The Sport

Basketball is a fast paced game that requires endurance, speed, strength and hand-eye coordination. It is one of the most popular sports world-wide, with over one million boys and girls playing high school varsity basketball, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. For parents new to the game, here's what you need to know.

In many sports, the Olympics have progressively been undergoing a quiet revolution, one in which women, most specifically ones that are mothers, are still competing at the highest level in their sports well into their thirties. Tina Thompson, 33, the first pick in the WNBA's first draft in 1997, and mother of three year old son Dylan, is a woman who exemplifies this new movement.

Four-time Olympian, WNBA star and new mom, Lisa Leslie is arguably the finest female basketball player to ever play the game.

A Basketball Court's dimensions.

The skills associated with Basketball.

Point guards direct the team when on offense and cover the guards on defense. They are usually the shortest players on the team, but their quickness, ball-handling and passing ability, and ability to make steals (i.e. intercept) balls make up them very important players, despite their lack of height.