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NBA decides to switch back to "old school" ball

December 12, 2006
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Los Angeles (dpa) - Admitting it made a rare turnover, the NBA quickly got back on the ball to correct it.

Unhappy with player reaction to the synthetic ball it introduced this season, the NBA announced Monday that on January 1, it would return to the traditional leather ball for the remainder of the 2006-07 season.

"Our players' response to this particular composite ball has been consistently negative, and we are acting accordingly," NBA Commissioner David Stern said in a statement. "Although testing performed by Spalding and the NBA demonstrated that the new composite basketball was more consistent than leather and statistically there has been an improvement in shooting, scoring, and ball-related turnovers, the most important statistic is the view of our players."

Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James said he was delighted to hear the NBA is returning to the "old school" ball.


Phoenix Suns Marcus Banks (L) takes a shot past the defending Boston Celtics Brian Scalabrine (R) durign the first half at the TD Bank North Garden in Boston Massachusetts Friday 08 December 2006. EPA/CJ GUNTHER

"For the league to be successful, obviously, the players have to be happy," James told reporters Monday. "The basketball is the most important thing to us. Like I said before, you can change the dress code, you can make our shorts shorter, but when you take our basketball away from us, that's not a transition we handle.

"I'm very excited. You see my smile, right? If we've got practice tomorrow, I'll be shooting with that old ball."

Since the beginning of training camp in October, players have complained about the microfibre basketball. They said the new ball has a tendency to stick to their hands, does not absorb moisture the way the leather ball does and it has caused cuts on their fingers.

Two-time reigning league most valuable player Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns wore bandages on his fingers last week because of nicks caused by the new ball.

"It's still tearing up my fingers, but after three months, it's too late," Nash told reporters last week. "The two balls feel totally different. There's a different feel, a different weight, a different texture."

Nash wasn't all that pleased, however, when he heard the news that the new ball was on its way out. He said he was more disappointed about how the league went about its decisions before and after the players complained.

"I'm disappointed that they didn't seek more input from us before they introduced the new ball," he said. "And I'm disappointed that we're changing the ball during the season."

Stern pledged Monday to work with the players as well as the ball manufacturer Spalding "to determine the best possible ball for the NBA."

Many NBA stars - including German wunderkind Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks, Shaquille O'Neal of the Miami Heat and Eddy Curry of the New York Knicks - have been happy to chime in with their assessments of the synthetic ball.

"The ball never leaves my hand the same way," Curry recently said. "It sticks to my middle finger. It bounces differently off the dribble and on the shot."

All this negative criticism prompted the NBA Players Association to file a grievance earlier this month with the National Labor Relations Board, charging the league with unfair labour practices over the implementation of the new ball.

Billy Hunter, executive director of the association said he was delighted upon hearing the news of Stern's latest decision.

"It was a sound decision," Hunter told reporters. "It wasn't working for the players. You can't have as many players speaking out against the ball and continue to use it."

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