Lenovo At The Knicks Game
Madison Square Garden, home to the New York Knicks. Lenovo computers will collect all the statistics from this Knicks/Denver Nuggets game and all others in the NBA. The Knicks win this game, 119-112.
The Lenovo X60 (at right) along with the Daktronics 5000 series control console to the left, comprise the NBA Time Capture and Parser system. It records all the stops and starts of the clock, and who initiated it. The referees can start the clock with their beltbacks and stop it by blowing their whistles.
NBA's executive vice president, operations and technology Stephen Hellmuth points out the features of the new clocks seen on the backboard behind him. He notes Mark Cuban is a particular fan of advancing arena technology. "He's always very enthusiastic and supportive," Hellmuth says.
Hellmuth designed the lightweight LED and Plexiglas clocks himself. Hellmuth says franchises love the new designs, which also feature cameras, because they allow more full-view seats than older, bulkier designs.
Hellmuth explains how the two Lenovo X60 touchscreen ThinkPads collect and distribute every statistic occurring in the game.
Ethan Medley, seated at left, is the 27-year-old statistician who tracks every moment of the game. From those two computers every statistic from the game is distributed across the Digital Television Interface (DTVI).
Medley demonstrates how he uses the touchscreen to track stats. "We're very accurate," he says. "There's no reason to be wrong about anything anymore."