This year’s NBA All-Star Game introduced a new USA vs. World format that wound up a huge hit with the fans. It wasn’t really about the Olympic-inspired concept so much as the fact that it inspired the stars on the court to give a better effort than we’ve seen in many years. As a result the NBA and the All-Stars were collectively lauded for the quality of Sunday’s exhibition. Even more, it left fans hoping a new standard had been set for All-Star competitiveness.
The league will undoubtedly do whatever it can to maintain that new standard. This is by far the best PR the NBA has gotten around All-Star Weekend in recent memory. One of the top items on the league’s to-do list starting right now is figuring out how to replicate this year’s formula for the games to come. That discussion starts with the format and whether it should be brought back next year even though the Olympics won’t be present as a clear through line.
