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The Technology Behind the NBA Finals

Posted by Soulskill on from the invalid-three-pointer dept.

BobB-nw brings us NetworkWorld's behind-the-scenes look at the technology supporting the NBA Finals. They primarily use Lenovo ThinkPads which run an automated statistic-gathering system. The NBA eschews Wi-Fi due to security concerns, and it abandoned attempts to use touch-screen technology because of durability and ease-of-use issues. Whether or not basketball is your sport of choice, it's an interesting view of how modern sports presentations come together. "Other courtside systems with proprietary software synch up with compact belt packs worn by the referees, who automate clock stoppages by blowing their whistles. Hellmuth noted that he oversaw an effort to ensure that clock stoppages could be seen from any angle in the arena by having lights on the backboard and elsewhere all flash at once."

6 of 48 comments (clear)

  1. high tech by trb · · Score: 4, Funny

    maybe this is off topic, but i'm amused that in an article about high tech, they include 5 photos that are each about 2 megabytes that they shrink to about 2% of their original size for display. not very technically astute.

  2. Re:Hmmm by takaznik · · Score: 1, Funny

    you can tell how long it's been since i've been following professional sports outside of my own state, haven't been a Celtics fan since the Bird era

  3. Re:Referee belt packs by Hawthorne01 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I take the greatest possible exception to your comments. The quality of the officiating the NBA has always been above reproach, and represents the highest ethical standards in any professional sport. The NBA is known world-wide for having the most ethical, most accurate and most honest officials, and we work hard to maintain that standard.

    Sincerely,

    Tim Donaghy

    --
    "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
  4. Re:Technology of the NBA by siwelwerd · · Score: 3, Funny

    No, the NFL is more popular than the NBA because people have time to get another beer between every play.

  5. Re:What is this 'NBA' of which you speak? by mazarin5 · · Score: 3, Funny

    I think it's the one where they kick the puck into a hoop and get a homerun. Right?

    --
    Fnord.
  6. New technology? by peektwice · · Score: 4, Funny

    Not gonna read TFA because NBA is irrelevant, but I'm guessing their return to relevancy might involve some new technology that will help the referees call a "traveling" violation every now and again.

    --
    Other than this text, there is no discernible information contained in this sig.