Basketball stars Kevin Durant and Nikola Jokic said the new NBA All-Star Game format, played Sunday, Feb. 16, in San Francisco, increased the competition level and was an improvement over previous editions.
The revamped format featured a one-night tournament with four teams of eight players instead of the traditional East vs. West matchup.
Team Shaq, coached by Shaquille O’Neal and led by Stephen Curry, won the inaugural tournament, defeating Team Chuck 41-25.
Curry and Jayson Tatum combined for 27 points as Team Shaq cruised to victory in the new-look All-Star Game.
Playing on his home court at Golden State’s Chase Center, Curry hit a string of three-pointers to help his team dominate Charles Barkley’s Team Chuck.
Boston Celtics star Tatum added 15 points in a starting lineup that included Durant, Damian Lillard and James Harden.
Team Shaq faced a setback before tipoff when Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James withdrew due to a lingering foot and ankle injury.
Even without James, the veteran squad controlled the game against a Team Chuck lineup featuring Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Donovan Mitchell.
Curry was named All-Star Game MVP for the second time, following his 2022 win.
“It’s a celebration of a lot of great things—to be able to play with these guys for as long as we have,” Curry said after receiving the award.
“It’s our responsibility to put on a show, and I thank them for helping me do that,” he added, gesturing toward his teammates.
The NBA introduced the new format following criticism that the annual midseason event had become a meaningless exhibition lacking competitiveness.
The traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference setup was replaced with a four-team mini-tournament. Each squad was coached by basketball legends O’Neal, Barkley, Kenny Smith and Candace Parker.
Games were played to a first-to-40 points rule rather than the standard four-quarter format.
However, the changes received mixed reactions.
Curry’s Golden State teammate Draymond Green, serving as a TV analyst, criticized the new setup during the broadcast.
“You work all year to be an All-Star, and you get to play up to 40 and then you’re done? C’mon, what are we doing? This is ridiculous,” Green said. “This sucks. It ain’t basketball.”
But Lillard supported the format, saying it made the game more competitive.
“I think they were just looking for a more competitive game and trying to find ways to create that,” Lillard said.
“I thought tonight was a little bit more competitive than the last few years. The main goal was to provide entertainment and bring back competitiveness, and I think we did that tonight.”
