When someone is celebrating their 75th birthday, they are not expected to make any big changes or surprise us, but fortunately this is not the case with the NBA as it keeps building its success and popularity by being ready to adapt and set new trends.

Therefore, the rules for this season have been significantly changed to reduce the number of forced and somewhat unnatural fouls due to which some players were taking a lot of free throws. This became immediately apparent already during the preseason, and fans and most players are thrilled about it. Still, according to many, this was not the biggest change for the season because the league decided to change the official ball for the first time in 37 years!

Ever since this season started with the NBA Draft Combine 2021, the official ball on the floor was the one made by – Wilson. It is interesting to note that Wilson was also the official ball provider for the first NBA season and it was used continuously for the first 37 years. This was commented by Sal LaRocca, NBA President for Global Partnerships: “Wilson is highly regarded in the basketball world. In the first 74 NBA seasons, Wilson had the first 37 and Spalding had the next 37. So our running joke is these partnerships may change every 37 years.”

One thing that was no joking matter was the preparation – to have the ball meet the highest standards. For this purpose, thousands of balls were sent to many NBA players to get as much quality feedback as possible. Additionally, a special “Wilson Basketball Advisory Staff” team was created, including:

– Trae Young
– Jamal Murray
– WNBA All-Star player Liz Cambage
– FIBA 3 × 3 stars Dušan Bulut and Migna Touré
– famous skills coach Chris Brickley

On this occasion, Trae Young said: “Joining Wilson’s Advisory Staff was such a natural fit for me. I’ve been using their basketballs since I was a kid – from hooping in my driveway to playing throughout college. It’s exciting to see Wilson return to the NBA, and for me to have a voice in how they show up both on and off the court.” Along with this statement, he also helped create an interesting promotional video:

We think it’s also a good idea to take a quick look at the rich history of Wilson Sporting Goods that has been operating under this name since 1931, while the very beginning of their sports equipment operations date back to 1913. In addition to basketball, Wilson is also renowned in the world of football (NFL), tennis, golf, baseball, etc. Another interesting fact is that their volleyball had a supporting role in the hit movie Cast Away with Tom Hanks 🙂

Now we will turn back towards the current NBA season and the players who commented on the new ball. Of course, there were those who weren’t overly enthusiastic, but it’s interesting how one of them – Paul George – is playing very impressively. On the other hand, one of the most impressive players in the league said that everything is the same for him and that he does not see any differences, especially not negative ones. Yeah, that’s what Kevin Durant said. 🙂

In addition to the NBA, Wilson is also the official ball for the WNBA, NBA G League, NBA 2K League, Basketball Africa League and FIBA 3X3, and our offer includes a large number of balls for indoor and outdoor courts, in various sizes, with NBA team logos and much more!

Check out the entire collection here.