2023-10-18 16:07:00
It’s no secret that the NBA All-Star Game has clearly lost its flavor over the last 15 years. The League is therefore looking for ways to make the All-Star Game attractive once more. This Wednesday, Adam Silver suggested that we might see a change of format in Indianapolis in February 2024, with potentially the return of an East vs. West confrontation.
Since 2018, the NBA All-Star Game has been constructed as follows: two captains (the two players with the most votes in each conference), and a draft to compose the teams. But despite the small adjustments made along the way to make the match more competitive (implementation of the Elam Ending, among others), this formula seems to have had its day if we are to believe NBA boss Adam Silver .
“We will perhaps return to something more traditional to make the teams. We decided to go with this concept of captains and draft, but historically it was East vs West. It’s something to think regarding.”
– Adam Silver, via ESPN First Take
The objective for the League commissioner is to make the All-Star Game an event appreciated by fans, who are increasingly frustrated by the product offered during this big weekend in February. The All-Star Game today is a tasteless meeting, where there is absolutely no defense and where the competitive spirit remains in the locker room. The All-Star game in Utah a few months ago, which ended with a score of… 184-175, sadly symbolized all of this. And the audiences felt it.
Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game was the lowest rated and least-watched edition of the game, per @paulsen_smw
• Ratings declined 29% and viewership 27% from last year’s All-Star Game
• The record-low audience places the NBA All-Star Game well behind this year’s NFL Pro Bowl
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 22, 2023
Will a return to the historic East vs. West format make it possible to relaunch the All-Star Game in 2024? Allow us to doubt it. In 2018, the NBA abandoned this format for the same reasons as today. What made East – West confrontations exciting in the past was the identification of the stars with their respective conferences, linked to very different rivalries and styles of play. Today, the NBA is much more standardized, the players seem much closer to each other, and this is particularly felt during the All-Star game.
So hey, Adam Silver can try to change the format as many times as he wants, but above all he should find a way to push the players to give a little more. Easier said than done obviously, but if we were to suggest an idea to him, we would tell him to consider a USA vs. International confrontation. There it might spark.
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Source texte : ESPN First Take
“We’re looking at some potential changes in format in Indianapolis this year, maybe a return to something more traditional in terms of how the teams are presented.”
Adam Silver on the NBA All-Star game possibly going back to the East vs. West format.pic.twitter.com/W9wBdRaS4s
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 18, 2023
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#return #East #West #format