The NBA announced sweeping changes to the format of the 2025 All-Star game to increase competitiveness and give fans a more engaging product to watch after the last two All-Star Games were widely panned as two of the worst ever.
Likely participants Anthony Davis and Devin Booker discussed the new format and weren’t thrilled about it, with Davis saying most players do not like the format either.
“I don’t know. I don’t really like it. We’ll see how it goes this year and see if they change that or not. I think they can go back to East vs. West but four teams and multiple games, I don’t think a lot of players are gonna like that, personally. But we’ll see.”
Similar to KD, Anthony Davis is not a fan of the new All-Star Game format: pic.twitter.com/fQPLuDzVcb
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) December 18, 2024
Booker expressed his desire to maintain the heritage of the classic All-Star game.
“It’s change, it’s different. I’m more into the nostalgia. I agree with Kev (Durant), I like East vs. West, with your own team jersey. I like the old jerseys. It’s whatever… It’s tough, it’s a tough part of the season. Usually the All-Star break or right after is the home stretch when you’re gearing up. I say most guys going into the game are already dealing with something. It’s tough but it’s an important part of the NBA tradition, it’s always been a highlighted weekend, but things are just changing and evolving, so you have to take it for what it is.”
Devin Booker on the new NBA All-Star format:
“It’s change, it’s different. I’m more into the nostalgia. I agree with Kev, I like East vs. West, with your own team jersey. I like the old jerseys”
https://t.co/3ETlTr4WXY
— CantGuardBook (@CGBBURNER) December 18, 2024
The revamped format will see the 24 All-Stars (12 from each Conference) be divided into three teams of eight players, with the winners of the Rising Stars Challenge making up the field. These four squads will compete in a single-elimination tournament, with the semifinals being played to 40 points and the final to 25 points.
The three All-Star four teams will be named after the GMs, TNT analysts Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith, who will select their rosters from the pool of 24 All-Stars.
This format has been introduced after competitiveness in the All-Star game hit all-time lows over the last two seasons. The league hopes the shorter format of games can encourage the players to stay more energetic instead of playing a 48-minute exhibition game with little entertainment value nowadays.
Davis and Booker made their complaints heard after Kevin Durant openly criticized the format after the NBA announced it.
“I hate it. Absolutely hate it. Terrible. All-Star game changing all the formats is terrible in my opinion. We should just go back to East-West. I think we’ve been trying to bring that flare back somehow with the All-Star weekend but I think we should adjust and keep it traditional… but we’ll see how this one works, you never know, I might be wrong. I’m just another guy with another opinion, but we’ll see how it works.”
The league has made multiple attempts to create a more competitive All-Star game. The last change was introduced in 2020, which saw an Elam ending where teams would receive a target score to reach in the final quarter. It led to a phenomenal 2020 All-Star Game, but it hasn’t come remotely close to that level of effort and intensity in the last four events.
We’ll have to wait and see if these changes are effective, but it doesn’t look like the players have bought into the format just yet.
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