Adam Silver says league could introduce ‘smart ball’ technology as soon as next year: "We’re experimenting with putting a small chip in the ball that weighs roughly a gram. I think the consumers version of the smart ball is a few years away, but it’s a really exciting opportunity."
- NBA Commissioner Adam Silver says the league is testing a new “smart basketball” that could be used as soon as 2027.
- The league is working with Wilson to develop the technology.
- The NBA is also exploring the use of wearable technology during games, but negotiations with the National Basketball Players Association have yet to produce an agreement.
The technology has already been tested in the NBA’s G League, Summer League, and some preseason games, where players used basketballs both with and without the chip. Silver said players have been pleased with the results.
>Nobody could tell the difference. So that’s a good sign
The chip weighs just one gram, compared with the roughly 620-gram or 1.4 pound basketball. Silver said the league wanted to ensure that even the most experienced players wouldn’t notice a change in how the ball feels or bounces.
One of the most immediate applications could be officiating.
Silver said the technology could help referees determine whether a player touched the ball before it went out of bounds by detecting subtle changes in its spin. It could also help identify whether a shot’s trajectory was altered.
>I think you could see as soon as next year us using it for officiating in our games
Beyond officiating, Silver sees a significant opportunity to bring the technology to consumers, allowing basketball players of all ages to analyze and evaluate their shooting mechanics.
For example, a player taking hundreds of shots could use data collected by the chip to understand which shooting angles and ball rotations are most likely to result in a basket.
>You’ll then see the graph, and you’ll see for which the angle of the shots that went in, they’re more likely to go in
Silver said players routinely use wearable devices off the court to monitor everything from sleep to physical performance, but concerns remain over how data collected during games could be used by teams.
>I think we have to come to some agreement on exactly how the information is used. But it seems everybody wants that information
The biggest sticking point is whether that information could affect contract negotiations, Silver said.
>If you could see a player was slowing down or something like that, they’re worried that that could get used in bargaining, and I get that
Silver acknowledged those concerns and said the league needs to reach an agreement with the players’ union on how the information would be used.
>I think the players are in a position right now where they’re essentially wearing wearables 22 hours a day, and the only time they’re not wearing them is when they’re playing in the game,” Silver said. “So that can’t make sense
>We’ll work something out with them