NBA's 76ers, Cavaliers Hit the Floor with 3D Court Projector Technology
You might not realize it, but NBA-regulation-sized basketball courts are really untapped visual real estate.
The Cleveland Cavaliers were among the first in the NBA to turn the 94-by-50-foot court into a movie screen when the team used Quince Imaging’s 3D projection system earlier this year during the jersey retirement ceremony for former Cavs center Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Apparently, the court-as-TV-screen experience proved so popular that the Cavs have opted to purchase the technology and will be using it at every 2014-15 NBA season game as the club welcomes back prodigal son LeBron James, reports Crain’s Cleveland Business.
“We liked it so much we bought it,” Kerry Bubolz, the Cavaliers’ president of business operations, says in the Crain’s story. “We were so impressed with the technology and the quality of the image and the video that it was projecting, that we just felt, this is an important year, there’s a lot of excitement, let’s make that investment.”
The 3D technology that’s costing the Cavaliers more than $1 million also has dazzled the Philadelphia 76ers, reports NBA.com. The technology, which will sync up with the video boards throughout the76ers’ Wells Fargo Center, should be installed in time for the team’s home opener against the Miami Heat on Nov. 1.
The 76ers and the Cavaliers will be the first NBA teams to permanently deploy the 3D-projection technology every night, but if it proves to be as much of a hit as they think it will, expect other teams to follow suit.
This is all part of the league’s ongoing quest to provide unforgettable interactive and immersive experiences for its fans.
“We are always looking for ways to improve the show surrounding our games, and this new technology definitely does that,” 76ers Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer Tim McDermott says in the NBA.com article. “I can’t wait for our fans to see it firsthand on opening night.”
