It was supposed to be a slam dunk. Honestly, when Disney and the NBA announced they were taking over the massive space formerly occupied by DisneyQuest at the West Side of Disney Springs, people expected a high-tech revolution in sports entertainment. Instead, the NBA Experience Disney Springs became one of the shortest-lived major attractions in Walt Disney World history.
It opened with massive fanfare in August 2019. Bob Iger was there. Adam Silver was there. Even NBA legends like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Dwyane Wade showed up to christen the building. But fast forward to today, and the building stands as a quiet reminder of how even the biggest brands in the world can misread what tourists actually want to do on their vacation.
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What Exactly Was the NBA Experience Disney Springs?
Think of it as a massive, 44,000-square-foot digital playground spread across two floors. It wasn't a museum, though it had some memorabilia. It wasn't a gym, though you definitely broke a sweat. Basically, Disney tried to gamify the life of a professional basketball player through 13 different activities.
You could walk through a tunnel that mimicked the roar of a crowd. You could test your vertical jump. There was a dunking station where the rim lowered so even a five-foot-tall kid could feel like Shaq for ten seconds. It was shiny. It was expensive. It was very, very loud.
The "Draft" experience was probably the most popular part for the "Gram." You’d stand next to a virtual Adam Silver, put on your favorite team’s hat, and take a photo that looked like you’d just been picked first overall. It was pure wish fulfillment. But once you’d done it once, did you really need to do it again for $34 plus tax? Most guests said no.
The Timing Was Brilliantly Bad
Sometimes life just hits you with a series of unfortunate events. The NBA Experience Disney Springs opened in late 2019. By March 2020, the entire world stopped. When Disney Springs began its phased reopening in May 2020, the NBA Experience stayed dark.
It never reopened.
Disney officially pulled the plug in August 2021. If you’re keeping track, that means it was only operational for about seven months. That’s a staggering ROI failure for a project that cost tens of millions of dollars to build.
The pandemic was the killing blow, but the writing was on the wall before the masks came out. Even during its peak months, the attraction struggled to draw crowds. While the nearby Gideon’s Bakehouse had a four-hour wait for a cookie, the NBA Experience often had employees standing outside trying to coax people in.
Why the Concept Missed the Rim
People go to Disney Springs for two things: food and shopping. Maybe a movie or a Cirque du Soleil show. Spending two hours inside a sweaty, high-energy basketball simulation doesn't always mesh with a day of drinking margaritas at Dockside Margaritas or browsing the World of Disney.
The price point was a sticking point too. At nearly $40 per person, a family of four was looking at $160 before buying a single jersey at the gift shop. In a city where you can go to an actual Orlando Magic game for roughly the same price (or less, depending on the opponent), the value proposition felt off.
Also, it was competing with the ghost of DisneyQuest. For those who grew up in the 90s and 2000s, DisneyQuest was a five-story indoor theme park with "CyberSpace Mountain" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Buccaneer Gold." It had variety. The NBA Experience Disney Springs was monolithic. If you weren't a die-hard basketball fan, there was zero reason to go.
The Fate of the Building and "Meta"
So, what happened to that massive, prime real estate? For a while, it just sat there. The giant NBA logo stayed on the side of the building like a tombstone.
In 2022, Disney found a temporary use for it: "Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge - The Sacred Grove." It was a Meta Quest VR experience. It was cool, sure, but it only used a tiny fraction of the available space. It felt like Disney was just trying to keep the lights on while they figured out a long-term plan.
Currently, the space remains a bit of a transition zone. There have been endless rumors about what might replace it. Some fans want a massive "Villains" themed attraction, others hope for a return of an arcade-style venue. Disney has remained remarkably tight-lipped about a permanent tenant.
What You Can Still See
If you walk past the building today, you’ll notice the NBA branding is mostly gone. The retail space, however, has stayed somewhat active. The NBA Store was actually quite good. It had exclusive Disney-NBA crossover merchandise—think Mickey ears with basketball stitching or jerseys with Goofy dunking.
You can still find NBA merchandise scattered around Disney Springs, particularly at the World of Disney, but the dedicated megastore experience has been significantly scaled back.
Lessons from the NBA Experience Failure
This wasn't just a Disney "oopsie." It was a case study in market research gone wrong.
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- Niche Doesn't Always Scale: Basketball is global, but "basketball training simulation" is a niche within a niche for people on vacation.
- The "One and Done" Problem: Unlike a roller coaster or a favorite restaurant, the NBA Experience lacked "re-playability." Once you’ve measured your wingspan, you don't need to do it again next year.
- Physical Exertion vs. Vacation Relaxation: Disney guests are already walking 10 miles a day. Asking them to do defensive sliding drills in the Florida humidity is a tough sell.
What to do Instead if You Love Sports at Disney
Since you can't visit the NBA Experience Disney Springs anymore, you have to look elsewhere for your sports fix.
The ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex is the obvious choice. It’s where the "NBA Bubble" actually happened during the pandemic. While it's mostly for youth tournaments, they occasionally host pro events and the atmosphere is incredible.
If you just want the "vibe" of sports while you eat, City Works Eatery & Pour House is right next door to the old NBA building. It has an insane number of TVs and a massive draft beer list. It’s basically what the NBA Experience should have been: a place to celebrate sports without having to do a vertical leap in flip-flops.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Trip
If you’re heading to Disney Springs soon and were hoping for some hoops action, pivot your plans with these specifics:
- Visit City Works: It’s the best spot in Disney Springs to catch a live NBA game. They have massive 100-inch screens and the acoustics are great for game days.
- Check the ESPN Schedule: Before you fly in, check the ESPN Wide World of Sports calendar. You might find a high-level basketball tournament happening that you can watch for a fraction of the cost of a park ticket.
- The Disney Springs West Side: Don't skip this area just because the NBA building is closed. The new Drawn to Life by Cirque du Soleil is right there, and it’s arguably the best thing Disney has put in that corner of the property in a decade.
- Look for Crossover Merch: If you want those NBA/Disney pins or shirts, head to the "Marketplace Co-Op" or "World of Disney." They still stock some of the "Mickey Basketball" line that was popularized during the attraction's short run.
The era of the NBA Experience Disney Springs is over, leaving behind a massive building and a lot of "what ifs." It serves as a reminder that even at Disney, the magic requires more than just a famous brand and some sensors—it needs a soul that keeps people coming back.