Why The NBA Switched From Cubic To Spherical Balls In 1973

The debate about cubic versus spherical basketballs has raged for over 50 years. Purists, of course, prefer the cubic ball and decry the modern Michael Jordan era as “soft,” “without edge,” and “surprisingly high-scoring.” But today’s players seem to think the current “sphereball” will be around for a while — perhaps even as long as it takes for the Nets to win a championship. The question nobody seems to be asking is why, in 1973, did the NBA switch to the sphereball from the traditional cube? 

Many think it was a practical concern, first addressed by Brian Spalding, the inventor of the oblong ‘football,’ who asked, “What if we made the object that is to go into the hoop . . . the same shape as the hoop?” 

“It was almost as if they were trying to fit a square ball into a round hole,” said basketball historian Hans von Müller. “The game was different back then. Players still had to dribble or else get called for traveling, so there were over a thousand turnovers per game. Guys averaged 84 rebounds, and the 1971 Game-7 Finals ended 9–6.” 

The reason had to do with Vietnam: The Commies were using basketcubes, and all the ’cube production was happening in Hà Giang, in North Vietnam. The U.S. had to move production over to Thailand, where people only knew round balls. Thus, the “sphereball” or “basketball” was born. 

These days, you can still catch hip Gen-Z kids playing “cubeball” in Hells Kitchen on Saturdays, and your grandpop can regale you with stories of the league prior to ’73. 

Most players and fans of the “modern age,” however, are grateful for the change. “I’ve tried the old version,” said Michael Jordan, “and I’m pretty bad at it. I don’t know if I’d be the GOAT if I’d cubed.”