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Mayans, Yes Mayans, Love Basketball
ESPN ^

Posted on 12/08/2017 12:47:05 PM PST by nickcarraway

Some 50 years ago, an area was cleared, hoops were erected and the town of San Pedro La Laguna, nestled at the foot of a volcano in Guatemala's southwestern shore, had its first basketball court. No matter that the court was made of dirt then. Today, that same ground houses the town's municipal court. By day, children participate in dribbling drills to later show off their Kyrie Irving moves or Steph Curry skills. Beginning in the 1980's, NBA games were televised, and the sport's popularity grew. The rest is history.

The local Hoyas and Cavaliers square off in the municipal court of Salcajá, a town in Guatemala's southwestern shore and 15 miles from San Pedro La Laguna. Salcajá is famous for the San Jacinto Church, founded in 1524 and the oldest in Central America. Basketball is a popular pastime as indigenous communities embrace the game.

(Excerpt) Read more at espn.com ...


TOPICS: Hobbies; Local News; Sports
KEYWORDS: basketball; mayan; mexico
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1 posted on 12/08/2017 12:47:05 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

Didn’t the Mayans play some form of soccer with severed heads? Or was it another Central American group?

One could see the basketball as the modern equivalent.


2 posted on 12/08/2017 12:48:19 PM PST by Pearls Before Swine
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To: Pearls Before Swine

it was akin to basketball in that it involved a raised hoop, but the hoop was vertical, not horizontal.


3 posted on 12/08/2017 12:50:19 PM PST by SpinnerWebb (Winter is coming)
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To: nickcarraway
Neat link....

The Mesoamerican Ballgame

4 posted on 12/08/2017 12:52:46 PM PST by mewzilla (Was Obama surveilling John Roberts? Might explain a lot.)
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To: nickcarraway

Cool...genius marketer and savvy businessman LaVar Whatever can have his sons dominate the Mayan league and sell his junk there!


5 posted on 12/08/2017 12:53:29 PM PST by Prov1322 (Enjoy my wife's incredible artwork at www.watercolorARTwork.com! (This space no longer for rent))
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To: nickcarraway

At least nowadays they don’t execute the losing team.....as far as we know.


6 posted on 12/08/2017 12:53:56 PM PST by facedown (Armed in the Heartland)
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To: Pearls Before Swine

They used a rubber ball, although the part about the heads is in some of their myths.


7 posted on 12/08/2017 12:54:01 PM PST by Tax-chick (I want to go to Colombia!)
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To: Pearls Before Swine

It was a rubber ball, and the losing team lost their heads.


8 posted on 12/08/2017 12:54:33 PM PST by Vince Ferrer
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To: Pearls Before Swine

It was as much like basketball as soccer.


9 posted on 12/08/2017 12:59:03 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway
For the losers, the Christian world's version will work out better than the last one did:

10 posted on 12/08/2017 12:59:31 PM PST by ReaganGeneration2
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To: facedown

The winning team was the one that was supposed to get executed.


11 posted on 12/08/2017 12:59:49 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: Tax-chick

They also say soccer was started with severed heads. Who knows if that’s true.


12 posted on 12/08/2017 1:00:35 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

I’m sure nobody knows ... but it doesn’t make much sense. It would hurt your foot!


13 posted on 12/08/2017 1:02:28 PM PST by Tax-chick (I want to go to Colombia!)
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To: nickcarraway

>The winning team was the one that was supposed to get executed.

Nope. That’s one of the many lies told by trying to cover up for the crimes of the Aztecs and Mayans. They’ve frequently tried to claim that the Aztecs only sacrificed brave warriors caught in the battle to honor their gods, but whenever they find the gave sites in a temple most of the skulls are from women and children.

The real story is the Aztecs would attack the villages of people nominally under their control round up the women and children because they couldn’t fight back, sacrifice them(they frequently raped them first), and eat the flesh. This prevented the tribes around them from reproducing and was a slow form of genocide.


14 posted on 12/08/2017 1:04:08 PM PST by JohnyBoy (The GOP Senate is intentionally trying to lose the majority.)
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To: Pearls Before Swine

Yes, sorta. They played with a ball throwing thru a hoop/ring that was vertical.

The losing team was sacrificed.......................


15 posted on 12/08/2017 1:04:23 PM PST by Red Badger (Road Rage lasts 5 minutes. Road Rash lasts 5 months!.....................)
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To: JohnyBoy

“The real story is the Aztecs would attack the villages of people nominally under their control round up the women and children because they couldn’t fight back, sacrifice them(they frequently raped them first), and eat the flesh. This prevented the tribes around them from reproducing and was a slow form of genocide.”

I think Mel Gibson made a movie about that...


16 posted on 12/08/2017 1:09:08 PM PST by Electric Graffiti (Obama voters killed America...Treat them accordingly.)
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To: nickcarraway

Mayan ball game :

https://youtu.be/JCzhtTjzWvU


17 posted on 12/08/2017 1:10:43 PM PST by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: nickcarraway
It was as much like basketball as soccer.

Better yet! No wonder they like it. Like old times.

18 posted on 12/08/2017 1:11:28 PM PST by Pearls Before Swine
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To: nickcarraway
They also say soccer was started with severed heads. Who knows if that’s true.


Sounds plausible. They found the head wouldn't roll very well if it remained attached.
19 posted on 12/08/2017 1:24:08 PM PST by The_Media_never_lie
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To: nickcarraway

They had a similar game that they played with human heads before Europeans showed up.


20 posted on 12/08/2017 1:27:09 PM PST by Lurkinanloomin (Natural Born Citizen Means Born Here Of Citizen Parents - Know Islam, No Peace -No Islam, Know Peace)
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