The NBA knows what it wants as the atmosphere for this new All-Star Game format — fast, pickup-style hoops.
Whether we get that or not — whether the players care or not, whether they play even a little bit of defense — we’ll find out in February, but more details are emerging about the NBA’s plans.
What we do know is this: The League will split the 24 All-Stars (12 from each conference) into three teams of eight, with the winning team from Friday night’s rookie/sophomore Rising Stars game serving as the fourth team. ESPN’s Shams Charania added more reporting about this:
The NBA’s new four-team tournament-style format for the 2025 All-Star Game is expected to have two semifinal games played to 40 points, with the winners advancing to the final game to 25 points, sources told ESPN. The first-of-its-kind event is expected to function as a quick-fire contest that resembles pickup games where the winner moves to the championship round in a single-elimination game.
The NBA had to do something, the All-Star Game itself has become unwatchable in recent years as players – unwilling to risk injury and without significant stakes in the game – went through the motions but played no defense. It was a festival of wide-open 3-pointers and dunks.
The new format may change that atmosphere. Maybe not. If this has a genuine pickup vibe, that would be fun (sadly, there’s no way they’re going to let the players call their own fouls). But the league had to do something – a weekend celebration of basketball ended with a bang too many years in a row. Maybe this shakes things up.
