Paul Schulte has been playing wheelchair basketball since he was 14 following a car accident which fractured his L2 vertebrae. He catapulted to the top as a Jr. winning two national championships and an MVP. Paul is a member of the USA Men’s BB National Team and has won gold at the World Championships in 2002, 1998 and Silver in 2006. Schulte is currently employed at Top End as a Design Engineer.

• Are the rules the same in wheelchair basketball as they are in able-bodied basketball?
  For the most part, the rules are the same. We play on a regulation sized, hardwood basketball court. The lines are the same as you would see on a high school or college sized court (i.e. free throw, three point line, etc.). Your chair is considered part of your body, so a degree of contact is allowed when playing defense, setting a pick, or boxing out for a rebound. For dribbling, traveling consists of pushing your chair three times without dribbling. So, for every dribble, you’re allowed to push twice. Double dribbling is allowed.
• Who is allowed to play wheelchair basketball?
  Anyone who has a physical impairment that doesn’t allow them to play able-bodied sports would be allowed to play. Most commonly this includes spinal cord injuries, spina bifida, amputees. Recently, more and more athletes who have had a knee replacement qualify to play.
• How tall of a wheelchair can you play in?
  21” is the tallest that your seat rail can be above the ground. Playing effectively at this height requires a good amount of stabilizing muscle groups. Amputees and other high functioning players typically play at this height as ‘big men’ or ‘centers’. Spinal cord injuries and other players of less function typically opt for a rear seat height of 15 – 19” and play the ‘guard’ position.
• Should I use an adjustable or a fixed chair?
  If you are just beginning to play basketball or don’t know yet what's your best seating position, yes, you should use an adjustable chair like the new Top End Pro or the Top End Transformer All Sport. If you have been playing a while and want to up your game, a fixed chair will deliver more performance as everything is welded to your specifications rather than clamped. The key here is to get measured by someone with experience by using your existing chair as your guide. You can call me for chair configuration advice at Top End (800-532-8677 # 2233), meet up with me at a tournament or fill out the contact us form form. If you want a computer generated design of your chair first just e-mail me at pschulte@invacare.com.
• Can you play all amputees at the same time?
  No. In Wheelchair Basketball there exists what is called the Classification System. In this system, players are assigned values (1, 2, or 3) based on their overall muscle control and function. A class 1 has the lowest amount of balance and muscle control while a class 3 has highest. Typical class 3’s would be amputees, club feet, polio, etc. Class 2’s have limited use of their legs but still a reasonable amount of core control (abs, low back muscles). Class 1’s typically have very limited use of their abdominal and low back muscle groups. Teams are allowed to play up to 12 classification points at one time. So a traditional combination of points would be 3 – 3’s, a 2, and a 1 (3+3+3+2+1=12).
• How many points get scored in a wheelchair basketball game?
  Like in any sport, there are defensive battles (low scoring) and offensive shootouts (high scoring). At a junior or beginning level, typical game scores could be anywhere from 20-50 points for each team. At an elite level, teams scoring from 80 – 100 points is common
• Is there wheelchair basketball on TV?
  It’s not very common to see it on national television. But you can watch games over the internet. If you’d like to watch a game of wheelchair basketball, visit the videos page of www.paulschulte.com .
• How do I find a team near me?
  Contact the National Wheelchair Basketball Association at www.nwba.org. They have several different divisions for helping everyone to participate!