According to Kevin Reyes of Fan Sided on Thursday, the National Basketball Association has changed the format for the All-Star Game on February 16 in San Francisco, California. There will now be two semifinal games, with the winners playing in the final afterwards. There will be four eight player teams, with the general managers being four TNT analysts–former Houston Rockets point guard Kenny Smith of New York City, New York, Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal of Newark, New Jersey (number seven on our 2019 list of the best basketball players of all-time), Hall of Famer Charles Barkley of Leeds, Alabama, and former WNBA superstar Candace Parker of St. Louis, Missouri.
The first team that scores 40 points wins each game. However, the reaction to date has not been positive. Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant of Washington, D.C. stated, “I hate it. Absolutely hate it,” according to Trey Alston of Complex. Meanwhile Los Angeles Lakers center Anthony Davis of Chicago, Illinois did not give the format a glowing review, but is willing to give it a chance. According to Emilio Abad of Bola VIP, Davis stated, “I don’t really like it, but we’ll see how it goes this year.”
It is interesting that the NBA is following the National Hockey League’s lead when it comes to the All-Star game format. In the NHL, we have had semifinals and a final for the All-Star Game since 2016. However, unlike the NBA, players represent each division and play one full 20 minute period, rather than playing to a set score.
