New tech making a difference in the NBA

There has never ever been a better time for professional sports to make the most of modern technology and in particular live data feeds. We are seeing it all over the industry with real-time information captured by a number of different gadgets in order to help teams get a competitive edge.

In soccer, players are being asked to wear tops, similar to sports bras, underneath their jerseys in order to capture data used in heat mapping, distances covered and other important positional information.

In North America, basketball has been benefitting in a similar way to the emergence of data and this is worth delving into in a bit more detail.

Shot Tracker is changing B-ball

There have been many developments in basketball but one, in particular, has been very exciting with new tech at its heart.

The Shot Tracker technology pioneered by Davyeon Ross and Bruce Ianni has been extremely well received in the game and is attracting investment from such firms as SeventySix Capital and Greycroft with initial figures of $21 million being put into the venture. Both Basketball Hall of Famer Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson and former NBA commissioner David Stern have also invested in the tech.

How it works

As in other sports, the idea is that the game is tracked in real-time by a series of cameras positioned above the court which then maps the action in 3D including ball position and player movement – both fitted with unobtrusive sensors that are lightweight so as not to interfere with the players.

Clippers going the extra yard

It is not only technology that is now hyper-important in sports like the NBA but also environment.

The Clippers have recently invested in renovating their training facilities after partnering with the successful online tech firm Honey. The partnership will help the team by expanding the locker rooms and weight rooms while also aligning with a growing brand in the tech industry. These changes along with bold moves in the offseason appear to be working as the LA Clippers are the favourites to win the NBA Championship, currently priced at +300 in the latest basketball odds.

Honey president Joanne Bradford told Forbes about the partnership: “We wanted to partner with a team that aligned with how we think about building a brand and a company.”

“We’re two like-minded organizations that share the same belief that if you stay hungry and work hard, you can win.”

The Honey logo will be appearing on Clippers training wear as part of the partnership and they could well work to increase the technology from a commercial standpoint when it comes to team marketing. The LA Clippers are just one example of a team thinking about the future. There are plenty of others also following suit and with Shot Tracker already showing its potential, this is one market space that has plenty of growth prospects in the future.