Basketball - Created to Share Christ
While most people understand the four seasons of the year to be winter, spring, summer, and autumn, sports fans tend to identify seasonal changes a bit differently. To the sports fan, the seasons may be baseball, football, hockey, and basketball. These obviously overlap and depending on one’s interests, other sports may be listed. As one moves through these respective sports seasons, the inevitable championship era creates more focus, media attention, and heightened fandom. For the college basketball fan, the month of March is the epitome of the season. The NCAA basketball tournament has used the term “March Madness” as a theme, title, and marketing tool for decades to describe the end-of-year tournament. March Madness (which was a term used to describe the high school basketball tournaments in Illinois as far back as 1931) became synonymous with the NCAA men’s basketball tournament due to broadcaster Brent Musberger using the term in 1980s.[1]
The game of basketball has become a global phenomenon and while much debate continues regarding the game, the greatest players in history, and the professionalization of the college game, it seems that the popularity of the game continues to grow.
While many basketball fans are familiar with the history of the game, the peach baskets, the YMCA, and the name Dr. James Naismith, fewer are aware of the game’s history as a missionary tool.
The “all-American” game of basketball was created by James Naismith. Naismith was born Almonte, Ontario in 1861. He was the oldest of three and when he was nine years old, he and his siblings were orphaned due to his parents contracting typhoid fever. Following the death of his grandmother, he and his siblings were cared for by their uncle.[2]
James was an active young man. He graduated from high school and attended McGill University in Montreal. He loved sports but put that aside for a time to focus on his studies. Eventually some friends convinced him to join the athletic program at the university. He did and became active in the gymnastic and rugby programs and would eventually win the university’s highest honors for athletic involvement.[3] Following graduation, Naismith enrolled in Presbyterian College in Montreal. While studying theology as a ministerial candidate, he determined he could have a great impact for the Lord through the avenue of sports.[4] This was not without controversy. Naismith’s love for God and his draw toward sport was not viewed as natural, normal, or even acceptable by some. He dismayed colleagues and professors by continuing his involvement in athletics. He played lacrosse—a sport often referred to at the time as “legalized murder”, as well as rugby—which was considered by some as a tool of the devil.[5] Naismith was advised to abandon the athletic life and devote himself to books and the duties of Christian ministry. However, he saw how God could bring these two together for His glory.
Following graduation from Presbyterian College, Naismith began working at the YMCA in Springfield, Massachusetts. At the YMCA, he taught various courses and played rugby for the organization. It was after the close of the football season and prior to the start of the baseball season that idleness among the young men grew. The primary option for the young men, regarding athletics, was simply calisthenics. Thus, in 1891 he was charged by his boss at the YMCA, Luther Gulick, to create a new indoor sport that would keep the group of bored, hyperactive young men from beating each other up in the winter. The goal was more than simply to burn calories, but to build character.[6] Naismith was challenged by this and viewed his calling by God, his desire to impact young people, and his love for sports coming together. He looked back to a childhood game he had played in Canada called “Duck on a Rock” and modified it. The name for his new game was “Box Ball.” However, when looking for items to make the game work, he could not find boxes but did find peach baskets. He changed the name to “Basket Ball.”[7] There were efforts to change the name to Naismith Ball, but James refused and eventually, basketball became the name of this new popular, indoor game that filled the gap between football and baseball seasons. Oh, and after dragging a ladder onto the court became cumbersome and time-consuming, someone finally recommended cutting holes in the bottom of the baskets. Eventually, rims were created and nets hung from them and the peach baskets went back to the orchards.
Basketball has grown immensely and changed much since the late 1800s. Names such as Wooden, Mikan, Pettit, Russell, Chamberlain, West, Cousy, Abdul-Jabbar, Bird, Magic, Erving, Jordan, Shaq, Dirk, Kobe, and Lebron, among others are well-known by sports fans and even those who couldn’t explain a pick and roll or a box and one. Basketball is enjoyed by people of all ages from taking shots in a driveway to a backboard attached on the garage to watching millionaires performing amazing feats in billion-dollar arenas. Yet, from the sports genesis is something that may be lost on many. James Naismith’s approach was to put Christianity out there in front of people and seek to influence them through positive character development. He did not view basketball as simply a game, but an evangelism tool. During his time at the YMCA, the game was integrated into their mission trips, and it is recorded that many young people were brought to Christ through these missionaries and the game of basketball. Basketball was even introduced to China through YMCA missionaries.[8] Thus, without the missionary emphasis, Yao Ming may have never played the game.
In the 1930s, Naismith wrote, “Whenever I witness games in a church league, I feel that my vision, almost have a century ago, of the time when the Christian people would recognize the true value of athletics, has become a reality.” He viewed athletics as a new arena for Christian ministry, and he encouraged church leaders to as well. He believed the church could use athletics to reach men and build Christian character.[9] Of course now it is not just men who play the game. Women’s basketball has grown in popularity immensely in the past few decades and women like Summitt, Holdsclaw, Woodard, Miller, Staley, Leslie, Moore, (Spencer) Marlborough, Ionescu, Clark, and more have boosted interest in the game for girls and women.
Many basketball players and fans may be familiar with the history of the game involving Dr. James Naismith, the YMCA, and the peach baskets. Kansas Jayhawks know that Dr. Naismith was the first coach for the University of Kansas. Some may lament that the Christian principles Naismith sought to teach have been eroded. However, we should not minimize how God works. Naismith loved the Lord and sought to impact and see many come to Christ. His proclivity toward sports and athletics was not a disqualifier for service but clearly became an avenue for ministry. There are many who love sports (or other such hobbies and interests) and continue to see how God has placed them where he has for His glory. Perhaps we should seek to see where God has placed us, how he has wired us, and what interests and experiences he has given us as tools for serving him?
You may not invent a game that will become a global phenomenon, but you may just find yourself in a place where you can impact a person for the glory of God that begins with like interests and hobbies. Be in the world, but not of the world and give God the glory. And in the meantime, get ready to fill out your March Madness bracket (all for fun, of course).
“I want to leave the world a little bit better than I found it.” – Dr. James Naismith (1932)
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[1] “How ‘March Madness’ Got Its Name.” NBC 6 South Florida, NBC 6 South Florida, 17 Mar. 2025, www.nbcmiami.com/news/sports/ncaab/march-madness-name-history-ncaa-tournament/3569309/.
[2] “Dr. James Naismith’s Life.” Naismith Basketball Foundation, 13 Nov. 2014, naismithbasketballfoundation.com/james-naismith-life/.
[3] “Dr. James Naismith’s Life.”
[4] “Stories of Giving: Dr. James Naismith - The Presbyterian Church in Canada.” The Presbyterian Church in Canada, presbyterian.ca/stewardship/worship-and-study-tools/stories-of-giving/stories-of-giving-dr-james-naismith/ . Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
[5] “Dr. James Naismith’s Life.”
[6] Relevant. “Jesus, Jumpshots and James Naismith: The Surprisingly Christian History of Basketball.” RELEVANT, 27 Mar. 2025, relevantmagazine.com/culture/sports/jesus-jumpshots-and-james-naismith-the-surprisingly-christian-history-of-basketball/.
[7] “Stories of Giving: Dr. James Naismith - The Presbyterian Church in Canada.”
[8] “How a Christian Invented Basketball and Made It an Evangelization Tool.” Aleteia, aleteia.org/2016/12/21/how-a-christian-invented-basketball-and-made-it-an-evangelization-tool/ . Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
[9] “James Naismith’s Basketball Philosophy: 13 Quotes from the Game’s Inventor.” THE FAITH & SPORTS BLOG, 21 Dec. 2023, blogs.baylor.edu/faithsports/2022/12/21/james-naismiths-basketball-philosophy-13-quotes-from-the-games-inventor/.
