NBA Launchpad: A Launching Point Into New Basketball Tech
Testing and developing new technologies has long been a priority amongst the major sporting leagues in North America and around the world. It’s an effective way to push sports forward by embracing new research and development methods that can help to find solutions to complex problems. As for the NBA, a league that is often at the forefront of embracing innovative ideas, their latest program is yet another example of their commitment to moving the game forward.
NBA Launchpad is a platform that has recently been announced as a way to bolster the league’s efforts to find, develop, and implement new technologies that will improve the game at all levels. At it’s core, how NBA Launchpad works is that it allows the league to crowdsource ideas and new technologies related to four key areas: elevating health and wellness in youth basketball, enhancing elite youth player performance, innovating ankle injury prevention and recovery, and advancing referee training and development.
“With NBA Launchpad, we can identify and support the next generation of innovative sports technology, continuing to advance our top basketball priorities and elevate our global game.”
Evan Wasch, Executive Vice President, Basketball Strategy & Analytics.
So how does this new crowdsourcing platform work? Applicants are accepted into a six-month pilot project that focuses on improving research and development efforts at both the professional and grassroots level. These applicants, after passing an evaluation process, will have access to the league’s resources and be able to pitch their products, ideas, and solutions to NBA affiliated organizations. The NBA is also pledging that companies who are accepted into the project will be provided with mentorship opportunities from key NBA personnel, while also gaining exposure and access to contacts throughout the basketball industry.
It’s an ambitious but fresh idea by the league, yet it’s not a new one. In the past, the NFL has created numerous innovation challenges that they opened up to the public in an effort to find various player safety improvements. For example, their HeadHealthTECH Challenge from 2020 was a challenge aimed at finding new ways to design a safer helmet for players to wear. The challenge came with an award of $1.37 million that was given to four teams of innovators to support the creation of their helmet prototypes.
Will we see more crowdsourcing initiatives by any of the major leagues around the world? I certainly hope so. It strikes me as an effective way to get novel ideas on the table when it comes to key issues like player safety, accessibility at a grassroots level, and other important drivers of growth. And while many of these leagues likely have sizable research budgets that could undoubtedly support in-house developments, sometimes a fresh voice in the room is needed to find breakthrough solutions to key issues in the game. I’m glad leagues like the NBA and NFL realize this, and that they’re in favour of opening up these discussions in such a progressive way.