(1) Basketball is now a major sport in the USA. (2) Basketball (INVENT) ________ by Dr. James Naismith at Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891. (3) Basketball is a game played between two teams of five players, in which each team tries to win points by throwing a ball through a net.

(4) Basketball is a very spectator-oriented sport. (5) It is the (THREE) ________most popular game in the USA. (6) People enjoy both watching and playing it.

(7) There (BE) ________ many basketball centers in cities and towns of every state. (8) They do not often produce sportsmen or sportswomen who are successful in world basketball championships but they help young people to keep fit and look athletic.

(9) Basketball (PLAY) ________ by men and women at all levels, from the professional level to high schools and clubs.

(10) One of the (OLD) ________ and the most famous basketball teams is the Harlem Globetrotters, formed in 1926. (11) It has a lot of fans in the USA, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand.

(12) This team (ATTRACT) ________ crowds of fans especially for final or championship matches. (13) One can see photos of its members in newspapers and magazines all over the USA.

(14) The name of the team (BECOME) ________ a symbol of a fast and furious play.