The NBA will scrap its mini-tournament format for the All-Star Game and go back to the drawing board in a search for new ideas, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
At a press conference Thursday in New York, commissioner Adam Silver admitted that this year’s experimental format was “a miss.” It involved a four-team tournament featuring the 24 NBA All-Stars divided up into three teams, along with another squad consisting of rookies and second-year players who won the Rising Stars event. Instead of being timed, all the games were played to a 40-point target score.
“We’re not there in terms of creating an All-Star experience that we can be proud of and our players can be proud of,” Silver admitted.
Finding a workable solution to the All-Star Game has been a problem for the league for roughly the last decade. The traditional East vs. West matchup grew stale, as there was nothing to motivate players or inspire them to put forth much effort on defense. The NBA had captains pick their teams for a few years, and the Elam ending was a brief success, but most often the quality of play has been low.
This year’s changes were instituted after the 2024 game resulted in a 211-186 final score that drew intense criticism from league insiders and media members.
One drawback to this year’s competition was a nearly 20-minute break during the championship game that was used to recognize TNT’s broadcast team, which was airing the game for the last time.
“It was well-intentioned,” Silver said. “But I think the long stoppage in play in that final game didn’t work for anyone.”
NBC will televise the game next year as part of its new broadcast deal, and Silver said the league is talking to network officials about potential changes. Reynolds notes that the game will take place during the Winter Olympics, which could lead to a U.S. vs. the World format that has been proposed for some time.
The 2026 game, which will be hosted by the Clippers at their new Inuit Dome, will have an earlier starting time, Reynolds adds. It will be played in the afternoon, leading up to Olympics coverage at night.
Just give up. No one needs an all star game. They might have been important back when every game wasn’t available but now people can see any players they care about 24/7.
The corporate sponsors and BRI need an ASG.
Shocker…
I know this year‘s NHL All-Star tourney was a huge hit.
Hockey is big here in Florida so I don’t know if that was the reason for the local fanfare but to me it worked nationwide and I think the ratings were up. May as well try it in basketball.
Hockey has more parity considering the different countries of origin but in basketball the world is catching up, so why not give it a try?
One world team, one Canadian team, and maybe East and West US teams? Or since Europe is really growing, make one Europe team, then a world team, and two US teams?
But make the east and west US teams relate to where a player was born or maybe went to high school? So instead of your NBA team pride, roll with hometown pride? The Mississippi will be the dividing line.
Sounds great to me because I think hockey nailed it this year.
They should get a giant dunk tank and let them dunk each other itd be hilarious and family friendly.
Maybe they have to answer NBA trivia or personal questions and if they get it wrong they get dunked! Anyone else chuckling at the thought of this?
They could set up two dunk tanks, one under each basket. Dueling dunk tanks if you will. The players could talk their best smack and they have to yell it across the court. Then they get dunked in a tank of water! Maybe there is even goldfish in the water for comedic effect.
A cool way that may spark some competition would be young vs old. Either a number of all star games let’s say players who have made over 5 vs under. Or you could do years in the league/age. This years the rosters would have been
Kyrie
Ad
Jokic
Lebron
Curry
Tatum
Lillard
KAT
Giannis
Durant
Harden
Mitchell
Brown
Vs
Cade
wemby
Jackson
Young
Segun
Herro
Garland
Edwards
J Williams
SGA
Siakam
Mobley
Brunson
Luka???
He was injured these are just the rosters as they were this year
Make them play an all star kickball game or something that is exciting to watch with no defense.
The players of the losing team have to work regular jobs that reflect their real-life skills and qualifications, e.g. pizza delivery, sewer cleaning and shelf stacking, at the according wages over the entire offseason.
The winners won’t be drug-tested and will be exempt from any sports betting inquiries for an entire season.
Watch these dudes fight for the win like hungry wolves over a dead racoon.
Getting the ASG off TNT is going to solve more problems with the game than you’d think.
The guy named Juice on Major Wager has it right Adam. Break out the goods.
USA vs The World is the only fix…
But, that would be disastrous to the league.
Every professional sports league in USA. Needs an all star game. It celebrates the league, sport, calendar year. Celebrates tradition and history.
Or it should do all that. You’d think with all former and current players. Coaches, GMs, Sports networks. And historical references. They can come up with something we all like and watch.
I’m available …. Call me
Have separate 1v1, 2v2, and/or 3v3 mini tournaments.
Consider the U.S vs the world structure and stop being cowardice. Afraid the international players would own the mericans?
End All-Star Weekend. I agree. It can’t continue like this, with the league changing everything up every year, in a fruitless quest for ratings. People don’t care to watch it anymore.
If being an NBA all-star is an honor that gets a player a better contract, then continue on with the elections and honors, but get rid of the actual events.
Silver never understands anything. It’s not the format, it’s the fact that today’s players don’t care about an exhibition game to do more than go through the motions. Figure out a way to make the All Star weekend’s events meaningful, with real consequences in the standings, and guys will play hard, probably. This generation of players sits down when they have a hang nail, to preserve themselves, so lose the expectations that they’re going to play for anything that really doesn’t matter to the trophy.