There are plenty of reasons you might want to own an airless basketball that bounces and performs just like the real thing.

Say, if you host your own neighborhood March Madness tournament each year, but only own the one ball. Or you want something to dribble and shoot in the driveway or at the park without toting around a pump. Or the world runs out of usable air.

In any case, here's the Wilson Airless Gen1 Basketball. It's the world's first 3D-printed basketball that you'll never need to inflate.

The ball made its debut at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game — as a prototype, not the actual ball used on the court. One year later, it's ready to get into the hands of consumers. It goes live on the Wilson website February 16. Act fast, because the ball's first production run is expected to sell out quickly, even with its staggering $2,500 price tag.

Rather than the typical ball made of leather and containing an inflated bladder, the Airless Gen1 Basketball relies on a 3D-printed polymer lattice structure to replicate the bounce, flight and feel of a traditional basketball. It's also the same weight and size of a regulation ball, and it features the familiar panel and seam structure. Hexagonal holes across the surface allow air to pass through freely.

Each ball has a built-in label for customization and will feature the exact, limited number in which it was produced. It's also available in three colors: jet-black, brown and natural white.

You can absolutely buy this ball and use it in your next pickup game. But you also might consider putting it on a pedestal with a spotlight and displaying it like the collector's item that it is.

It really depends on how badly you want to dribble and shoot a $2,500 ball.