The NBA game ball is set to switch brands. As reported by Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, the NBA will change their in-game basketball sponsor from Spalding to Wilson for the 2021-22 season. Spalding has served as the NBA’s game ball sponsor since 1983.
Yahoo Sources: NBA moving on from Spalding as the official game ball partner to Wilson, starting with the 2021-22 season. https://t.co/1nei5nSF8I
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) May 13, 2020
Wilson already serves as the official basketball of the NCAA, and the partnership between Wilson and the NBA comes amid a time of uncertainty in revenue for the NBA and its players.
As the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic is continuing to cast uncertainty on the NBA, the league is reconsidering their collective bargaining agreement with the National Basketball Players Association. The league and the players association have agreed to a system for players’ pay being withheld while the league is at a standstill, making sponsorships such as the one between Wilson and the NBA potentially more substantial moving forward.
