On the eve of the 2026 All-Star showdown, Spurs center Victor Wembanyama vowed to set the example for his fellow NBA stars. In a chat with the media, Wemby explained his plan for bringing life back to All-Star weekend, beginning with increasing the competitive atmosphere of Sunday’s big game.
“Exclamation-point plays, playing in a solid manner and sharing the ball with energy,” Wembanyama told Dave McMenamin on Saturday when asked how he planned to set a competitive tone. “If you share that energy, people feel like they have a responsibility to share it back to you. I’m confident in the way it’s going to go.”
The All-Star game has traditionally been a big deal for NBA fans. It used to be the best place to see the game’s best and most influential players come together. In modern times, however, the effort has been lacking. With scores often hovering near or surpassing 200 points per game, the All-Star game has been relegated to a borderline shootout.
Of course, if you ask Kevin Durant (two-time champion), the All-Star game has always been more relaxed as players prioritize their own health and durability over performance in a meaningless game. After watching old clips from past decades, he’s not convinced that there’s been a downgrade in quality.
“People at home are complaining about the game and the intensity of it. I don’t think we’ll ever get past that, but to see everybody still here, showing up, doing their jobs, pushing the game forward through this weekend, you go around the city, it’s so much energy in the city, so many past greats,” said Durant. “I wanted to see what the big deal was and if it was really that much intensity, like Game 7, like y’all said it was back then. And it wasn’t,” Durant said. “The intensity the older generation has been talking about, I don’t know if I’ve seen it, you know?”
Regardless of the event’s evolution, fans are not happy with its current state. While nobody’s expecting these guys to act like it’s a playoff game, some semblance of intensity, emotion, and effort would go a long way in improving the overall experience for everyone.
It’s hard to say what will get things to change in the way that fans want, but Victor’s commitment is a start. If he can set the example early and open the game with a competitive mindset, it could end up spreading to everyone on the court. By dictating the tone and being the first to play hard, Wembanyama is encouraging others to do the same, and it could give us our best All-Star game in years.
