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Tim Bontemps
SAN FRANCISCO — After final 12 months’s NBA All-Star Sport did a collective face-plant in Indianapolis, the NBA acquired along with its gamers — together with one in every of its standard-bearers in Stephen Curry — to determine what it might do to enhance the league’s signature midseason showcase.
The end result was a reimagined format — one Curry performed an element in creating — that turned one 48-minute sport between two groups into three shorter video games that includes 4 groups, culminating with All-Star MVP Curry and Crew Shaq routing Crew Chuck 41-25 within the championship.
So it was becoming that, on a weekend that wound up being as a lot about celebrating Curry’s legendary profession with the Golden State Warriors because it was the rest, it was Curry who was requested whether or not the format he helped create had labored — and what, precisely, ought to this occasion appear to be?
“We wanted to alter,” Curry stated, referring to final 12 months’s sport that featured almost 400 mixed factors. “We wanted some new life, new juice within the sport — one thing type of surprising. … The way in which folks eat basketball is totally different. It is not going to appear to be it used to. However it could actually nonetheless be enjoyable for everyone. I had enjoyable. Our group had enjoyable. That is type of all that issues.”
Curry had loads of enjoyable when he buried a halfcourt shot through the closing Sunday evening, after which instantly beelined his technique to the opposite finish of the court docket to search out rapper and fellow Bay Space icon Mistah F.A.B. to rejoice.
General, there have been fewer moments of fully torpid play on the court docket than earlier editions and even a number of notable defensive performs, together with blocks on the rim by Jaren Jackson Jr. and Victor Wembanyama.
However on the finish of the evening, in what has turn out to be a practice for the way NBA All-Star Weekend has gone in recent times, there was removed from a consensus about how the evening performed out, and the place issues ought to go from right here.
“I believe possibly we should always concentrate on another issues than All-Star,” Denver Nuggets middle Nikola Jokic stated. “I believe it is all the time going to be like this, so we should always settle for it.”
THE ENTIRE DISCUSSION across the All-Star Sport over the previous a number of seasons might be distilled down into one transient interplay the league’s reigning Most Worthwhile Participant had with reporters Saturday throughout his media availability.
When Jokic was requested about Charles Barkley choosing him first as a part of TNT’s “Inside The NBA” draft for the three eight-man All-Star rosters earlier this month, Jokic smiled and stated, “I believe I am not constructed for this sport, for this sort of sport.”
Minutes later, Jokic was requested what he really meant.
“I believe that is not a query for me, my buddy,” he stated, one other smile forming on his face as he spoke. “In order for you my opinion, I can not provide you with as a result of I believe it isn’t going to be good.”
If Jokic, a three-time MVP averaging a triple-double whereas capturing near 60% from the sector and 45% from 3-point vary, is not a match for the All-Star Sport, then who’s?
That is exactly what the NBA got down to attempt to repair in shifting to this three-game mini-tournament, with every sport being performed to a goal rating of 40 factors.
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Tatum’s dunk seals All-Star Sport win for Crew Shaq
Jayson Tatum slams house the clinching dunk as Crew Shaq wins the 2025 All-Star Sport.
Sunday’s video games had been comparatively aggressive — extra so than in latest seasons no less than — relationship again to the final actually aggressive one: the 2020 All-Star Sport in Chicago, which got here just a few weeks after the demise of Kobe Bryant and was performed with an edge the Corridor of Famer would have been happy with.
And whereas this evening did not have something resembling that, the consensus was the occasion had been improved.
“I believe it was an excellent step in the fitting path to reinvigorate the sport indirectly,” Curry stated, “and then you definitely tinker with it once more subsequent 12 months.”
“I believe we’re beginning to see All-Star Weekend and the aggressive nature within the sport beginning to creep again in,” Kevin Durant stated. “I believe it was stable tonight … I felt like guys had been making an attempt to play onerous.”
On the identical time, not a lot basketball was performed. Sunday evening featured a number of prolonged breaks within the motion. Amongst them, a capturing competitors after the primary sport that concerned Milwaukee Bucks All-Star guard Damian Lillard. After which there was the ceremony celebrating TNT’s 40-year relationship with the NBA that’s coming to an finish after this season, a 20-minute pause in play that not one of the gamers appeared to know was coming.
“I believe the hardest half [was when] they stopped the sport to do the presentation whereas we had been type of midway via it,” Celtics star Jayson Tatum stated. “It was type of robust to get again into the sport after that.”
The inclusion of the winners of the Rising Stars Problem — a event on Friday evening that includes first- and second-year gamers — as a part of the All-Star Sport on Sunday evening drew its personal spherical of criticism. Warriors participant Draymond Inexperienced, participating in TNT’s broadcast of the occasion, declared that the brand new format was a “zero” on a 1-to-10 scale, and “it sucks.”
For Crew Chuck, which beat Crew Kenny to open the evening, there was over an hour between video games.
“It was type of robust,” Donovan Mitchell stated of the best way the evening performed out. “I believe firstly you’ve gotten the vitality, the adrenaline, you are going and then you definitely sit for 30-45 minutes. That was robust, to be trustworthy with you. It is a work in progress.”
NOW THAT THIS All-Star Weekend is over, and the sport can be held on the LA Clippers‘ new area in Inglewood, California, subsequent 12 months, one query can be on everybody’s thoughts: What’s going to occur to the All-Star Sport now?
As ordinary, there have been many potential solutions. Curry wasn’t the one one who lauded the brand new format; Cleveland Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson, Curry’s coach within the sport, thought it labored, too.
“I favored it,” Atkinson stated. “It is significantly better. It wasn’t a layup drill.”
Atkinson’s rising star massive man, Evan Mobley, favored it, too.
“Actually, it was fairly enjoyable on the market,” Mobley stated. “I really feel prefer it was slightly extra aggressive. I really feel like if the sport was slightly nearer, it will most likely be much more aggressive, but it surely was a unique sport. However I really feel like because it retains going, I believe it is going to be an excellent factor for the league.”
Others disagreed.
Each Tyler Herro and Darius Garland — first- and second-time All-Stars, respectively — stated they thought the sport was over virtually earlier than it began and would like to return to the normal East-West format.
“However who am I to say?” Garland advised ESPN with amusing. “I am a two-time All-Star, so I ain’t acquired no say in that.”
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Jokic-Wemby join for a spotlight alley-oop
Nikola Jokic lobs it as much as Victor Wembanyama, who finishes with a robust dunk.
One factor nearly everybody agreed on, although, was that when NBC takes the baton subsequent 12 months as the sport’s new broadcast associate, there must be far fewer stoppages within the motion.
“I really feel just like the followers wish to see us taking part in extra,” Trae Younger stated, “fairly than simply some little reveals in between breaks.”
One other subject that got here up repeatedly over the course of the weekend was the thought of getting a “Crew USA vs. The World” format. Whereas sources stated there was no straight directive from the NBA on how the groups could be drafted by Barkley and his fellow TNT analysts Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith, concepts had been mentioned on the right way to divvy up the celebrities. The truth that one of many groups — Chuck’s World Stars — included seven worldwide gamers was emblematic of that.
A transfer to such a format might create extra points. The All-Star Sport options simply 24 gamers, creating loads of arguments about what stars are being slighted and overlooked of the competitors. Going to 12 worldwide and 12 American gamers would solely exacerbate these points and miss much more deserving candidates.
However that did not cease some — together with each Wembanyama and Giannis Antetokounmpo — from endorsing the thought.
“I’d love that,” Antetokounmpo stated earlier than the sport, which he did not play in due to a calf harm. “I believe that may be probably the most fascinating and most fun format. I’d love that. For certain, I might take delight in that.”
“My opinion is that it is extra purposeful,” Wembanyama stated Saturday. “There’s extra delight in it. Extra stakes.”
Shifting ahead, the NBA’s hopes for elevated delight and stakes on this occasion will relaxation on Wembanyama and his 7-foot-4 body. With LeBron James sitting out the sport due to foot and ankle discomfort, ending his streak of 20 consecutive All-Star begins, Wembanyama’s personal All-Star streak started.
And after declaring he would play the sport with a function, he went out and did simply that — together with one sequence within the first sport wherein he had a post-up dunk, a block after which began a quick break ending in one other dunk, this time by Alperen Sengun.
“He took it critical,” Curry stated. “He was taking part in onerous. He was exhibiting his distinctive ability set all throughout the board.
“You make the sport what you need it, and everyone has a alternative to do this.”
