Ignoring air resistance, the kinetic energy of the basketball increases with velocity. The expression Ke=1/2mv^2, the formula for kinetic energy, shows that when mass is held constant, velocity has an exponential influence on the magnitude of the kinetic energy. Because there’s no air resistance in this problem, we don’t have to worry about the ball slowing down until it hits the ground. So, the kinetic energy of the free falling basketball is strictly increasing.
