under the direction of Lieutenant Colonel Andersen and Sergeant First Class Wilson. Taylorsville has an established Journalism program and has received national awards for the school newspaper, The Warrior Ledger; the American Scholastic Press Association has awarded The Warrior Ledger, with top honors, three years in a row. The school's reputation for legacy has been demonstrated in competitions in organizations such as FBLA, DECA, FCCLA and SkillsUSA. In a region competition, the FBLA club came in fifth place overall, the region covers three counties. Taylorsville competes as a member of Region III at the 6A level as part of the Utah High School Activities Association. Region III consists of Copper Hills, Riverton, West Jordan, East as a football only member. Taylorsville High School will be moving into 6A Region II for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years with Cyprus, Hunter, West Jordan, West as a football only member.
The Athletic Directors are Rebecca Elkins. Taylorsville High has won 17 team state championships since 1981, including 10 baseball championships. 1984 4A Boys Golf- State Runner Up: 1983, 1993 1988 4A Volleyball 1989 4A Girls Basketball- State Runner Up: 1987, 1988, 2002 1997 5A Softball 1998 5A Wrestling- State Runner Up: 1994 21 Individual State Championships have been earned by Taylorsville wrestlers, most notably: Justin Ruiz, had a long and decorated wrestling career, highlighted by earning a bronze medal at the 2005 World Championships. Justin has continued his wrestling career, as a coach. Kyle Thornock Roy Nash, Named Win Magazine's Wrestler of the Year for the state of Utah in 2013. Roy was the only state champion in the entire state to go undefeated during the 2013 season. Roy was ranked #1 in the country in Greco-Roman style wrestling for his age and weight class. 2000 5A Boys Swimming- State Runner Up: 1995, 1999 2007 5A Softball- State Runner Up: 1996, 2008, 2014 Boys Basketball- 1995, 2002, 2014 Girls Basketball- 1988, 1989, 1993, 2002, 2012 Boys Cross Country- 1988, 2001, 2004 Drill- 1995, 2004 Boys Soccer- 1988, 1989, 1994, 1996, 2002, 2014 Girls Soccer- 1990, 1992, 2000 Boys Track- 1989, 2002, 2003, 2004 Girls Track- 2
Nanjing
Nanjing romanized as Nanking and Nankin, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China and the second largest city in the East China region, with an administrative area of 6,600 km2 and a total population of 8,270,500 as of 2016. The inner area of Nanjing enclosed by the city wall is Nanjing City, with an area of 55 km2, while the Nanjing Metropolitan Region includes surrounding cities and areas, covering over 60,000 km2, with a population of over 30 million. Situated in the Yangtze River Delta region, Nanjing has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having served as the capital of various Chinese dynasties and republican governments dating from the 3rd century to 1949, has thus long been a major center of culture, research, economy, transport networks and tourism, being the home to one of the world's largest inland ports; the city is one of the fifteen sub-provincial cities in the People's Republic of China's administrative structure, enjoying jurisdictional and economic autonomy only less than that of a province.
Nanjing has been ranked seventh in the evaluation of "Cities with Strongest Comprehensive Strength" issued by the National Statistics Bureau, second in the evaluation of cities with most sustainable development potential in the Yangtze River Delta. It has been awarded the title of 2008 Habitat Scroll of Honor of China, Special UN Habitat Scroll of Honor Award and National Civilized City. Nanjing boasts many high-quality universities and research institutes, with the number of universities listed in 100 National Key Universities ranking third, including Nanjing University which has a long history and is among the world top 10 universities ranked by Nature Index; the ratio of college students to total population ranks No.1 among large cities nationwide. Nanjing is one of the top three Chinese scientific research centers, according to the Nature Index strong in the chemical sciences. Nanjing, one of the nation's most important cities for over a thousand years, is recognized as one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China.
It has been one of the world's largest cities, enjoying peace and prosperity despite wars and disasters. Nanjing served as the capital of Eastern Wu, one of the three major states in the Three Kingdoms period; the city served as the seat of the rebel Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Japanese puppet regime of Wang Jingwei during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It suffered severe atrocities including the Nanjing Massacre. Nanjing has served as the capital city of Jiangsu province since the establishment of the People's Republic of China, it boasts many important heritage sites, including the Presidential Palace and Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum. Nanjing is famous for human historical landscapes and waters such as Fuzimiao, Ming Palace, Chaotian Palace, Porcelain Tower, Drum Tower, Stone City, City Wall, Qinhuai River, Xuanwu Lake and Purple Mountain. Key cultural facilities include Nanjing Museum and Nanjing Art Museum; the city has a number of other names, some historical names are now used as names of districts of the city.
When it was the capital of a state, for instance during the ROC, Jing was adopted as the abbreviation of Nanjing. The city first became a Chinese national capital as early as the Jin dynasty; the name Nanjing, which means "Southern Capital", was designated for the city during the Ming dynasty, about six hundred years later. Nanjing is known as Jinling or Ginling and the old name has been used since the Warring States period in the Zhou dynasty. Archaeological discovery shows. Zun, a kind of wine vessel, was found to exist in Beiyinyangying culture of Nanjing in about 5000 years ago. In the late period of Shang dynasty, Taibo of Zhou came to Jiangnan and established Wu state, the first stop is in Nanjing area according to some historians based on discoveries in Taowu and Hushu culture. According to a legend quoted by an artist in Ming dynasty, Chen Yi, King of the State of Wu, founded a fort named Yecheng in today's Nanjing area in 495 BC. In 473 BC, the State of Yue conquered Wu and constructed the fort of Yuecheng on the outskirts of the present-day Zhonghua Gate.
In 333 BC, after eliminating the State of Yue, the State of Chu built Jinling Yi in the western part of present-day Nanjing. It was renamed Moling during reign of Qin Shi Huang. Since the city experienced destruction and renewal many times; the area was successively part of Kuaiji and Danyang prefectures in Qin and Han dynasty, part of Yangzhou region, established as the nation's 13 supervisory and administrative regions in the 5th year of Yuanfeng in Han dynasty. Nanjing was the capital city of Danyang Prefecture, had been the capital city of Yangzhou for about 400 years from late Han to early Tang. Nanjing first became a state capital in AD 229, when the state of Eastern
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one or more one-point free throws; the team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play is mandated. Players advance the ball by bouncing it while walking or running or by passing it to a teammate, both of which require considerable skill. On offense, players may use a variety of shots -- a dunk, it is a violation to lift or drag one's pivot foot without dribbling the ball, to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands resume dribbling.
The five players on each side at a time fall into five playing positions: the tallest player is the center, the tallest and strongest is the power forward, a shorter but more agile big man is the small forward, the shortest players or the best ball handlers are the shooting guard and the point guard, who implements the coach's game plan by managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays. Informally, players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, one-on-one. Invented in 1891 by Canadian-American gym teacher James Naismith in Springfield, United States, basketball has evolved to become one of the world's most popular and viewed sports; the National Basketball Association is the most significant professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries and level of competition. Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as the Euroleague and FIBA Americas League; the FIBA Basketball World Cup and Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament are the major international events of the sport and attract top national teams from around the world.
Each continent hosts regional competitions for national teams, like FIBA AmeriCup. The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament feature top national teams from continental championships; the main North American league is the WNBA, whereas strongest European clubs participate in the EuroLeague Women. In early December 1891, Canadian James Naismith, a physical education professor and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School in Springfield, was trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day, he sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums, he wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto a 10-foot elevated track. In contrast with modern basketball nets, this peach basket retained its bottom, balls had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored.
Basketball was played with a soccer ball. These round balls from "association football" were made, at the time, with a set of laces to close off the hole needed for inserting the inflatable bladder after the other sewn-together segments of the ball's cover had been flipped outside-in; these laces could dribbling to be unpredictable. A lace-free ball construction method was invented, this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith; the first balls made for basketball were brown, it was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle, searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball, now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling was common by 1896, with a rule against the double dribble by 1898; the peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were replaced by metal hoops with backboards.
A further change was soon made, so the ball passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got; the baskets were nailed to the mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from a children's game called duck on a rock, as many had failed before it. Frank Mahan, one of the players from the original
Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever are a professional basketball team based in Indianapolis, playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association. The team was founded; the team is owned by Herb Simon, who owns the Fever's NBA counterpart, the Indiana Pacers, Simon Malls. The Fever has qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in thirteen of its seventeen years in Indiana; the franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as Tennessee standout Tamika Catchings, hometown favorite Katie Douglas, Australian defensive specialist Tully Bevilaqua. In 2009, the Fever fell short to Phoenix. On October 21, 2012, the Fever won the WNBA Championship with a win over the Minnesota Lynx. Tamika Catchings was named the series MVP; the Indiana Fever team began in 2000, when the state was granted an expansion franchise to coincide with the opening of Bankers Life Fieldhouse. In their first two seasons, they were coached by women's basketball legends Anne Donovan and Nell Fortner. Led by center Kara Wolters, in their inaugural campaign the team posted a record of 9–23.
The Fever drafted University of Tennessee star Tamika Catchings in the 2001 WNBA Draft. The Fever went into the year with high expectations of a playoff berth, but Catchings tore her ACL during a college game and missed the entire WNBA season; the Fever posted a 10–22 record in 2001. After missing the entire 2001 season, the 2002 season proved to be the breakout season for Tamika Catchings and the Fever. Catchings came out strong and became one of the most versatile players in the WNBA winning Rookie of the Year honors as well as making the WNBA All-Star team, her team competed well all year and would post a respectable 16–16 record, tying for the final playoff spot with the Orlando Miracle. Indiana would earn their first playoff appearance in franchise history, they drew the # 1 seed in the Liberty. The 2002–2003 offseason brought a lot of change for the Fever; the team added Olympian Natalie Williams and Charlotte Sting star Kelly Miller before the 2003 season. During the offseason the original coach and GM Nell Fortner would resign.
Kelly Krauskopf would replace Fortner as GM and hire Brian Winters to be the head coach. On May 29, 2003 the Fever registered their first sellout of 18,345 and defeated the Washington Mystics on national television; the team missed the playoffs, posting a 16 -- 18 record. The 2004 campaign was similar to 2003's; the Fever finished with a 15–19 record. They missed the playoffs by one game in the Eastern Conference. In 2005, the Fever had their best season since joining the league, posting a 21–13 record, making the playoffs for just the second time. In the first round, the Fever swept the New York Liberty two games to none, earning their first playoff series victory in franchise history. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Fever faced the favored Connecticut Sun. Game 1 came down to the final seconds when Katie Douglas hit a crucial three to win the game for the Sun. Game 2 went with the Sun winning, thus sweeping the Fever two games to none. In the 2005–2006 offseason, the Fever acquired All-Star Anna DeForge from the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for Kelly Miller.
That offseason the Fever made another All-Star addition by signing free agent Tamika Whitmore from the Los Angeles Sparks. In the 2006 WNBA Draft they selected athletic swing-forward La'Tangela Atkinson from the North Carolina Tar Heels along with Kasha Terry from the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets; the Fever started the 2006 season off at 4–0 and jumped out to an early lead in the Eastern Conference standings. Teammates Tamika Catchings and Tully Bevilaqua led the league in steals and second the first time teammates led the league in one statistical category; the Fever posted a 21 -- 13 record. In the first round, the Fever would face arch rival Detroit. Detroit held a one-game to nothing lead in the series. Game 2 in Detroit was a high scoring affair with Tamika Whitmore scoring a WNBA Playoff record 41 points. Detroit won the series two games to none. Going into the 2006–2007 off-season, the Fever looked to improve their post play. In the Dispersal Draft, the Fever would add veteran forward Sheri Sam from the Charlotte Sting.
Kelly Krauskoft and the front office set their eyes on key Free Agent Center Tammy Sutton-Brown, signing her on March 22, 2007. The Fever would select 6–7 center Alison Bales from Duke University in the 2007 WNBA Draft to go along with Sutton-Brown. Going into the 2007 season, the Fever had their eyes set on the WNBA Finals, they started off the season strong, winning 16 out of their first 20 games, the best 20 game start in history of the Eastern Conference. On July 20, key player Tamika Catchings would injure her foot and would miss the rest of the regular season; the injury was revealed as a partial tear of her plantar fascia. The Fever would finish 5–9 without Catchings, they managed beating out the Connecticut Sun. They played the same Sun team in first round of the playoffs. Game 1 in Connecticut was an epic battle, going three overtimes with the Sun hanging on to win Game 1, 93–88; the Fever would win Game 2 at home by double digits forcing a decisive Game 3. In game 3, the Fever would find themselves down by 22 points late halfway through the 3rd quarter.
The Fever battled back to win Game 3 in overtime by the same score as Game 1 93–88. The 22-point comeback was the largest comeback in WNBA Playoff history
