NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the league will use AI to automate the classification of calls such as out-of-bounds decisions to speed up games and reduce possession disputes.
Silver compared the system to the Hawk-Eye technology used in tennis, where an electronic telegraph instantly determines whether the ball is in or out.
“We’re going to move to a system like that where the entire call phase is going to be automated,” Silver said on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday.
“It’s going to be Laker football, Knick football, whatever. Those calls are going to be made by AI, an automated system with cameras around the stadium.”
Technology can make such decisions quickly and allow umpires to focus on calls for contact and fouls.
“It will take all those intentional calls out of the referees’ hands,” he said. “You won’t have to face challenges on those calls.”
Silver did not give an exact time frame for the launch of the program but said it would be “very soon.”
The NBA has relied heavily on replay reviews and centralized decision-making to improve the accuracy of officials, even though the reviews can slow down games.
Silver said referees will always be important in interpreting physical contact, where a decision is needed to determine whether a player should be blocked.
“There’s a lot of contact in every game, but that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong in every game,” said Silver. “That’s something that can’t just happen on camera.”
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