As the 2019-20 NBA season restarts inside the Orlando bubble, the league is doing its best to make sure that fans can still feel close to the action on the court. On way the league is doing that is by having fans appear on LED screens during games. The technology is powered by Microsoft.
Anyone can show up on the screen, and former NBA star Chris Bosh made an appearance during Thursday's game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers.
Chris Bosh pulled up to the Lakers-Clippers game as a virtual fan 😂 pic.twitter.com/rgjKKubLuW
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 31, 2020
While Bosh isn't able to be there in person, the 11-time All-Star big man still joined in on the action. He was able to show support for his former Heat teammate LeBron James, who is attempting to lead the Lakers to an NBA title.
The NBA pre-approves 300 fans that will join the live broadcast of each particular game. However, fans can be ejected if they're not on their best behavior during the broadcast.
"This new experience—the first to go live as a result of the NBA / Microsoft partnership — gives participating fans the feeling of sitting next to one another at a live game without leaving the comfort and safety of their homes," Jared Spataro said, who is the head of Microsoft 365. "Players, meanwhile, will experience their energy and support as they dribble down the court and see fans' real-time reaction. And viewers tuning into the game from home will feel the crowd's energy as well as they see the virtual stands filled with fans."
Having a former player like Bosh on the broadcast certainly was an unexpected treat and had to have gotten the virtual fans that he was sitting with very excited.
