The 2025 NBA All-Star game is right around the corner, and NBA commissioner Adam Silver says he’s hopeful that this year will bring positive changes. In a chat on the ‘Murph & Markus Morning Show,’ Silver spoke candidly about the upcoming event and expressed optimism that they can find a formula that works.
“Part of it I think is that it’s hard to turn the clock back. Other major league sports, the NFL for example moved to flag football for the Pro Bowl — I just think that when grew up, the All-Star game was a rare opportunity to see many players who only came to your market once. I think now because of digital media, you can see every single game on your phone,” said Silver. “It’s just a different time. Nobody was proud of the All-Star presentation last year. I think the fans are looking for more than just a game and I think by creating the new format we’re using this year, multiple games to 40, shorter spurts of activity from the players, and mixing up the teams a little bit, I think it’s gonna be really exciting. I think it’s gonna be something different.”
Silver is trying hard to bring life back into the All-Star game and the league has implemented several new changes to help drive up the ratings. Instead of just one game between two teams, for example, Sunnday’s big event will be turned into a tournament-style show with four teams of All-Stars and young Rising Stars.
The reviews from the fans have been mixed so far, but Silver says that there will never be total fan satisfaction with the All-Star event. For now, Silver and the NBA have concluded that this format is worth a shot even over the highly requested USA vs. World All-Star matchup.
“It’s not unimaginable to me that in a few years, people will be longing for the traditional format and even the players will be saying ‘Let’s go back to East-West!’ People have talked about let’s do sort of a rider cup approach, USA vs. international players. That’s something we’ve thought a lot about but the issue with doing that right now is we’ve had tremendous growth over the years in international players, roughly 30% of the league now. I think last time we were in the Bay Area for the All-Star game, 8% of the players were born in the United States, now it’s 30%. So to me if you did US vs. the rest of the world you’d still have a problem selecting the All-Stars because it would be a little unfair to the US players because 30% of the players will be half the players… so I’m hopeful for this year I think we’re gonna see a really exciting turnout. I’ve talked to Steph and many of the perennial All-Stars, and none of them were proud of what you saw last year… I’m hopeful for this year. We can get something that can be really fun and exciting for fans to watch.”
NBA All-Star weekend used to be one of the most highly anticipated times of the season but now it’s becoming more of an afterthought as the product gradually decreases in quality. The biggest gripe for viewers is the lack of effort on the floor, which leads to stale, boring, and uninspired play during the game.
If the NBA can find a way to increase the incentive for players and give them a reason to play harder for the game, it will go a long way toward making the game more watchable. This year, with the tournament-style event featuring the NBA on TNT crew, it will be interesting to see how it translates to the big screen.
But between the ratings decline and the growing disapproval of the NBA product, the league desperately needs a win here, and they should do everything they can to address the fan concerns for the entire All-Star festivities.
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