Change is constant and game-changing AI technologies are no exception even in the world of NBA championships. Something revolutionary happened in the year 2013; every NBA game was being recorded with specialized cameras in the game arena. These cameras were placed strategically, tracking not only the movement of the ball but how the players moved. The cameras started recording every game in a digitized format. With every game, data is being gathered.
Advantages of AI in NBA championship
Recording everything from the location of the player, their running speed, whether the score gained was based on a play that had been planned earlier, or if a particular player just adapted to the situation with a fast break. Furthermore, this data includes who converts baskets.
Giving coaches and players the best possible advantage is crucial, but even more pertinent is to make sense of all the data collected. As a result, NBA teams and sports companies have resorted to the AI technology that is reshaping so many other aspects of human life – Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
These methods, when coupled with an unprecedented influx of data, these methods bring out fresh information on players, respective teams, and rivals, with the potential to transform the way professional basketball is played and watched.
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Teams have always kept a record of fundamental statistics like points, rebounds, and assists for a long time now. Stat geeks with such information showed the power of analysis when they devised new methods and formulas that accurately measured and quantified the performance of a particular player and a team. Today, if anyone tunes into any sports talk show, you can hear experts spew around with such as player efficiency rating as commonly as the word basketball.
NBA teams and businesses benefit from the latest developments, leaving no room unopened to transform the tracking data into something that can be explored and put to use. One vital thing, in particular, was to detect specific actions like passes, and typical moves like the pick-and-roll, a subtle move involving the ball-handler, a teammate, and two defenders.
Despite its mystical and scary overtones, machine learning and, more broadly, artificial intelligence are ideal for the task because, at their core, they are about pattern identification. In fact, it takes pattern recognition to tell apart, for instance, the several pick-and-roll variations. This is how coaches invent new game plays.
Evolution of AI in sports analysis
The evaluation of an athlete’s performance and the development of their strategies are being revolutionized by artificial intelligence. Currently, wearable technology monitors data such as steps taken; total distance traveled, heart rate, sleep quality, and activity levels.
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Wearable technology in the last couple of years has gained much traction, particularly among young adults. In the future, these gadgets will take technology beyond tracking. The AI system will be able to analyze the user’s bio mechanics and provide personalized training plans and sports nutrition advice.
While teams and players are embracing the idea of using machine learning and artificial intelligence to improve their game, there hasn’t been an instance of the application that has impacted the game to change it completely. In the end, this is still a game that people play with their talent and athleticism. Any game is exciting and thrilling because of how random it is while playing, which no computer currently can foresee.
