NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the league could begin using a new “smart ball” in games as early as 2027, which could change the way officials make calls on the basketball court.
In an interview with CNBC’s Contessa Brewer, Silver revealed that the NBA is working with an official basketball manufacturer. wilson Developing a ball embedded with a tiny microchip Bluetooth sensor that can track changes in movement, spin, and trajectory.
“We’re experimenting with putting a small chip inside the ball that weighs about 1 gram,” Silver said.
The technology has already been tested in the NBA’s G League, Summer League and some preseason games, where players used basketballs with and without chips. Silver said the players were happy with the result.
“Nobody could tell the difference, so that’s a good sign,” he said.
The chip weighs only 1 gram compared to a basketball’s approximately 620 grams or 1.4 pounds. Silver said the league wanted to make sure even the most experienced players wouldn’t notice a change in the feel or bounce of the ball.
One of the most immediate applications could be as a moderator.
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 spin. It also helps identify if the shot’s trajectory has changed.
“I think you’ll see us using it to officiate games as early as next year,” Silver said.
Beyond the officiating role, Silver believes there is a significant opportunity to bring this technology to consumers, allowing basketball players of all ages to analyze and evaluate the mechanics of their shots.
For example, a player who shoots hundreds of times can use the data collected by the chip to understand which shot angles and ball rotations are most likely to land in the basket.
“Then you look at the graph and you can see at what angle the shot is more likely to go in,” Silver said.
Silver said the sponsored application could arrive as early as next year, but the consumer version could take longer.
“I think a consumer version[of the smart ball]is a few years away, but it’s a really exciting opportunity.”
NBA Players Association expresses concerns about wearables
The league is also considering the use of wearable technology during games, but negotiations with the National Basketball Players Association have not yet reached an agreement.
The NBA said officials tested wrist wearables during a “successful pilot program” during some preseason and summer league games this year, but it will not be extended into the season. This technology allows referees to communicate with the replay center about reviews, score changes, and clock malfunctions.
Silver said while players routinely use wearable devices off the court to monitor everything from sleep to physical performance, concerns remain about how the data collected during games will be used by teams.
“I think we’ll have to come to some kind of agreement on exactly how the information will be used, but it seems like everyone wants that information,” Silver said.
Silver said the biggest issue is whether that information could influence contract negotiations.
“If they see a player slowing down or something like that, they worry that that will be used in negotiations, and I can understand that,” he said.
Silver acknowledged those concerns and said the league needs to reach an agreement with the players’ union on how the information will be used.
Still, he suggested that as athletes increasingly rely on technology to monitor their performance, allowing the use of wearables during games is a logical next step.
“I think players are now in a situation where they’re basically wearing wearables 22 hours a day, and the only time they’re not wearing them is when they’re playing in a game,” Silver said. “So it doesn’t make sense.”
“We will work with them to work something out,” he added.
