In a chat with the media this week, 2x NBA champion Kevin Durant gave his honest opinion of the new NBA All-Star format. Unlike other fans and experts, Durant (forward for the Phoenix Suns) hates the updated format and wants the league to go back to playing East vs. West.
“I hate it. Absolutely hate it. Terrible,” said Durant. “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.”
This year, the NBA All-Star game is set to debut in a brand new format (again). Instead of the standard East-West showdown, the All-Star event on Sunday will feature a tournament-style competition split between four teams. There will be two semifinal games before the main game as the final act of All-Star weekend.
Three of the four teams will be named after a separate TNT analyst (Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith) and will include a roster of 8 players. The fourth team will be the winner of the Castrol Rising Stars championship game, which includes young standouts in their first or second year.
This change is just the latest format adjustment in the past couple of years. In the NBA’s ongoing effort to bring back the hype and excitement for All-Star weekend, they’ve tried to implement a number of changes to drive up interest and increase the viewing experience for fans.
In the past, they’ve tried various methods, from a vote-based team captain system to an “Elam Ending” and even a “target score” format designed to create a high-stakes environment. So far, nothing has worked to increase the quality of the game itself.
The problem, according to most fans and experts, is not the format of the game, but the effort and participation from the players. The fact is, stars don’t want to risk an injury or any minor inconvenience that might inhibit their availability during the season.
With no incentive to win, most of the players put forth minimal effort in the game and it leads to a nearly unwatchable experience for the fans. This has led to a drastic reduction in ratings and approval from the fans.
The NBA is clearly committing to fixing the All-Star game and they think that a tournament style is the best way to create an interesting and engaging event. We will see soon enough if they made the right call, but many people (like 14x All-Star Kevin Durant) would rather the NBA revert back to the classic East Vs. West format.
Not only is the classic format familiar to the fans, but it’s a lot easier to get emotionally invested when it’s separated by location. In years past, the All-Star game has been the site of some epic battles between the East and West and it made for some great memories.
Lately, however, the fun has been sorely lacking from the entire weekend and it could be a sign of an even greater problem with the league itself. For now, there’s nothing to do but wait and see how the event goes this year. But it may not be long before the traditional format makes a return.
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