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A higher basket that ceuld net be teushed by either player
would be just for @ll concerned. Just because Dr. Naismith tacked
the peach hamper em the rumming track of the gymnasium et Springfield
Cellege, Springfield, Mass., and that running track happened te be 10
feet frem the fleer is the emly reasen why wer have a 10 feet basket
at the presekt time. Why sheuld net the basket be raised with the
inereasing height ef the players? And players in basketball are getting
constantly taller all the time.

We played Oklahoma A. & Me twe games last year with 7 feet Bob
Kurland, and we wen beth games, se I am met one of these coaches who
are erying because we can't beat mezzanime peeping basketball hurdlers,
but rather I am thinking ef the game. I eann these big beys"mezzanine
hurdlers" beeause they are tall emeugh to teuch the mezzanine floor.

It made me laugh audibly te see what seme ef these coaches said
in their objections te a 12 feet basket. One, that it would make a
little man sheet further than the taller mm. A player sheeting fer a
higher geal accommodates the muscles ef his eyes te height the same as &
player accommedates his eyes te distance. A player standing 20 feet out
en the court and sheeting for a 12 feet basket wevld arch the ball a
little higher and further than he would fer a 10 feot basket. ‘he same
parallel argumext is alwegs good when a player is standing 20 feet out
on the fleor and sheoting fer a 10 feet basket he will areh the ball a
little higher and further than if he were standing out em the fleer 15
feet from the basket. A player arching his shet for o 10 feet basket
15 feet out webld not afeh it as high as he would for a 12 feet basket
at the same distance.

Seme coaches have raised the objection that a shert man geing in
fer a lay-up weuld be fereed to jump two feet higher, whieh would be a
digadvantage te a small man. This shows ome thing, Ralph, that nee of
these coaches have tried a 12 feet basket. There would be neo lay~ins on
these shets beeause each player would be required te shoot at a 12 feet
basket and mone of them could accomplish « lay-in on aceount of the height.
The peerest place te shoot at a 12 feet basket weuld be directly under-
meath the geal. That is emphatically the strong point ef the 12 feet

basket - in that they may net dunk it im the basket nor bat it away.

A hard drive teward the basket which preduees 80 per cent of all
the feul@ by the defense in basketball are made fer this very ebvious
reason «= because a player driving im fer the basket is feuled or draws —
a pair of fouls and the official awards the offended player two free
threwse If you could eut out 80 per cent ef the fouls and practically
all ef the double shets caused frem players threwing these fouls, then
you would have @ much cleaner, epen game where field goal shooting
would be the deminant peint rather than fouk shooting which seems now
te be the case. A field goal would count 3 points and a free throw would
count 1, whieh ws Dr. Naismith's idea es te the evaluation of a field
geal amd a free threw. The whistle blowing ef the officials weuld be cut
Gown immeasurable beeause there would be fewer fouls om account ef the