Dr. James Naismith was born November 6, 1861, near Almonte, Ontario, Canada. While working as a physical education instructor at a YMCA International Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts, he sought to relieve winter gym class doldrums and invented basketball with its 13 original rules. He moved to the University of Kansas in 1898 and served as professor, university physician, and the school's first basketball coach. Ironically, he was the only Kansas coach with a losing record during his tenure.
