To get the ball rolling, IMG and Gordon held national tryouts, recruiting 64 athletes, including former college and semipro basketball players, some veterans from slamball’s first iteration, and one ex-linebacker. They brought the cream of the crop to the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, paying them $750 a week ($1,000 for veterans of the 2002 and 2003 seasons). For the months of April and May, the players were drilled in trampoline technique, checking, and basketball basics while being tended to by a team of trainers, nutritionists, sports psychologists, and media coaches. The grooming, which helped make IMG tennis talents Andre Agassi and Maria Sharapova into stars, is what Gordon thinks will ensure his game’s success this time around. “I used to talk to people about slamball, and they’d say, ‘What are you smoking?’ ” the 31-year-old says. “Now, with IMG, it’s not such a pipe dream anymore.”

A more crucial difference may be in how fans can experience slamball. In version 1.0, games were prerecorded on a Los Angeles soundstage, with little opportunity for fans to see a live game, let alone play in one. Now, in addition to the exhibition season that will air on Versus, a league with teams in eight cities will launch next summer. During the season, all eight teams will meet in a host city and play two games each in a slamball festival.

In the meantime, IMG’s investment in slamball is still just a small item on its balance sheet—the company’s annual revenue is $1.5 billion—and for Albrecht, the financials are a work in progress. He says that IMG plans to sell a few franchises at several million dollars apiece (expensive compared with indoor lacrosse, where early franchises sold for $250,000), with a requirement that owners provide courts for amateurs to try the game out. Says an upbeat Albrecht: “If we don’t make our money back by this year, it won’t be by much.”

Just don’t call it a slam dunk.

A Slamballer’s Pain

The sport can be rough going. Here are some of player Michael Goldman’s game-related injuries

Concussion
Suffered when a trampoline-propelled player landed on Goldman’s head.

Torn Meniscus
He spent a month and a half in bed after knee surgery.

Hernia
He tore his abdominal wall in a collision.