Jumping for Joy: SlamBall is Officially Back

SlamBall made its debut to the world in 1999 and was an instant hit. The game is a fast-paced version of basketball, but with trampolines built into the court near the three point line and paint. The game also allows for big hits like in football and hockey. When you combine all these aspects you get a video-game like sporting experience like none other.

People have been yearning for the sport to come back since it ended its run 15 years ago. From earlier iterations, SlamBall already has an enormous global audience across all major digital platforms. It has a large and passionate fanbase that had been clamoring for the sport’s comeback. The hashtag #BringBackSlamBall has garnered more than 500 million views on social media. That campaign to bring the sport back is coming to full fruition.

SlamBall recently announced an exclusive, two-year national broadcast partnership with ESPN for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN+ will combine to air more than 30 hours of live SlamBall programming across five weekends. The sport will re-open on Friday, July 21st, at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT) at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, and live in front on a national audience on ESPN. There will four weeks of regular season play before a semifinals game on August 15th, and the finals on August 17th.

• Teams: The Mob, The Rumble, The Slashers, The Buzzsaw, The Gryphons, The Lava, The Ozone, The Wrath
• Notable Players: Bryan Bell-Anderson, Dionte Byrd, Donavin Byrd, Jamaal Barnes Jr.

There are three legacy teams returning to SlamBall, including The Mob, The Rumble, and the Slashers. New franchises joining SlamBall for their first seasons ever are The Buzzsaw, The Gryphons, The Lava, The Ozone, and The Wrath. There are four players who will be debuting in SlamBall who are all legacies of the game. Bryan Bell-Anderson, brothers Dionte Byrd and Donavin Byrd, and Jamaal Barnes Jr. are all sons of former SlamBall players.

Of the 56 players on opening rosters, 66% have basketball backgrounds, while 23% played football, and 11% were on track and field squads. The average age of the players is 26.9 years with an average height of 6-4 and weight of 210 pounds. The one defender everyone should be afraid of however is 6'9", Vincent 'Lumberjack' Boumann, a former Western Oregon basketball player and the largest player in SlamBall.

Make sure you tune in to ESPN tonight so you don't miss out on the return of SlamBall!