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Japan's LED basketball court looks like a Skrillex fever dream
Japan and high-tech go hand in hand, so it shouldn't be a surprise that its newest basketball court follows that theme to a tee. The hardwood LED court surface is the world's first to be used in professional league play, according to Japanese publication 47 News (Japanese). That makes it a bit different from Nike's similar practice court in Shanghai from a few years back. As you can see from the tweets embedded below -- spotted by Kotaku -- the production is pretty nuts. Going all out for the halftime show might be expected, but even the pre-game run is crazy, with pyro, strobe lights and more. Good game, Yoyogi National Gymnasium.
Nike's LED basketball court boosts training with motion tracking
Wearables have become popular among athletes for monitoring training progress, but on its recent Rise campaign stop in Shanghai, Nike took a different approach. Inside the so-call House of Mamba, NBA star Kobe Bryant hosted 30 young players from all over China who trained on a full-sized LED basketball court -- complete with projected graphics and motion tracking. The playing surface displayed reactive visuals based on players' movements for drills based on Bryant's own regimen. A dozen athletes will compete this weekend in Beijing with three winners moving on to the Nike World Basketball Festival in Barcelona next month. Curious to see how it works? Well, there's a pair of videos after the break that show just that.
