The NBA declares war on referees: Adam Silver announces a revolution with AI

The NBA is preparing one of the most radical changes in its recent history. Adam Silver confirmed that the league will implement in the future an automated system with artificial intelligence to review out-of-bounds plays, thus eliminating one of the most controversial and debated decisions by players, coaches, and fans.

The announcement came just hours after the huge controversy in the fifth game of the Western Conference finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder. In the third quarter, the referees called a turnover against Victor Wembanyama, even though replays clearly showed that the ball had touched Chet Holmgren's foot. The decision was not corrected after review, sparking anger from coach Mitch Johnson, who even received a technical foul for protesting.

Silver addressed the situation directly during his appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show”, where he explained that the NBA aims to draw inspiration from technologies already used in other sports, such as the Hawk-Eye system in tennis or the ABS model in Major League Baseball.

“We are moving towards a system where all those decision categories will be automatic,” Silver explained. “It will be ball for the Lakers, Knicks, Thunder… whatever. These decisions will be made by an automated system with artificial intelligence and cameras around the court.”

The commissioner also detailed how this new technological model will work. “It will be instantaneous and automatic. The game will simply continue,” he assured. “You won't have to deal with challenges on those plays.”

The NBA's idea is to eliminate calls considered “objective” from refereeing control to allow referees to focus solely on interpretive actions, especially fouls and physical contacts.

“There is contact on practically every play,” Silver explained. “That doesn't necessarily mean there is a foul. Referees are trying to gauge whether that contact impedes the player’s progress or the intensity of it. It's something that cannot be done solely through cameras because they feel the contact on the court.”

Silver also defended the current level of refereeing, which he described as “incredible,” though he acknowledged that there is still room for improvement. Additionally, he discussed the ongoing debate about flopping and differentiated between exaggerating contact and actually deceiving the referees.

Deceiving the Referees

“There is a difference between selling a foul, exaggerating, and really flopping, which is when you deceive the referees,” he stated. “Many times, players react or fall, but if they are not deceiving the referees, it's just part of how actions are sold today.”

The NBA seems determined to fully embrace a new technological era. And following the scandal with Wembanyama and the Spurs, Silver's message was clear: the future of refereeing will involve artificial intelligence.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La NBA declara la guerra a los árbitros: Adam Silver anuncia una revolución con IA