Wilson Sporting Goods, the official basketball of the National Basketball Association (NBA), has introduced a first-of-its-kind 3D printed airless basketball during the State Farm All-Star Saturday Night, an event in the NBA’s All-Star Weekend.
Houston Rockets player KJ Martin debuted the 3D Airless Prototype Basketball, which nearly meets regulation basketball performance specifications in weight, size, and rebound but doesn’t require inflation. It is made of a see-through lattice with eight panel-like lobes. The ball was created by Wilson Labs in Chicago and was produced with the help of key partners, including computational design services provider General Lattice, color and finishing solutions firm DyeMansion, and additive manufacturing company EOS.
“The materials with high energy return were often not durable enough for our application,” said Dr. Nadine Lippa, innovation manager at Wilson.
“The adequate method-mechanical-material combination that bounced like a basketball was elusive to the team and there were so many additive technologies to sift through and understand. It took us several years to find the right combination.”
While the 3D Airless Prototype Basketball demonstrates Wilson’s and the NBA’s shared commitment to innovation, there are no plans to replace the Wilson NBA official game ball, which is made of leather materials, has an eight-panel configuration, and meets performance specifications.
“We are so proud to unveil Wilson’s 3D Airless Prototype basketball as a physical manifestation of our continued commitment to sport innovation,” said Kevin Murphy, General Manager, Team Sports at Wilson.
“This is just one example of how our team approaches the game and why we are the number one basketball company in the world today.”
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