naismith was guided by three main thoughts. firstly, he studied the most popular games of those times (rugby, lacrosse, soccer, football, hockey and baseball). he saw the danger of a small fast ball and decided that the big soft soccer ball was safest. secondly, he saw that most physical contact happened while running with the ball, dribbling or hitting it. he decided that passing was the only legal option. finally, naismith further reduced body contact by making the goal unguardable, by putting it high above the player's heads. to score goals, he made players throw a soft lobbing shot that he had used in his old favorite game "duck on a rock". naismith called this new game "basket ball" and put wrote down the 13 basic rules.