In an exclusive chat with CNN, with former Suns star Charles Barley, league commissioner Adam Silver gave his most revealing statement yet on the future of NBA All-Star weekend. In contrast to his previous statements, Silver conceded defeat on the All-Star game and acknowledged that the notion of it being a competitive event is a fallacy.
“Players see it as a mid-season break, an opportunity to have fun, an opportunity to take a break from a very long season,” said Silver. “There’s always an entertainment aspect to our league and I think we should be looking to do different things. We’re going to look at USA vs International. I just think maybe we’re past that point where we’re going to play a truly competitive game. It’s happened in other sports.”
Adam Silver Admits All Star Game Could Disappear
"We're going to look at USA vs International. I just think maybe we're past that point where we're going to play a truly competitive game."
[via @CNN ] pic.twitter.com/aV01XJOFTD
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The quality of the All-Star game has been a growing source of concern in the NBA community. Through the 80s, 90s, and much of the 2000s, the All-Star game was a beloved and cherished event, thanks to the players who put in the work and took the risk of playing competitively.
In modern times, however, the All-Star game is shifting away from its focus on the fans and becoming more of a break for the players. Modern All-Stars have no problem accepting the awards, but the idea of showing out for a game meant solely for entertaining the fans is a risk they just aren’t willing to take.
Instead, the players would rather treat the event as a joke, like Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who made it a point to shoot left-handed throughout the weekend. There’s also Luka Doncic, who treated the All-Star game like a morning shootaround.
While this may be a great development for the players, the fans are clearly not amused and it doesn’t bode well for the future of the game.
2024 All-Star Weekend Did Not Impress The Fans
After last year’s disappointing show in Salt Lake City, the NBA gave off the impression that they were aiming to fix the event for this season and beyond. So when it was announced that the game would revert back to the old format, many fans were eager to see how it would turn out.
Sadly, while the competition did have some solid moments on occasion, the whole weekend fell pretty flat and many fans voiced displeasure with the result. After a weak dunk contest (that saw a G-Leaguer take home the trophy for the second straight season) and a forgettable celebrity game, the unwatchable spectacle of All-Star Sunday was too much to stomach for a lot of people, and calls for change began almost right away.
Over the course of a few months, debates raged over how to “fix” the All-Star games, and various solutions have been proposed on how to make the players be more competitive on the court.
Now, Silver has all but given up on that pursuit. By the sound of it, Silver is siding with the players on this and it may not be long before All-Star weekend itself is on the chopping block.
It’s obviously not the news that most fans want to hear but it’s almost impossible to get the players to buy into the All-Star game if they just won’t bother to take it seriously.
The future of All-Star weekend is completely up in the air and there has never been more uncertainty about what may be to come. Even so, Silver has made up his mind and it will be interesting to see how the whole event evolves over time.
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