This Is Our Game: Undefeated

This is Our Game explores the rich tradition of the U.S. National Teams, uncovering the victories, defeats, and rivalries of the last seven decades. In Part One of the series, as the game spreads to the world, the first and greatest American basketball dynasty is born.

1936-1968.

It all started with a peach basket nailed to a wall, back in 1891, by a high school PE teacher named James Naismith. He’d invented the game as a way to keep his students warm in winter, but it wasn’t long before it’s popularity spread, eventually growing into an American pastime and a global phenomenon.

Basket Ball, a name chosen by one of his students, was soon being played in schoolyards and colleges across the country. By the early 1900’s, official rules were established, the NCAA was formed, and the game became a regular part of life for many Americans. But it wasn’t until World War I, when young soldiers were sent abroad, that basketball was spread to the world.

Before long, the game that started in a high school gym was a major global sport. And so it was decided, almost forty years after that gym class in Springfield, MA, that basketball was to become an official event at the 1936 Games.

From the tip-off, the United States was unstoppable. The team, though made up of young amateurs, won its first five games without much effort. And it was there in Berlin, as Naismith looked on, that one of the world’s longest-running dynasties was born.

From that point on, the U.S men’s team became known for fostering some of the great amateur players in history. The roster for the 1960 games in Rome, for instance, listed future greats like Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, and Jerry Lucas. Lucas, only 20 years old at the time, served as the team’s anchor, making an amazing 84% of his shots over nine historic games.

From the years 1936 to 1968, The American team was unmatched in speed, skill, and strategy. From London to Helsinki to Tokyo, the Men’s Basketball Team dominated the court time and again. And with a tally of 63-0, it would take the onset of the Cold War – and the U.S.’s biggest political enemy – to bring the team’s streak to an end.

NEXT: The epic rivalry that brought an end to U.S. dominance >>

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