Things are changing in the NBA, even the official ball of the competition. Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported that the league will follow a different path since their deal with Spalding is expiring and now the players will be dribbling a ball manufactured by Wilson, starting with the 2021/22 season.
The league and the company reportedly mutually agreed to part ways after a relationship that dates from 1983, so this is a big change for them. Spalding released a statement confirming the news on their Twitter account.
“Today it was announced that Spalding’s partnership with the National Basketball Association will conclude following the 2020-21 NBA season.
“Spalding developed the first basketball in 1894, nearly a century before tipping off a historic partnership with the NBA. We are proud of our nearly four-decade relationship.
Moving forward, Spalding will remain as deeply embedded in the game of basketball as we were the day we helped start it. As the global leader in basketball equipment, our passion for the sport will continue to drive our innovative products and everlasting bond with players and fans around the world.”
Spalding’s statement on today’s news pic.twitter.com/67OLr2eOwr
— Spalding (@Spalding) May 13, 2020
From now on, Wilson will provide the official game balls for the WNBA, NBA G League, NBA 2K League and Basketball Africa League. Before Spalding took over, Wilson was the league’s ball supplier for 37 years.
