Fans were excited for All-Star Weekend on Feb. 14-16. Many people anticipate the annual NBA All-Star weekend, as it is filled with fun contests like the celebrity game, rising stars challenge, slam dunk contest, three-point contest, skills challenge, and most importantly, the all-star game.
Mac McClung, three-time slam dunk contest winner, was the star of the weekend as he continued to stand out in this year’s contest, scoring a perfect 50 on all four of his dunks. McClung even jumped over a Kia K5 in his final dunk to secure his victory.
The three-point contest featured contestants such as Jalen Brunson, Darius Garland, Damian Lillard, and the eventual winner of the contest, Tyler Herro.
Then reality hit. As of March 1, the game has received hundreds of reviews, with many being upset with how the All-Star Weekend turned out. Even though some found a new format exciting, that didn’t stop the backlash from coming. Steph Curry, regarded by some as the best three-point shooter of all time, participated in the contest many times before this year, including in 2021, but did not participate this year, to the chagrin of many fans.
More hate from fans came flooding in after the all-star game, which introduced a new format featuring four teams instead of the traditional two. Three teams were drafted by Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith, and a final fourth team, made up of rising stars, was coached by WNBA star Candace Parker. These teams were drafted on Feb. 13 live on TNT. Players were voted to participate in the all-star game by the fans, current players in the league, and a media panel. Fans contribute 50% to the selection, while players and the media panel contributed 25% each. To win and advance to the next game, players had to score at least 40 points.
Fans used to the old All-Star Game style felt the new format made it seem more like a pickup game than an all-star game. It also didn’t help that two of the biggest stars, LeBron James and Anthony Edwards, sat out of the games due to injuries.
The feedback wasn’t all negative. Some people did enjoy the new format, including Knicks stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns (KAT). Brunson said that he appreciated the novelty of the new format, noting that he likes it for the game, but thinks they should raise the score to at least 50 because the games feel too short. KAT said he thought the competition was up, and that the NBA did a good job giving the fans a show.
Would fans overall have preferred to see a regular, all-star weekend? Most would say yes, here’s hoping the NBA will sift through the fan reviews and consider those for next year.
