What is SlamBall and when is it coming back?
In the world of alternative sports, there is perhaps none bigger or more exciting than this cousin of basketball. Check it out!
The last time that audiences were graced with the intensely physical phenomenon that is ‘Slam Ball,’ was back in 2008, which makes its return all the more monumental after more than a decade.
What is SlamBall?
Sometimes described as ‘trampoline infused basketball’ the head turning and eyebrow raising sport of Slam Ball is something to behold. Launched in the U.S.A. back in 2008, the sport is essentially a form of basketball in which participants play on a surface that is partially made of trampolines. Players bound off the trampolines in order to shoot or dunk the ball during games. To be clear, there are four trampolines surrounding each net. As you can imagine, when it comes to scoring each and every point is epic. Players literally fly through the air, performing all manner of acrobatics that those in the NBA could only dream of.
As for how the game itself functions, like traditional basketball every successful field goal is worth 2 points, however, there is no three-point arc like on your normal court. Instead, players can score threes by dunking the ball. Where the structure of teams is concerned, each side consists of four players with two referees to officiate, along with coaches, assistants and table officials. Where positions are concerned, each player can be a handler, gunner, or stopper. The handler, as the namesake suggests is the primary ball handler, while the gunner is the primary scorer of the team and the stopper, the main defensive player. Games are played across 5-minute quarters and when it comes to fouls, players have a 3-foul maximum before they are “fouled out.” Like its NBA counterpart, substitution is unlimited in Slam Ball.
When does SlamBall make its return?
If you didn’t know, yesterday - August 3rd, 2022 - marked the 20th anniversary of the launch of one of the craziest alternative sports the world has ever seen and with that, Slam Ball’s founder Mason Gordon announced that the wild sport would be making its return in the summer of 2023. Indeed, since its last season back in 2008 Slam Ball has made cameo appearances around the world, even in China. Gordon went on to explain that he would be partnering with the talented Mike Tollin, who most recently executive produced ESPN’s “The Last Dance” and “The Captain.”
“My partners and I have always looked at it and said, ‘we’re not gonna come back until the market conditions are really optimal,’ and the alternative sports marketplace is just on fire,” Gordon said before adding, “Younger audiences are really out there looking for a sport they can call their own. ...SlamBall just kind of fits the bill. They’re 20-minute games, television half hours. People have always really gravitated to the action.”